- Cupra’s Terramar has been spotted completely undisguised ahead of a launch later this year.
- The compact SUV is closely related to Europe’s new VW Tiguan and will be offered with mild hybrid and PHEV powertrains.
- Terramar will eventually share showroom space with the Tavascan, a fastback SUV based on VW’s ID.5 coupe-SUV.
Spinning Cupra off from Seat to become its own entity has worked well for VW, and the sporty Spanish brand is only going to grow stronger when its new line of SUVs comes through. One of them is the Terramar, and our spy photo team has just snapped it completely undisguised.
The Terramar is Cupra’s answer to Europe’s new VW Tiguan, though you’d be hard pressed to tell by looking at it. Both cars ride on VW’s latest MQB Evo platform and fit into the compact SUV category, but while the Tiguan goes for soft, non-threatening curves, the Terramar comes over much angrier.
Related: Do You Think Cupra Will Succeed In America?
A gaping black grille and menacing swept-back headlights with three LED triangles for DRLs on each side make it look like this Cupra is trying to bawl you out, while the rear LED light bar is more angular than the one on the VW, and there’s a prominent diffuser slung under the bumper.
Like the Euro Tiguan, the 177-inch (4,500 mm) Terramar will only offer room for five and is expected to use a very similar collection of 1.5 and 2.0-liter combustion engines. Some will feature mild-hybrid assistance, and a couple will be PHEVs that could deliver as much as 70 miles (113 km) of electric range. A seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission will be standard but buyers should get the option of front- or all-wheel drive, though not all engines will be available in both configurations.
Some of you might remember that we actually saw the Terramar undisguised more than two years ago when Cupra rolled it out alongside the UrbanRebel (a Cupra version of VW’s upcoming ID.2 since renamed Raval) and the Tavascan (based on VW’s ID.5). The fact that the Terramar hasn’t changed at all since that appearance is a reminder of how far in advance of a car going on sale the final design is locked down.
The Terramar is expected to debut in August of this year and will be built alongside the related Audi Q3 and Cupra’s Formentor in Hungary. It won’t come to America, but Cupra has vowed to enter the US market by the end of the decade with an electric version of next-gen Formentor as well as a larger crossover SUV that will be built in North America.