Review: CUPRA Tavascan

CUPRA markets the Tavascan as its first electric SUV although it doesn’t conform to many of the styling cues you’d expect from an SUV.

Although it’s large it is beautifully streamlined, not all rugged and looks more like a jacked-up coupe than anything else. As such, it is probably going to appeal to the well-heeled younger end of the car-buying public.

Apart from looking rather splendid, the Tavascan delivers a rewarding drive and has an official battery range of an impressive 352 miles on a single charge. Even taking into account the vagaries of real-world driving it makes it a viable proposition for anyone who wants it for more than a local commute.

Ours was the 282bhp single motor rear-wheel drive model and there is also a two-motor AWD model delivering 335bhp.

The top speed of our test car is pegged at 112mph and it has an official 0-62mpg time of 6.8 seconds.

You can change driver profile settings through Comfort, Performance and CUPRA. We kept it in Comfort for most of the week and ramped it up to CUPRA when we wanted a blast on a fast, twisty road.

The regenerative braking takes some getting used to - as it does in most electric cars - but once mastered you can manage to slow the car smoothly.

The sporty styling does compromise rear visibility through the back windscreen - but at least it has one, unlike the Polestar 4. This is addressed with a rearview camera and front and rear parking sensors.

The interior is nicely styled with a distinctive design straight through the middle. The majority of functions are controlled through the 15in infotainment screen.

It’s not difficult to navigate through the menus but I would like manufacturers to consider leaving a few buttons and switches available so operating important functions can be done on the move.

It features a seven-speaker system (12 in higher-spec V2 and above), voice control, two USBs in the front and two in the back, wireless phone charging and wireless phone integration.

And annoyingly, as with many of the newer VW cars, there are only two buttons for the four windows. You have to switch it over to 'rear' if you want to open them.

Seating for all five occupants is comfortable, despite the sloping roofline, and even the middle rear seat passenger should have little to complain about. But when there are only two rear passengers, an armrest would be nice - again you have to go up a spec for that.

The boot has a decent 540 litre capacity and opens electrically with the wave of a foot underneath.

The Tavascan is not cheap. The entry-level V1 we tested comes in at £47,340. It had an optional Winter Pack (£1,335) which was most welcome. This has a heat pump to warm up the car's interior more efficiently and adds heated seats and steering wheel.

CUPRA Tavascan

Price: £47,340 (£48,675 as tested)

Engine: 77KwH

Power: 282bhp

Torque: 402lb/ft

Transmission: Automatic

Top speed: 112mph

0-62mph: 6.8seconds

CO 2 emissions:0g/km

EV range:352 miles on a full charge