Cupra Formentor VZ5 2026 review

There are two ways of thinking about the most special Cupra model ever launched in Australia — the incoming $101,990-driveaway, five-cylinder Formentor VZ5.

A glass-half-empty view says this is an incredibly expensive Cupra.

Consider that Volkswagen’s cool-kid brand is hocking stock of the hottest four-cylinder VZx version of the Formentor for just $51,990 driveaway. You’re being asked to double your money for, ostensibly, one additional cylinder.

Then again: glass-half-full sorts will note that despite having breached six figures, the five-pot Formentor represents a huge discount over the car that donated its engine: the Audi RS3.

Simply getting an Aussie allocation of the Audi RS3 is tough enough and if you manage the feat, Audi dealers ask $117,000 driveaway for the hatch model, another $7400 for lashings of carbon the Formentor throws in for free, and $3000 more for the sedan.

The Cupra is, on paper, an SUV, making it more comparable to the Audi RSQ3 Sportback that hasn’t officially been sold in this country since 2024.

With fewer than 100 units of the Formentor VZ5 set to be built for Australian customers, we think there will be demand.

Cupra fans better move quickly because with the RSQ3 still shelved, there’s every chance it will be rusted-on Audi types hurrying to write their $102K cheques.

While on paper the Formentor VZ5 might seem like it asks an outrageous premium over the already well-rated four-cylinder version, its powertrain is special and now, truly rare.

In this era of hardline combustion vehicle emissions enforcement, the Volkswagen Group is winding down production of the high-CO2 five-cylinder, and its late-in-life appearance in the Formentor is a bit of a miracle.

We have little doubt the VZ5 will be the most memorable and sought-after version of the first-generation Formentor. It is hard to see how it would not command the best residuals.

Helping its case is that virtually every feature, bar premium ($790) or matte ($3300) paint, will be standard.

Specs start with the 287kW/480Nm ‘EA855 evo’ 2.5-litre turbo five-cylinder engine, seven-speed wet dual-clutch automatic and new torque vectoring rear differential with drift mode borrowed from the RS3.

Included are adaptive dampers, six-piston Akebono front brakes, 20-inch black/copper alloys, and VZ5-specific exterior detailing: an engraved carbon front splitter, broadened wheel arches, stacked quad copper exhaust outlets and a new rear bumper with carbon insert.

Inside, Cupra has added serious carbon Sabelt CUP bucket seats in Seaqual recycled fabric and Dinamica suede to a high-grade Formentor cabin that features a Sennheiser stereo and opening glass roof.

With first Australian deliveries scheduled for the leadup to Christmas, should you consider dropping significant coin on the Formentor VZ5?

How does the Formentor VZ5 drive?

The magic and the mystique of the Formentor VZ5 is found in the fitment of the five-cylinder rather than in any significant change to the way this sports SUV drives.

It really is all about the 287kW/480Nm 2.5-litre engine and specifically about the noise it makes as the cylinders fire in their signature offbeat 1-2-4-5-3 order.

Frankly, the ‘one grade down’ version of this Cupra — which uses a 228kW/400Nm version of Volkswagen’s ubiquitous ‘EA888’ 2.0-litre four-cylinder — is already quick enough.

The Formentor VZ5 is not about providing enormous additional performance and in many cases the ‘five does not feel meaningfully quicker than the ‘four.

It is true that the 4.2 second 0-100km/h time of the 2.5-litre is 15 percent swifter than the 4.9 second claim of the 2.0-litre but much of the extra punch hits at the top of the rev range.

Low-speed drivability of the VZ5 trails the four-cylinder as the 2.5 TFSI has a slight lack of low-end torque and its partnership with the seven-speed DCT is more agricultural.

We suspect that not only are most buyers well-served by the four-cylinder but that the smaller engine makes for smoother progress when commuting.

But that misses the point. First, there’s the VZ5’s utter rarity — and then there’s the fact that the five-cylinder delights when you finally get the time to find a great road and pedal it hard.

Equipped with the five-cylinder, the Formentor levels up beyond its respectable reputation for engaging handling and good steering as it now has the aural character to match.

While Cupra equips the four-cylinder versions with artificial sound augmentation, the VZ5’s natural and interesting sound repeatedly had us chasing wide-open throttle.

Compared to the ‘four, the VZ5 feels less tractable at lower revs with huge boost landing all at once at about 2200rpm and barely letting off until peak power hits toward 7000rpm.

There is a small weight penalty to be paid for opting for the larger engine, but the gain is minimal at about 60kg. The VZ5 clocks 1701kg in running order.

That means most of the Formentor’s core dynamic attributes are maintained, including its feelsome and communicative chassis that rotates naturally around its centrepoint.

However, Cupra appears to have ‘beefed up’ the electric power steering weight for the VZ5 as the tiller has an artificially muscular resistance we don’t remember from the four-cylinder.

That’s a shame as light yet precise steering is one of the standard Formentor’s best attributes.

Uniquely among Formentors — for now — the VZ5 adds the Volkswagen Group’s torque vectoring rear differential tech already deployed in the RS3 and the Golf R.

With 50 percent of the engine’s torque capable of being sent to the rear axle, the VZ5’s differential allows all of that muscle to be sent to just one rear wheel.

Drift mode (engaged via the central touchscreen) fully disables electronic stability control and allows for significant power oversteer moments.

In other markets, Cupra has already trickled the new differential onto the top four-cylinder version and that could happen in Australia, too.

A milder ESC Sport setting can be selected in combination with road-focussed drive modes, affording noticeable on-throttle adjustment.

Ride quality on standard low-profile 20-inch wheels is understandably firm with compliance variable through a heady 15 settings but potholes send a clunk up into the cabin.

We suspect drivers won’t mind, but the VZ5 naturally does nothing to change the Formentor’s relatively noisy cabin and marginal refinement on coarse-chip roads.

How is the Formentor VZ5’s interior?

Cupra does not profess to build luxury cars and the Formentor’s cabin is not six-figure plush, but given the cash goes into the unique mechanicals, we can forgive the mismatch.

Plus, the Formentor’s interior is easy to like and operate even if it isn’t at an Audi level in terms of tactility. Again, the VZ5 is 25 percent cheaper than an RS3.

Cupra has nailed the core ergonomics inside the Formentor with a natural relationship between the low-set driving position and placement of the leather-bound steering wheel.

Drivers can get genuinely low in the Formentor because unlike a Volkswagen Tiguan or Audi Q3, the Formentor essentially uses the VW Golf Wagon fork of the underlying MQB platform.

While it is vaguely styled like an SUV outside, the Formentor floorplan is closer to the road, and you feel more like you are sitting in a fast estate.

And that’s despite standard fitment of 12-way power-adjustable carbon buckets in the VZ5. They’re clad in a desirable non-leather mix of fabric and Dinamica, but they are heated.

Supremely supportive with hugely tall bolsters, bigger-framed drivers may want to check the Sabelt pews fit them comfortably. This tester is quite lanky and they worked very well.

Beyond the seats, there are few VZ5-specific inclusions inside the dearest Formentor. An interesting change is that the top-grade substitutes copper detailing for subtle greys.

The perforated steering wheel incorporates physical shortcut buttons and rollers in a win for usability. These control a highly functional digital instrument cluster.

Controlling the 12.9-inch, driver-orientated central screen is more of a touch-based affair but upgrades to clarity and processing power makes it easy enough.

Our wireless CarPlay connection was flawless, and a climate control bar sits permanently on-screen for rapid adjustment.

Audio quality from the Sennheiser is not the last word in crispness but it does the job.

While door skins and now the centre console tunnel are trimmed in stitched soft material, hardier stuff below the beltline reveals Cupra’s status as a non-luxury brand.

But the material mix is hardly offensive, and you get the sense you can live with a Formentor every day. Plenty of storage and thoughtful touches like an adjustable armrest help, too.

Back seat space is adequate for carrying two more adults, but a narrow and tall rear centre position means that while capacity for five is offered, it is not advisable.

Boot space measures 420 litres, reflecting the Formentor’s sizing, straddling the small and midsize SUV segments in Australia.

No spare tyre is available due to relocation of the 12-volt battery away from the engine bay, though the rear seats fold flat and a power tailgate is standard fare.

What are the Formentor VZ5’s ownership costs?

The Formentor VZ5 has 25 percent more engine than the four-cylinder car and, in our testing, it uses about 25 percent more fuel as well.

We covered about 400km across town, highway, country roads and hilly routes and consumed an average of 13.9L/100km for real-world range of 396km from a 55-litre tank.

If you try, you can get the consumption down to high single figures on a motorway journey, stretching the usable range out to 600km or so.

Still, this isn’t an SUV you buy for fuel efficiency!

Formentor buyers seeking the most frugal option might instead choose the 1.5-litre plug-in hybrid version of this SUV.

Cupra Australia has not published service pricing for the Formentor VZ5 as yet. A five-year maintenance pack for the four-cylinder version costs $1990.

Expect Cupra’s standard five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty to be retained for the VZ5.

The honest verdict on the Formentor VZ5

At the end of the day, the Cupra Formentor VZ5 is fast, fun and rewarding to drive.

And so is the four-cylinder version that is (currently) available for half the price of the five-pot.

The existing turbo ‘four Formentor remains one of our favourite sports SUVs and with current deep discounts the value for money on offer is staggering.

What the VZ5 brings to the table is five-cylinder rarity scarcely offered by the Volkswagen Group and nearly never available beyond the Audi stable.

While the four-cylinder versions of the Formentor are fantastic cars, their powertrains can be found across vast swathes of the VW, Skoda and Audi lineups.

By contrast, the five-cylinder Formentor will be very special and very limited.

As the era of high-power, high-emission, non-hybrid combustion cars appears to come to a gentle close in Australia, cars like this will become harder to find.

When you think of it like that, the $102K pricetag seems quite understandable indeed.