Oh I feel like tumble-dried crap. Like I spent the night in a rock tumbler. I had a mild cold before going on the trip so I was already not 100% but now hoo boy do I feel like something a dog has abandoned in the yard. That said, I’m excited to be here, and I don’t want to seem like an ingrate; this trip to Stuttgart and then to Goodwood, which I will get to by driving with David in his diesel minivan across France, is going to be fantastic, and I hope to get all kinds of exciting content for you. Will David and I make the ferry in time? Will we succumb to French road madness – folie de la route – and attempt to murder one another with foie gras? Who knows?
So at this moment I’m here waiting for my last flight to take me from Frankfurt to Stuttgart, and I did happen to see an interesting modern car on display in the airport. You know how sometimes carmakers will show off their stuff in airports, in case you can somehow buy a car in the duty free shop? Can you? Or is it just perfume and booze?
Well, anyway, this time it was interesting because the car was a Cupra, which makes it the first one of those I’ve seen in person. Cupra is SEAT’s – the Volkswagen-owned Spanish carmaker that once made license-built Fiats – performance division, and I have to say the car does look pretty striking.
We never got SEATs in America, and it’s a marque notoriously tricky to Google because, you know, car seats, but they’ve sort of been VW’s performance-oriented brand for a while. We’ve written about SEAT here before, specifically about their very clever rear door handles made out of glass:
Now the Cupra name comes from a shortened portmanteau of “cup racing,” and the first SEAT to bear the Cupra designation was the 1996 Seat Ibiza GTI 16V Cupra:
Now, VW has spun off Cupra into its own marque, and, as I said, this is the first time I’ve seen one.
The “Formentor” name is kind of funny; it sounds sinister, but it literally just means “wheat,” and there’s an island near Ibiza called Formentera. So, if you’re not gluten tolerant, maybe be careful when looking at this car.
The Formentor is a hybrid, medium-ish SUV, with a 1.5-liter inline four and an electric motor, and it makes anywhere from 150 to 272 hp, depending on configuration. It seems to be able to go 51 kilometers (32 miles) on electric power only, which isn’t bad, and the faster ones can get to 60 in 7.2 seconds.
They would sell for about $45,000 in US freedom-dollars if they sold it in the States, which they won’t. [Ed note: Au contraire mon frère! Jason’s sleepy and forgot that we shared a report that Cupra may, in fact, be coming to the United States – MH]
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There’s some good, deep, multi-layer, high-depth taillight design going on here, too. I’d like to investigate that more!
But, right now? I’m exhausted. My teeth hurt. I ache all over, and I just want to get into this weird European bed that’s actually two beds shoved together, like they love to do here, for some reason.
We’ll have more exciting stuff to come! Now don’t wake me!
At least in pics, it looks like the Euro (hybrid not straight ICE moar power) version of the Chevy Blazer.
Happy to have you here in Stuttgart. Sleep well and have a good time 🙂
I drove a Formentor in Spain a couple of weeks ago. It’s certainly a car, that drives. Don’t think I’d ever actually buy one, given it’s “performance” orientated design I’d have hoped it wasn’t just a Tigwan in fancy dress. However it was and it’s driving characteristics were a solid “meh”.
I guess you drove the basic 150bhp version, if it was a rental car.
The 300bhp version is the same, only you arrive earlier to Disappointmentville…
I just flew into Germany and boy are my arms tired. Thank you, I will be here all of the week.
In the VW hierarchy, they are very much sub-VW.
I wouldn’t say they’re even on par with Skoda (where the impression is more that they’re just the same as a VW but cheaper because they’re Czech instead of German).
SEAT is cheap VW; think of the equivalent of sub-prime buyers of VW products.
Skoda’s also tend to be larger, segment per segment. In terms of pricing / prestige I would say Seat / Skoda are pretty level, at least on the smaller cars end.
Great Gam Gam: You two are the rightful heirs to the Von Wolfhausen Brewery. You should have the balls to take back what is yours!
Steve “Fink” Finklestein: Wow! You even talk like a whore!
Great Gam Gam: We are all whores in some ways.
Have a great trip!!!
I have an unreasonable obsession with that movie.
I’m sailing the seas watching it right now.
I saw this same display a month ago. And was just as excited. You didn’t mention the best part, which is that the floor the Cupra is sitting on is a video screen that looks like road flying by under the car, which really made me sad that I couldn’t sit in the Cupra and go “vroom vroom” and pretend to drive. That or I was hallucinating because I was in the same state you are now and there was no video road.
I would just say you are a wuss Torch.
But you had a heart explode, right?
Have fun there, wuss! /s
You’re flying from Frankfurt to Stuttgart? That’s like a 100 miles or so. C’mon!
Have a good time and get well soon!
I mean you only have so many options. I am flying to Seattle tomorrow and somehow it is cheaper to fly from the local regional up to DC and then on to Seattle than it is to fly straight from DC. Literally it’s more expensive to not take the 50 minute flight. Plus it would require me to drive 3 hours and then pay for parking to fly from DC, so while I completely get your point, the airlines make it difficult to do it any other way.
I’ve heard that my local “international” airport is subsidized by the airlines because it’s close enough to a major airport to reroute traffic if an emergency happens at the big one and they want to keep it open for that. It’s also much cheaper parking and a 15 minute drive home instead of 90, which is huge after an international trip where I’m dead tired.
Inexplicably, the Lufthansa flights are cheaper if flying from said Los Angeles to Nuremberg with stopover in Frankfurt or Munich than from LAX to FRA or MUC. So, I guess Jason and David are taking advantage of this quirk. I am sure it is said the same for many other airlines, too.
My brother discovered this quirkness and had taken advantage of it ever since.
Good to see you out and about. Family motto is (always keep moving), carry on!
Seat has not never been a performance-oriented VW. They have always been cheap Iberian-flavoured VWs.
Cupra is the same but a bit more expensive. And they may have sporting pretensions but the base versions are not fast.
Also the Formentor is also available with the Golf R drivetrain. And the prefacelift could be had with the 5 cylinder turbo from the RS3.
“Will we succumb to French road madness – folie de la route – and attempt to murder one another with foie gras?”
Sacre bleu, foie gras?!? Once you find out what they do to the poor geese and ducks in order to produce foie gras you’ll never look at that dish the same way again. It’s tres merde!!
So please kindly find a more humane method of attempted murder, thank you.
All righty, bon voyage en voiture!! Hopefully the sighting of your first Cupra is a good omen 🙂
But once you taste it, you’ll be, “Feed murder more of those ducks!” Then, take their bloated carcass to a good Chinese place and make some crispy Peking duck.
Eh, I’ll still pass. Thanks but no thanks…
The best way for this “folie de la route” attempted murder to take place would be for either of them to try to “fois gras” the other. Just in case, be sure to pack a sack of grain and some tubing for the trip.
If you’ve ever had to maneuver a mattress up narrow European stairs, you will be happy they aren’t queen size and instead come in two pieces.
I have and I concur.
The profile looks like a weird mashup between the PHEV Rav4 and Mach-E. Not hating it altogether, but if/when it hits our shores I hope there’s something more special under the skin, otherwise it will get lost in the automotive game of Where’s Waldo
Agree with your take as a RAV Prime owner. Even though it’s heavy I still love the straight line stuff for a RAV that is and am waiting for something to best it in all categories.
It’s a Golf R on stilts. It also was an RS3 on stilts.
I have acutally driven the prefacelift 300bhp four wheel drive VZ version and it was… fine if not overtly exciting. Also the faxe exhaust noise through speakers was terrible.
“The “Formentor” name is kind of funny;”
I think the name is funny because you just know someone will call it ‘The Fermenter”
Just like how some call the Maserati Ghibli the Giblet and the Tonale the Toenail.
I first read “Fomentor” like this foments political unrest or revolution. Which would be a naming choice…
If it’s as reliable as other non-Porsche VAG products, I’m guessing a number of buyers will be calling it “Tormentor” soon after they get the keyless keys.
You could kill someone with that Fermented Wheat.
Or just spray them with Roundup.
I know they won’t but damn would I love for them to bring a Leon Sportstourer stateside. I know the plan is an electric SUV but give me the wagon, you cowards! Hell even if they bring the Born here I’d be happy. A small EV? yes please.
I think these look fantastic but even if they came here I’m not touching a 1.5 liter Volkswagen turbo 4 with a 10 foot pole
You are probably getting the 2 litre versions, not the base 1.5 if it comes.
I’m still not touching it. The EA888 in my GTI had numerous problems in the first 5,000 miles and the one in my mom’s A4 Allroad grenaded itself at 60,000 miles. Fool me once, etc.
Curiously for a European I don’t have much experience with VAG products (or anyone from my environment, for that matter). I still wouldn’t buy one anyway.
The 1.4 TSI has been pretty solid for me so far; I’m waiting for the wastegate solenoid on the turbo to brick itself eventually, though, and leave me with a massive bill.
His name was Jason, he flew to Frankfort
The hottest spot north of Hamburg
He saw the Cupra, Cupra Formentor…
Thank you, please take a Seat.
“Cupra (also spelled Cubrar, Ikiperu, Kypra or Supra) was a chthonic fertility goddess of the ancient pre-Roman population of the Piceni and the Umbri, and may have been associated with EtruscanUni“.
Above per the Pedia that is Wiki. Driving a fertility goddess might have its charms.
Man, I fuckin hate those hotel beds.
Not just hotels. I did a trip through France, Austria and Germany staying in Airbnbs and every single one was like that in all three countries. I think that’s just the norm over there. It’s not unheard of here with beds like sleepnumber and others, but yeah it’s dumb.
Did you take that new Lufthansa direct flight from Raleigh-Durham to Frankfurt?
Congratulations on being well enough to travel again. Have a great trip
You’re tired and you feel lie excrement, so, sleeping doody.
On Discord Adrian alluded to an “adventure” happening this week, and that certainly sounds like one. Bon voyage!
It’s great you are well enough again to travel!
it kind of sounds like he isn’t. I’m way older than he is and I don’t complain that much when I travel