Some said it looks like Seat decapitated the three-door Ibiza SC via guillotine, while others had a few chuckles thinking about how appropriate a real-life size Barbie doll would look inside the car, but if you ask Seat, the Ibiza Cupster is a “radical pocket rocket for driver and passenger alike” that looks pretty cool.
“With its flat silhouette, powerful proportions and low seating position, the CUPSTER is the resolute embodiment of SEAT’s dynamic brand values,” said Seat Vice President of R&D, Matthias Rabe. “In design and in sporting character, the CUPSTER is the ultimate Ibiza variant – and it delivers driving joy in its purest form.”
Revealed at this week’s Wörthersee GTI meeting in Austria, the Cupster is largely the same as the regular-production model up to the shoulder line, while everything above is open, with Seat designing a wraparound strip of glass for the passenger compartment. It also deleted the rear seats and pushed the down the driving position by 70mm.
The one-off concept that’s finished in a unique “New Orange” paintwork draws its power from a 178hp / 180PS 1.4-liter TSI engine paired to a DSG dual-clutch transmission driving the front wheels.
By John Halas
PHOTO GALLERY
h