Cupra has announced it will be introducing a pair of electrified models “that nobody has seen yet” by 2024. During an online presentation celebrating the brand’s fourth anniversary, Cupra boss Wayne Griffiths revealed the two silhouettes of the upcoming models next to the UrbanRebel concept we saw late last year.
The specific use of “electrified” suggests that at least one of the new models will feature a petrol/electric powertrain. However, speaking with DrivingElectric after the event, Griffiths did reveal that: “One of them may not be fully electric; electrified.
“We believe up to 2030 there will still be demand for combustion, hybrid, plug-in hybrid and you have to offer that solution – particularly while the infrastructure is not there.”
The car on the right in the image above does look to have a distinctive coupe-esque roofline, with a similar stance to the Ford Mustang Mach-E SUV. This leads us to believe that this particular model could be Cupra’s take on an electric coupe SUV – the popularity of which has grown in recent years.
Both the Volkswagen ID.5 and recently unveiled Skoda Enyaq Coupe iV are already offered with almost 300bhp, so we expect the Cupra model would make use of the same dual-motor powertrain found in the ID.5 GTX and Coupe iV vRS. If correct, the forthcoming Cupra could serve as a rival for the zero-emissions Alpine GT X-Over that’s confirmed for 2025.
Meanwhile, the other car in the left of the image has a much lower profile and long roofline suggesting that it could be an estate car or a shooting brake. We suspect this future Cupra could be the latter, given that the performance-oriented brand already makes the Leon e-Hybrid estate.
But, Griffiths was reluctant to put either mystery new car into a specific segment. “I can tell you that they will be in segments that are growing,” he said. “There will be, I think in a lot of cases, cross-over [in segments]. Not in a classical segment. There will always be something that is a mixture, something unique. Instead of just a classical SUV, or a classical coupe, or a classical sedan.
“There’s a lot between those”, he added. “There are concepts of shooting brakes, sportbacks and all sorts of things that are possible. But I think those two cars, from a Cupra perspective have to add, not substitute. There is still room for more cars.”
Griffiths did admit, however, that to get cars signed off they “have to make sense for [Cupra] as well as the Volkswagen Group”. We expected more details and the first images of the new models will be drip fed to us over the coming months, as at least one will be fully unveiled before the year is up. The second being reserved for a 2023 debut.
These aren’t the only models from the Spanish performance brand confirmed to be on the horizon. After the launch of the Born electric hatchback this year comes the Cupra Tavascan flagship zero-emissions SUV in 2024, followed by an entry-level EV the year after.
We got our first look at the brand’s future Renault 5 rival in the shape of the radical UrbanRebel race-car concept, with Griffiths hinting at its unveiling that the car would cost just over €20,000 (around £17,000) when it goes on sale in 2025
That’s slightly higher than the expected price tag for the Cupra’s sister models from Volkswagen: the Polo-sized ID.1 and the ID.2 crossover are also set to hit the streets around the same time.
