Cupra Tavascan Is Firm's First All-Electric SUV

Spanish automotive brand and VW Group member Cupra, has unveiled its first all-electric SUV coupe, the Tavascan. The brand's second battery-electric vehicle (BEV), the Tavascan is based on the Volkswagen Group's MEB platform, and will go on sale in European markets in 2024 in two variants -  the 281 bhp Tavascan Endurance and the 335 bhp Tavascan VZ.

The Endurance features a rear-wheel drive powertrain with an electric motor mounted to the axle. The unit is the same as the one that debuted on the new ID.7 offering additional performance over the previous-gen powertrain. The VZ sees the addition of an electric motor to the front axle. The unit delivers up to 107 bhp, though the total system output is set at 335 bhp. It is worth noting that, as the Volkswagen ID.7 is not yet available as an all-wheel-drive model, the Cupra Tavascan is currently the most powerful MEB platform-based model.

The Tavascan comes with an 87 kWh battery, of which 77 kWh can be used as net energy content. This configuration provides the rear-wheel-drive Tavascan with a range of up to 549 km according to WLTP. The all-wheel drive Tavascan VZ sees this figure drop to 517 km. By comparison, the 150 kW rear-wheel-drive ID.5 offers 534 km, while the 220 kW ID.5 GTX is said to have a range of 520 km.

The Tavascan comes with a maximum charging capacity of 135 kW, enabling it to charge from 10% to 80% in under half an hour.

The interior of the Tavascan has a 15-inch diagonal infotainment touchscreen, the largest in any CUPRA model to date. The infotainment system’s revised menu navigation also originates from the ID.7.

The Tavascan is expected to be manufactured at Volkswagen Group’s Anhui plant in China and will be available in global markets. Cupra aims to sell more than 70,000 Tavascan vehicles annually. Cupra's CEO, Wayne Griffiths, said, “Back when we presented the Tavascan concept at the IAA in Frankfurt 2019, it was our dream car – a manifesto for everything we wanted CUPRA to become. Since then, we’ve kept believing that if we dream it, we can create it. Well, today, that dream comes true.”