Cupra range to expand with Raval small EV, large SUV to follow

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Cupra will continue its local model offensive with the Cupra Raval – a compact hot hatch shaping up to become the battery electric (BEV) equivalent to cult favourites like the Hyundai i20 N and Volkswagen Polo GTI.

A large SUV is also set to come to Australia to sit at the other end of Cupra’s model spectrum.

The VW Group’s Spanish brand is aiming to keep the accelerator planted on its Australian range expansion, following recent launches of the Terramar petrol/hybrid and Tavascan electric midsize SUVs.

Spain’s electric Mini Cooper locked in for Australia

With the Raval set to be revealed in late 2025, with production kicking off at Cupra’s Martorell, Spain factory, an Australian launch could squeeze into late 2026 though early 2027 is more likely.

“Raval is something we are working very hard to bring to Australia as quickly as we can. There will be a lot of news towards the end of the year, and early 2026, at a global level and I can’t wait to see the final reveal,” Cupra Australia’s head of marketing, Jeff Shafer, told Chasing Cars.

The electric-only Raval is based on a lower-cost version of the Volkswagen Group’s MEB Entry platform. Cupra led the development of the front-wheel-drive firecracker, which will share a production line with the Volkswagen ID.2 and Skoda Epiq.

The Raval is the production version of the Urban Rebel concept. It will measure around 4036mm in length (on a 2600mm wheelbase) with height of about 1576mm, making it similar in size to the three-door Mini Cooper.

In Europe, two Spain-built batteries will be available (of around 38kWh and 56kWh in usable capacity) with the longest-range version offering about 450km, though the hottest high-performance trim, which is said to have 166kW of power, will have slightly less range.

While BEVs sold in Australia have tended to concentrate on long range to allay buyer anxieties, local Cupra executives believe Aussies will begin to accept that some BEVs can have less range than others, opening them up to second-car status alongside something with a bigger battery.

“We want to offer a choice for customers who have different needs in their commuting. There might be a car (in their garage) that is more used as a primary vehicle, and therefore it needs to be a bit more of an all-rounder,” Shafer said.

“There are some cars that might be more focused on being the second car in a household, and they can be a bit more urban-focused and about that compact size that works well in the city. Raval definitely has a space within that framework.”

Large Cupra SUV still to come despite America difficulties

On the long-range front, Cupra Australia’s other BEVs get the job done – the Tavascan midsize SUV offers 534km range (WLTP) in Endurance trim, while the Born hatch returns in 2026, in hotter VZ trim, with 557km range (WLTP). A smaller battery Born trim will follow at a lower price.

At the other end of the range, Chasing Cars understands that development continues on a large Cupra SUV model despite the Spanish performance arm of the Volkswagen Group deferring its entry to the United States market due to tariffs and wobbling BEV demand there. 

Understood to be a five-seater, rather than a seven-seater, the large SUV was intended to be electric-only and was described by then-Cupra chief executive Wayne Griffiths as “pretty big for Europe [and] big enough for the US.”

Under the skin, the Cupra large SUV is intended to use the Volkswagen Group’s SSP platform, which should be ready for production in 2028, though further delays to SSP might trigger a shift to the PPE platform utilised by the Porsche Macan and Audi Q6 E-tron.

While the deferral of US market entry might also delay the large Cupra SUV, increasing European preferences for crossovers – as well as the hole in the brand’s local lineup which is capped by the 4644mm-long Tavascan midsizer – means reasons still exist to go ahead.

“At Cupra we view product as very much a global exercise. It is not a brand that tends to do product for Europe and [other] product for the rest of the world [such as] the US,” said Shafer.

“When you look at the [Cupra Australia] range, we offer the full spectrum here. There are discussions about a larger SUV, which would be directed at the US market but available to other markets like Australia. I think there is room for a product like that in our range.”

Next-gen Formentor progressing, Dark Rebel uncertain While Cupra remains interested in building a production version of the Dark Rebel supercar/shooting brake concept, headwinds exaggerated by global economic conditions have probably reduced its probability. 

Work is also progressing on the second-generation of the Formentor small/midsize SUV, which is Cupra’s global best-seller. While the next-gen Formentor was also intended to use SSP as a BEV-only model, it is not known whether Cupra will keep a combustion version alive long-term.

In the meantime, Cupra plans to tweak its Australian lineup to increase the role played by BEV models, and plug-in hybrid (PHEV) trim grades, over time, including eventually in high-performance grades that, like the Formentor VZx and Leon VZx, currently use non-hybrid turbo petrols.

“We’ll be looking at how (Cupra) engines evolve over time, so that even engines at the (high) performance end of the spectrum can benefit from other technologies being applied,” Shafer said.

“We will be looking at what we can do with our electrified vehicle range in terms of making sure that we are balancing out the portfolio – we have more BEVs in the pipeline as well.”