THE VOLKSWAGEN GROUP IS EXTENDING its portfolio in Australia with the introduction of another name foreign to most Aussie buyers.
It has been announced that the Cupra performance brand will launch locally with a mid-size coupe-SUV in Q2 2022. Cupra was formerly applied to performance SEAT models in Europe.
Cupra President Wayne Griffiths at the company’s annual press conference. “I can announce that next year we will start our operations in Australia as a key move towards expanding in the Asia-Pacific region. Australia is a young market and Cupra is a young brand. Customers are looking for new brands, there is a high middle-class income and it is a progressive society. We are confident that Cupra can be successful in this country,” he said.
While seniordriveraus agrees that Australians are very open-minded, we aren’t so sure they are willing to embrace new and, to them, unknown brands. On the other hand, the value-based Chinese brands have carved out a market niche quite quickly, so we may be proved wrong, although a performance sub-brand may be a very different proposition. It isn’t yet known if Cupra will get a dedicated dealer network (an expensive proposition) or sell alongside Volkswagens (which didn’t work with Škoda) or through Škoda showrooms (15-odd in NSW, nine in Victoria, six in Queensland, three in SA, three in WA, three in Tasmania, and one in the ACT). And the potential for brand cannibalisation with Cupra potentially stealing sales from Volkswagen, Škoda and even Audi, would appear to be a real risk.
“Volkswagen Group Australia is expanding,” VGA’s Managing Director Michael Bartsch said. “With its unique models combining stimulating style and contemporary performance, Cupra could scarcely be a range better bespoke to a certain Australian customer set.”
A new proposition in the market
Cupra is an unconventional challenger brand based on stimulating style and contemporary performance that inspires the world from Barcelona with progressive cars and experiences. Launched in 2018, Cupra has its own corporate headquarters and a racing car workshop close to Barcelona (Spain), in addition to a network of specialized points of sale around the world.
In only three years in the market, Cupra has exceeded initial expectations by selling more than 70,000 cars since launch. It has grown year by year exponentially and even in 2020, during the pandemic lockdown, achieved a record result by growing double digit versus 2019. These outstanding results were possible thanks to the strong performance of the Cupra Ateca, a high-performance Tiguan-sized SUV with 220kW; the Cupra Leon, a Golf-sized hatch and the brand’s best-selling compact; as well as the market entry of the Cupra Formentor, an SUV coupé and the first model uniquely designed and developed for the brand.
In 2021, Cupra aims to prove that electrification and sportiness are a perfect match with the launch of the plug-in hybrid versions of the Cupra Leon and the Cupra Formentor and with the market entry of the brand’s first 100 percent electric model, the Cupra Born. With these three models, the brand has a complete line up to strengthen its globalisation.
While it is not known if the Formentor will launch as a PHEV, if it does, it will pre-empt EVs from both Volkswagen and Skoda onto the Australian market.
Cupra Tavascan joins the range
Griffiths also confirmed production of its second 100 percent electric model, the Cupra Tavascan, based on the MEB platform of the Volkswagen Group. It will be designed and developed in Barcelona and will reach Europe and overseas markets in 2024.
Further details of the brand’s Australian debut will be revealed shortly.
So who or what is Cupra?
Cupra was previously a nameplate on SEAT performance models; now it is positioned as a performance and lifestyle sub-brand.
SEAT, as some readers may recall, was sold in Australia as a value-brand in the 1990s through an independent distributor. It failed to gain traction in the market and was withdrawn within five years.
The Cupra Formentor is already on sale in New Zealand, offered with a choice of 140kW and 228kW turbo engines. It is priced around $5000 below the new Mk8 Volkswagen Golf GTI.
The new brand is the first non-Chinese new entrant into the Australian market in ten years. The Cupra brand will be part of the expanded and revised Volkswagen-Audi presence in Australia.
Cupra will participate this year in the off-road electric SUV’s competition Extreme E. Moreover, it is also FC Barcelona’s official automotive and mobility partner and World Padel Tour’s premium sponsor. The Cupra Tribe is made up of a team of ambassadors who share the brand values, such as the German goalkeeper Marc ter Stegen, the Swedish driver Mattias Ekström and five of the best padel players in the world, among others.
seniordriveraus will bring you more information and details as they come to hand.