Cupra Born

Saw this on YT today.

I really like the grey seats but don't think I can justify the cost with the lack of VRT relief adding so much to it. In saying that, my finance quote was with the Pilot L pack which I couldn't get so maybe the price increase for seats won't be so bad.

Yeah finance quotes are available so you should be able to throw some numbers around with a dealer to get an idea.

We both test drove today and she placed a deposit as a result. Feels a step up from the ID3 and much nicer styling.

Just my luck my dealer hasn't gotten theirs yet!

I'm curious to see what the seat support is like. Fifth Gear said they aren't as supportive as the Cupra Leon which is unusual as they're both bucket seats from the same brand. If the sport seats in my standard Golf are solid I'd like to think these are just as good.

Ah yeah you wouldn't push it that hard on the road but I do like a spirited drive from time to time. I believe he's the only one who didn't like the seats so probably a non issue.

I see Airside Cupra have one listed now too, Vapor Grey. Seems all the demo cars have Hurricane wheels.

He was in the Dinamica seats. I imagine they're a similar base just different material. The cloth seat doesn't have the extending leg support.

Reasons to be cheerful on a Monday

Well then. I had my test drive and was very impressed! A couple of things I'm not gone on if anyone is interested, I can discuss them here.

Otherwise, a very nice car and looking forward to getting my hands on one!

Always good to get feedback from potential owners rather than the journalists. I've watched a ton of reviews and I feel like they're very divided, Autogefuhl or our own Nobby On Cars seem to think there's a bit of tweaking to make it drive a bit sharper, even without DCC or 231hp but others think it's just the same car. It seems like some criticism is just for it being a Seat and people favour the ID.3 for no real reason. We know it's not a GTI and obviously it will be very similar to the ID.3 as it's the same platform (the Leon and Octavia don't seem to get this criticism?) but it does seem like they've done enough to differentiate it.

Long post incoming :)

Called my dealer just before they closed yesterday and arranged a test drive this afternoon. 30 minute spin on my local roads. Nice to go alone so I could focus on the car.

I'll start with the negatives, there isn't many. The seats aren't as buckety as I'd like. In my Golf it feels like you're in the seat whereas the Born feels more like you're on the seat if that makes sense. Support is still ok though. The only real downside is my right leg was on the side support a fair bit, the seat might be offset to the left a bit due to the electric controls?

I'm 6'4 and I had the seat at the lowest, there wasn't any room for a passenger to put their feet under the seat and I definitely couldn't sit behind myself but with a rear passenger I might get away with not having to move my seat for them to get their feet in like in my Golf. The seats are higher due to the batteries so it's less of a drop getting in and out of the car but the seating position is normal so you don't feel like you're sitting upright in an office chair.

Interior is nice. The perforated leather wheel and alcantara door trim make up for the lack of soft plastics which in reality don't lift the cabin at all and are just a talking point for reviewers, the wheel has a nice shape. The HUD is cool looking but pointless in reality.

The ride quality was impressive, I wasn't sure how it would feel on 20" wheels but the tyres are 215/45 which is a 97mm sidewall, 17" wheels on my Golf have 225/45 which is 101mm, a Golf on 18" is 225/40 which is 90mm so the ride won't be harsh due to the wheels. Suspension soaked up bumps quite well, better than my Golf sport suspension. Not sure if it's the weight of the car or just better quality parts with it being Cupra but I'd even consider removing DCC as passenger comfort should be fine. It handles decent too, roundabouts or accelerating out of a corner is solid although you do feel the weight a little bit. Didn't push the car too hard as the Continental EcoContact 6 aren't a performance tyre but traction didn't budge, the heavy RWD combination keeps it planted.

I might switch DCC for dinamica seats. In Drive mode there's no regen when coasting as it's more efficient to just coast but I did notice the smart/active regen when approaching a roundabout or turn without me touching the brakes so it's nice to know you don't need navigation on for that, I believe that can be turned off if you want.

Was this a dealer in Dublin by any chance?

I was told something similar, that removing an option would mean my order would go to the back of the queue and I wouldn't be guaranteed a car this year (not that anyone is guaranteed one to be honest).

Thought it was a bit cheeky and a sales technique in an effort to maximise the price paid... but maybe that's me being overly cynical.

Yea it's poor form alright.

I wonder if you'd get the same hassle if you tried to add an option that increased the sale price? Doubtful.