Larger Cupra electric SUV confirmed for Australia

Cupra’s flagship large electric SUV will make its way into Australian dealerships when it is released by the end of this decade.

The electric large SUV has been designed for the US market, where it will spearhead the Spanish brand’s launch by 2030, alongside the next-generation electric Formentor.

While still about five years from production, the as-yet-unnamed SUV – which fits in the same category as a Hyundai Santa Fe – will be built in North America in left- and right-hand drive, paving the way for what will be the new Cupra flagship to make its way to Australia.

That is according to Cupra global CEO, Wayne Griffiths, who said “yeah, definitely” when asked by assembled Australian media last week if the new vehicle will be built with the steering wheel on both sides.

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“I mean, we would need global volume,” he said. “Definitely, the bigger SUV we’re looking at for the US will be sold globally in Europe and Australia.”

The upcoming large SUV is expected to use the VW Group's next-generation SSP electric-car platform, and Mr Griffiths confirmed it will not feature seven seats.

“I don’t think Cupra, the brand, is [focused on selling] a family car,” he said, “so I don’t think it’s going to have seven seats.”

However, Mr Griffiths said: “It’s going to be big, and it is big. We have the design models already ready; it’s a very impressive car in terms of design.”

Despite fitting into the ‘large SUV’ category, Mr Griffiths claimed the new vehicle would remain true to the brand’s focus on sporty, fun-to-drive cars.

“[It’s] not a classic SUV, a crossover, sportier in line with what Cupra is all about,” he said. “But it’s big. It’s certainly big for Europe, and I think it’s big enough for the US.”

Mr Griffiths confirmed last week the Spanish brand would enter the US market in selected states by the end of the decade with two electric models – the next-generation Formentor small to mid-size SUV, and a "bigger electric crossover SUV" to be built in North America.

“We would need global volume… the idea would be to build one of the cars that we want to sell in the US in the North American region,” said the Cupra executive. “That’s important for feasibility and for the business case.

“I think if you want to sell cars in the US ... not all of them, but some of them you need to build in the US.”