Cupra Formentor review

Who turned out the lights? It’s dark inside the Formentor, despite the lashings of bronze trim and the arc of ambient lighting that loops around the dash and onto the doors. It’s a bit of a pity the cabin is so obviously inherited from Seat and wasn’t really updated with the facelift (in contrast to the bespoke bodywork), but the bean counters clearly won the boardroom over.

We question the logic of some of Cupra’s flourishes: the engine stop and mode buttons on the steering wheel are easily confused, and at least once you’ll prod the ESP-off button next to the stubby gear selector, assuming that’s the engine start button (it is in the Ateca, after all).

I'll try to get used to it. What else?

There’s much to like, though: the leather-trimmed bucket seats up front (standard in higher spec models) are fantastic, there’s plenty of oddment storage and though the materials employed are sub-Audi, it’s all tightly put together.

Front and centre is the new VW Group 12.9-inch touchscreen infotainment. The screen size and resolution is very impressive, although the cheery coloured menus will take some learning, especially as there’s nowhere to brace your hand as you tap and swipe, so arriving at your chosen radio station can be a lottery.

More woes from the VW Group's button allergy?

Like on the facelifted Mk8.5 VW Golf, the touch sensitive heater and volume controls are now illuminated. Hurrah! A win for common sense. The screen now features a proper row of permanently displayed shortcuts for climate control along the bottom too, and all you need to do to switch off the annoying speed limit warning and lane-keep assist is swipe down from the top of the screen to open up some more shortcuts. 

Cupra has avoided the annoying VW Group touch sensitive ‘buttons’ on steering wheels too, so you get proper physical controls at your fingertips. Great driving position, too.

Is it practical?

The back seats offer enormous legroom, and because Cupra’s interpretation of a ‘coupe-SUV’ doesn’t have a particularly swoopy roof, there’s plenty of headroom too. Eat your heart out, BMW X4. That said, while adults will be pleasantly surprised just how roomy the Formentor is, children not perched on booster seats will moan they’re missing out on a view of the countryside as it rushes past. The rear window is slim for style’s sake too, but luckily the parking cameras are some of the best in the business.

If you live the outdoor adventure life of someone in an SUV advert, you’ll be pleased to learn the boot is fairly generous with a reasonably low loading sill and nets for lashing down errant items. It does depend greatly on what engine you go for, mind: the base petrol offers you 450 litres of bootspace, but adding AWD nabs 30 litres of that and the PHEV version of the car has a less impressive 345 litres available.