Cupra Formentor VZx 2026 review

The Cupra Formentor has cemented itself as a firm Chasing Cars office favourite not merely because it distills solid Volkswagen Group DNA through a strictly sporty filter – a hallmark of all of the Spanish marque’s models – but because this small crossover appeases both head and heart particularly well.

Broadly speaking, the Formentor takes what so many love about fast Golfs, rebodies it in an achingly stylised crossover body style, amalgamating SUV practicality with sports car manners and fast wagon gearhead appeal…with less ‘me-too’ Volkswagen schtick. It’s an imaginative choice, at a sub-VW price, using the same nuts and bolts.

The Formentor’s MY26 midlife facelift arriving in local showrooms brings changes up and down a mildly reconfigured four-variant lineup that, in the coming months, will be joined by a mighty newcomer in VZ5, lifting its five-cylinder heartbeat from Audi’s RS3 for tens of thousands of dollar less. See the appeal?

While, ahem, outright sales numbers and growth of Cupra’s “tribe” (owners) haven’t quite matched the brand’s aggressive range expansion, its lineup selectively plugs pigeonholes in places that Volkswagen and Audi don’t. For petrolheads among us, the aforementioned Formentor VZ5 and upcoming Leon VZx Sports Tourer are increasingly rare and enticing options in 2026.

The MY26 Formentor lineup is…interesting. It’s a diverse powertrain and trim selection across a broad pricing band to maximise appeal, if minted in Cupra’s signature Dark Knight Gothic styling theme that’s inimitable enough to polarise. It’s easy to see how Volkswagen’s middling mainstream schtick is more popular with measurably more Aussie buyers.

Classically, Formentor’s two shinier gems have been the VZx, which twins itself with the heroic Golf R, and the VZ, itself broadly a crossover remake of the Golf GTI formula. In facelift, the latter is on hiatus.

The new, reconfigured variant choice is outlined below. And while Chasing Cars drove all of them at the recent local launch program – and will review those in due course – the main game in this review is the tree-topping (for now) VZx, the performance grade for what, in all appearances, seems like a performance lineup.

What are the Formentor VZx’s features and options for the price?

The changes to the MY26 facelift of the Cupra (short for ‘Cup Racing’) Formentor (a town in Spanish Majorca) include a new ‘shark nose’ front fascia, triangular DRLs, redesigned rear end with illuminated Cupra logo, new wheel designs and a refresh paint colour palette.

Inside is a larger 12.9-inch media touchscreen with enhanced software features, while each variant is treated to minor detail changes.

The range kicks off with the S grade, priced from $49,990 list. The sole front-driver is powered by 1.5-litre turbo petrol engine with 48-volt mild hybrid, paired with a seven-speed DSG and bringing 5.5L/100km frugality and leisurely 9.0sec 0-100km/h ‘performance’. If you want the look without the go and you’re on a budget…

Outside of the broader range changes, there’s not a lot specifically new for the S grade, though standard equipment is quite decent for its price point. This is especially in the tech department, where the base grade fits dual digital screens, sat-nav, a 360-degree camera, three-zone climate control, wireless phone charging, heated seats/steering wheel, power tailgate, et al.

All of these are good inclusions, some of which are usually reserved for mid-to-high-grade variants in some premium marques, let alone a mainstream brand such as Cupra.

The staple one-rung-up V makes a return at $57,990 list. Credentials jump with a turbo petrol 2.0-litre engine good for 150kW and 320Nm paired with all-wheel drive. Performance lifts significantly to 6.7sec 0-100km/h with, of course, a consumption penalty (7.0L/100km claimed).

Other than a lift to 19-inch ‘Sandstorm’ rolling stock (from the S grade’s 18s), the features list is otherwise identical, the added eight-grand outlay almost entirely invested in added pace.

Now omitted from the Formentor line-up — some would argue, sadly — is the old mid-range 180kW/370Nm VZ, essentially a Golf GTI twin.

The penultimate grade, price wise, is the sole PHEV version called VZe ($68,990 list): 1.5L turbo petrol with ‘Gen-II’ hybrid capable of 114kms of electric range, (11kW) AC and (50kW) DC charging capability and 200kW/400Nm combined outputs.

A stellar efficiency claim (1.7L/100km), but this relatively heavy front-driver is, at 7.2sec 0-100km/h, no rocketship, being outpaced in sheer performance by its $11,500-thriftier V stablemate.

The plug-in version does bring some flagship features, such as adaptive Dynamic Chassis Control suspension, a lift to Moonslate leather appointed seat trim, 12-speaker Sennheiser audio and some details upgrades such as front passenger seats power and memory.

But for just $1000 more ($69,990 list) the ICE-powered VZx is a vastly more potent and driver focussed option.

It features 245kW and 420Nm with all-wheel-drive now benefitting from an electro-mechanical torque-vectoring rear axle: yes, it’s bang on the current MY26 Golf R hatch technical package, in crossover form.

Performance skyrockets to 4.8 seconds for the 0-100km/h sprint (with consumption of 8.3L/100km) and it brings nice gearhead features to the Formentor party, including a forged wheel design, quad exhaust outlets, an added ultimate Cupra drive mode selection and, as per Golf R, a newfound dedicated Drift mode.

Otherwise, brings all of the feature upgrades of the VZe, and both versions can be had with an Extreme Package option, which fits Sabelt Cup carbon-fibre-backed race buckets, Matrix Ultra headlights, dark grey interior accents (in place of copper) and either six-piston Akebono (VZx, $7000) or four-piston Brembo ($6500) front brakes. Matte paint adds $2650.

How does the Formentor VZx drive?

While destined to soon sit in the shadow of the “high-performance” five-cylinder VZ5, the mere “performance” (Cupra’s words) turbo four-pot is still wickedly potent and, as seen in our test of the former, not all that slower to march in the real world.

Its 17kW boost isn’t especially evident in outright thrust, though a) 245kW and 420Nm makes for very handy prowess in any small and relatively lightweight (1668kg) device, and b) the VZx is, in direct back-to-back comparison with lesser Formentor grades, vastly punchier and quicker.

What’s particularly impressive is the breadth of powertrain flexibility. It marches sternly from any road speed, has robust low-rpm muscle, and VAG’s exhaustive experience pairing this EA888 engine with seven dual-clutch forward ratios yields excellent drivability bandwidth.

So not only is this powertrain rarely if ever caught snoozing, it’s behaviour is impressively polished and refined regardless of how it’s driven. It doesn’t need to be wrung out to deliver pace and deft calibration leaves it also surprisingly frugal once the drive dials it back.

The drive modes have received the most tweaking in this update, the VZx’s exclusive red-hot ‘Cupra’ mode hotter than ever – its potency used to be somewhat usable around town, but now it feels best left for the right roads and genuine red mist from the driver.

Of course, the lynchpin in the dynamic updates is the electro-mechanical torque vectoring rear differential, inherited from Audi RS3 via VW Golf R, that can fire up to 100 percent of variable, rear-directed torque feed to one or other of the rear-axle wheels.

At a decent cornering clip, its effects are subtle: a little more mid-corner rotation on throttle, a bit more driven-from-the-rear attitude on corner exit. The thing is, the VZx is so naturally balanced and grippy that the effective ‘rear-steer’ enhancement only rear surfaces when carrying serious corner speeds and with a heavy right foot on exit.

To illustrate its flagship’s newfound dynamic talents, Cupra afforded Chasing Cars the opportunity to drive new VZx against the old version – with its by-brake active rotation assistance – on a wet skidpan at full noise, where cause and effect can be amplified.

Throttle buried, the old car remains mostly an exercise in understeer mitigation. With its tricky diff, the new version does demand some coercion – good corner entry speed, a hefty lift to force weight transition forward to grip the fronts up – but, with Drift mode set and your right foot stomped, it will arc the rubber up and cut furious and heroic four-wheel powerslides.

There are some caveats. It doesn’t ‘drift itself’, but rather demands you to throw – and even fight – it into an attitude where lateral inertia balances with flat-throttle engine output. Too fast and it’s unruly and easy to spin, too slow and it’ll slide like a champ moments before the engine bogs down and you grind to halt. Good fun, within a seemingly narrow window.

The best drift mode your reviewer has ever sampled was the old Ford Focus RS: a brutal, mechanical and wonderfully dynamite drift machine. This Formentor is good – very good – but doesn’t quite have the teeth or the cooperation of the best (and now defunct) drift-friendly systems.

But as a flexible all-rounder, this update feels like a solid improvement. That polish in breadth of the powertrain extends to the active Dynamic Chassis Control suspension.

There’s the familiar 15 modes of adjustment, mostly at its set-and-forget best around the ‘seven’ mark setting, where it’s assertive at body control and noticeably more bump compliant, especially on the move, than the passively damped lower Formentor grades.

A slight downmark is that Formentor still remains a bit fizzy and fidgety around town, where the front axle, in particular, gets a little jolty. Nitpicking, perhaps, for a device so intent on spruiking sporty vibes even when you’re zipping down to the shops for milk and bread.

Perhaps the most inimitable characteristic is the progressive steering: somehow, the Spanish arm can pillage the same parts bin as other VAG brands and still make some models (at least) feel indicatively ‘Cupra’ like.

And that filters down through the rest of the crossover, the brand’s first standalone model and one that remains a breed just that further apart from its Audi and Volkswagen cousins.

The crowning achievement above all else with the Formentor is that, from the hunkered down driver-focused seating to how it squats on the road, it feels genuinely like a sports coupe that became wagon-esque. And nothing about the drive even hints towards an SUV.

To this end, the crossover doesn’t need $7000 of race buckets and six-pot Akebono front brakes to feel fully baked. We drove versions with and without the enhancements, and the latter doesn’t lack any of the spunk and purpose of the former, outside of a racetrack environment.

Further, the cleanskin version’s comfier pews make for arguably a better Jekyll and Hyde proposition.

What is the Formentor VZx’s interior and tech like?

Cupra’s brooding greys and copper highlights make a predictable return, though option for the Extreme Package backs off on the latter brightwork, and the quite tasty petrol blue offered in other models is absent in the Formentor lineup.

It’s purposeful, suitably sporty and ‘mature’ to the point of verging on dour, but if it’s not your bag and you’re after a brighter, more kaleidoscope-like ambience, you’re probably already looking to the (technically related) Golf R.

The Extreme Package’s Sabelt Cup two-piece race-style buckets are real torso huggers, with fat side bolsters and excellent underthigh support. The Seaqual and Dinamica – aka, recycled polyester and plastic-derived fabric – trim is interesting and tactile, the carbon-fibre backs look the biz, and they’re fully electric and heated.

But…the standard VZx, which are leather appointed, are almost just as driver-focused while offering a nicer veneer of comfort. Their slightly more leisurely shape brings better long-haul appeal, while also delivering support on the ribs and thighs.

All variants now fit the excellent Supersport flat-bottom wheel, with drive mode and start-stop select buttons close to hand, and physical controls rather than those oppressive VW-like slider arrays. It’s just a shame the paddleshifters are set so inboard. Not ideal for drivers with short fingers.

The much-maligned temperature and volume strip sliders remain, though they’re now backlit and paired with permanent HVAC controls embedded at the bottom of the slightly enlarged 12.9-inch touchscreen. Band-Aid fixes, but still welcome.

The revised media software is a real charm: very presentable, easy to use, and chock full of clever little shortcut tricks for owners inclined to dig deeper into its UI trick bag. One fun if completely useless easter egg is that the voice command system will tell you a random ‘dad joke’ if prompted…

Otherwise, the design is mostly carryover, save for the slightly remodelled centre console that now has padded sides which, besides looking neater, save your knees for bruising when you brace for track work or drift activities.

Much like its on-road character, the cabin ambience and vibe, particularly up front and in its full Extreme Package glory, feels nothing like an SUV.

Row two is spacious enough for two adults – three aside at an emergency squeeze for short trips – with ample knee and toe room and a surprising amount of headroom given the low-slung crossover roofline. It’s decently packaged for a small car clocking in at under 4.5 metres in length.

Dedicated third-zone temperature control and dual USB-C outlets – to mirror the pair upfront – are fit for its price point, but the hard plastic door trim tops so conspicuous in the second row are low rent for a device that, as tested in its well-optioned guise, sails into the mid-$80K mark on road.

The boot is 420 litres (in all versions bar the smaller-booted PHEV) which expands to 1370L as a two seater. Decent enough, though the wagon-esque load-through volume affords the practicality of fitting a large pushbike if you want to remove a wheel.

Speaking of wheels, the Formentor’s touring chops are enhanced with the fitment of a spacesaver spare wheel (rather than just a goo kit), which is commendable for such a small car featuring all-wheel drive and large six-pot front brakes.

Is the Formentor VZx a safe car?

The Formentor is fitted with a broad suite of active safety features plus a slew of convenience features such as adaptive cruise, travel assist and parking assist.

During our test, the Formentor proved exceptionally well calibrated, with no systems demanding switching off or meddling prior to driving. That said, some of the system must be defeated prior to track or skidpan work to prevent false positives in the heat of the action.

Ten airbags are standard fitment and versions thus equipped are covered by ANCAP five-star rating, first awarded to Formentor back in 2022 though recently updated by the regime to 2025 protocols for this facelifted guise.

The caveat, however, is for versions fitted with the Extreme Package, which go unrated. Why? Because the fitment of the Sabelt Cup race buckets omits some of the incabin airbag coverage.

What are the Formentor VZx’s ownership costs?

At 8.3L/100km combined claimed, the VZx is easily the thirstiest variant in the Formentor lineup for all of the obvious reasons. However, for the performance it flexes its thirst is acceptable. And, as outlined, it’s downright frugal driven gently or on an open road.

The form guide suggests pricey 98-octane fuel, though the high-boost EA888 engine will also run on much cheaper E10.

Servicing, too, is pretty decent for such a wound-up and technical package: $2190 up front for a capped five-year bundle, with intervals of a typical 12 months and 15,000 kilometres.

Warranty is an industry average five years of unlimited-kilometre coverage.

The honest verdict on the Formentor VZx

The facelift VZx takes everything that makes Formentor a firm Chasing Cars top-five favourite and improves it where we want improvements: creating a faster and more fun-filled driver’s tool. Subtle added polish in areas such as interior tech, the user interface and drive mode calibration further improve the breed.

Having sampled all four variants back to back, the spoiler is that the flagship VZx is easily the pick of the litter. The lower-grade S and V versions feel too lightweight for Formentor’s sporty ambition, and the pricey and powerful PHEV feels bloated and dull in the VZx’s company.

Yes, Australia finally gets the manic VZ5 in the coming months, in limited numbers and at a hefty price tag, and that’s what we lust after. But that shouldn’t undermine the breadth and depth that this 245kW drift-ready version offers to keen drivers.

The seven-grand upcharge for the Extreme isn’t that excessive given the big brake and carbonfibre race bucket upgrade, but it’s really for completists and race track regulars…who’ll likely be angling for the VZ5 anyway.

Besides, this regular VZx is realistically no lesser go-fast road car without that Extreme Package indulgence.