Introduction to the 2025 Cupra Formentor
The Formentor - a compact and relatively sleek five-door crossover SUV - was Cupra’s first standalone product when it arrived in 2020. It seemed to perfectly sum up what Cupra was meant to be - a little more stylish than SEAT, a little more premium, and in the shape of the range-topping 310hp, four-wheel-drive VZ version, a whole lot quicker (although much slower and more affordable 1.5-litre TSI models were, and remain, available too).
Now, the Formentor has come in for a thorough mid-life update, in line with other Volkswagen Group models that share the same MQB platform, such as the VW Golf and the Skoda Octavia. A key part of that upgrade is a much bigger plug-in hybrid battery, which gives this Formentor PHEV a far more useful electric-only range than the original had.
Pros & Cons of the 2025 Cupra Formentor VZ e-Hybrid
Pros: High quality, fun to drive, quick, decent EV range
Cons: Small boot, fiddly infotainment, thirsty on long runs
Exterior & Design of the 2025 Cupra Formentor VZ e-Hybrid
• Styling updated to give it the Cupra family look
• Cool ‘Century Bronze’ matte paint
• Copper accent colour still part of the mix
You’ll find pretty much all of the exterior styling changes for the Formentor at the front, where it loses the old one’s big grille in favour of a simpler slit-like opening for the radiator, while down the back the changes are minimal aside from some tweaks to the bumpers and a new light bar that also includes an illuminated Cupra badge. The Formentor’s dimensions are unchanged:
Length: 4,451mm
Width: 1,839mm
Height: 1,537mm
Wheelbase: 2,680mm
That means the Formentor is a little longer than the Toyota C-HR, but also a touch narrower.
The new look divides opinion, but one upside to the facelift is the introduction of some swish new colours, including the matte-finished ‘Century Bronze’ of our test car. It’s a gorgeous colour, which looks almost as if the Formentor was driven through a crate of Galaxy Caramel chocolate bars at high speed. Tasty.
Our test car also had the optional 19-inch ‘Hailstorm’ alloy wheels, with copper-coloured highlights and a striking spoke design.
Interior, Practicality, Tech & Comfort of the 2025 Cupra Formentor VZ e-Hybrid
• Excellent high-backed bucket seats
• Good cabin quality
• Boot is small in PHEVs
While Cupra continues to try to distance itself from its one-time SEAT roots, anyone who’s driven a current Leon will spot similarities in the cabin. In fairness, that’s true across the Volkswagen Group, thanks to its rigorous platform-sharing, but the centre console, touch screen and the basic layout of the Formentor’s cabin are almost identical to the Leon’s.
Which is not necessarily a bad thing. The driving position, aided by wonderfully comfortable high-backed bucket seats, is good and the steering wheel gains a pair of Porsche-like round switches mounted to the bottom of the horizontal spokes. The one on the right starts and stops the engine, which is a nice touch, while the one on the left is adorned with Cupra’s twin-prong badge and controls the driving modes. More car makers should copy this and add a driving mode button to the steering wheel, as it makes it far simpler, quicker and more intuitive to switch between modes when you want to.
On the centre console there’s a sloping storage area under the middle of the dashboard, which is home to a wireless phone charging pad, while there are some useful (if shallow) storage trays either side of the toggle-switch drive selector. Behind that, there’s a pair of cupholders and limited storage under the front-seat armrest. The door bins are a decent size, so the front of the Formentor’s cabin is pretty practical.
The back seats are more spacious than they appear, certainly for the size of car. The high windowsill and sloping roof do mean that the rear cabin is quite dark, though. One thing to watch out for if you’re considering the PHEV is that its boot - at just 345 litres - is much smaller than that of a regular petrol-fuelled Formentor. The latter accommodates a far more useful 450 litres.
A 12.9-inch touchscreen stands proud of the dashboard in the front. The Formentor’s software has been through the same round of improvements as we’ve seen in other Volkswagen Group models of late, and the ‘slider’ touch-sensitive controls for stereo volume and cabin temperature beneath the screen now at least light up at night. We’d still prefer more actual buttons.
On the upside, the digital instrument panel can be configured in several different layouts, and it looks both smart and easy to read, while the proper physical buttons on the steering wheel, which look after audio controls and the radar-guided cruise control, are easy to use. There’s wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and the connection speed to our phone was impressively fast each time we got into the car. The optional Sennheiser stereo is also excellent.
Heated front seats are standard on all Formentor models, and our VZ-spec car also came with nice, soft ‘Dinamica’ upholstery on those seats. Also standard on the VZ are dynamic chassis control, advanced keyless entry and ignition, a wraparound LED ambient cabin light, electric driver’s seat adjustment and a powered tailgate.
Performance of the 2025 Cupra Formentor e-Hybrid
• Up to 272hp in total
• Tidy handling
• Useful extra ground clearance
What’s great about the Formentor is that Cupra’s engineers have given it loftier springs and dampers, making for a reasonable 161mm ground clearance. A Range Rover owner may scoff at that, but the Cupra’s extra air under the chassis means that you just don’t worry about speed bumps nor lumpy, poorly-maintained roads. You can just press on and enjoy yourself.
That suspension is well-controlled too, and the Formentor rides comfortably (especially if you’ve delved into the on-screen settings and dialled up the ultra-soft level for the DCC adaptive dampers). There is an issue on some surfaces whereby the springs and dampers can sometimes become a bit too bouncy, setting up a slightly uncomfortable oscillation in the body, but that can be cured either by simply slowing down for a moment, or by setting the dampers to a stiffer level. In any setting, the steering is fast and slightly numb, but good enough at letting you know what the front end is up to. Basically, the Formentor feels wonderfully confidence-inspiring.
It’s not slow, either. In fact, it could probably do with four-wheel drive to help parcel out the combined 400Nm of torque of the petrol and electric system, as it’s surprisingly easy to spin up the front wheels on the way out of a junction, in spite of the standard electronically controlled differential.
Initially, the Formentor feels quicker than the claimed 7.2-second 0-100km/h run time would suggest, but that’s a function of the instant torque of the electric motor. Once that’s been used up, as when you’re accelerating up a long motorway on-ramp, the Formentor PHEV’s rate of acceleration slows down, but then the electric motor can chime in again with bursts of bonus torque when you need quick, snappy acceleration, so it’s a reasonable compromise.
The Formentor cruises comfortably at motorway speeds, but you will notice a bit of tyre roar when doing so.
Running Costs of the 2025 Cupra Formentor VZ e-Hybrid
• Three-year warranty, unlimited for the first two years
• Realistic 80km range on electric power
• Gets thirsty on longer runs like most PHEVs
The Formentor, as with all Cupra models in Ireland, comes with a standard unlimited-mileage two-year warranty, which is then capped at 90,000km in the third year. The plug-in hybrid battery is warrantied for eight years or 160,000km, whichever comes first.
Charge up that battery and you can officially drive for up to 118km before the petrol engine has to chime in. We found that around 80km (at least in the chilly conditions of our test drive) was more realistic, but that should give you enough range to do your normal daily commuting and driving, maybe even for a couple of days - at a much lower price than petrol if you charge up on a cheap night rate. Handily, there’s also the option of 50kW fast charging for when you’re on a longer journey.
However, as with most plug-in hybrids, the Formentor is thirstier on those longer journeys if you don’t have an opportunity to charge it up. We saw 8.0 litres/100km on a two-hour motorway slog, for example, versus an average of 6.5 litres/100km overall with a little charging.
When it comes to maintenance, Cupra offers a range of three- and four-year servicing plans, which can be rolled into your finance package repayments. These cover all of your regular servicing costs, aside from any damaged components, and Cupra also includes collection and delivery of your car (within a certain radius of the dealer) and a courtesy clean.
Irish Pricing & Rivals of the 2025 Cupra Formentor VZ e-Hybrid
• Adding options can be expensive
• Basic models considerably more affordable
• Lower-power PHEV model available
Thankfully, there is a more affordable version of the Formentor e-Hybrid than this range-topping VZ. There’s a 204hp model, which has a list price of €50,340 compared to the starting price of €59,315 for the 272hp VZ model, never mind the whopping €69,698 price of our test car including lots of options. The entry-level Formentor, with its excellent 1.5 TSI turbocharged petrol engine and a manual gearbox costs a far more reasonable €39,885 and that’s the version we might be more tempted by.
Standard equipment across the range includes 18-inch alloys, full-LED lighting and illuminated Cupra logo, sports suspension, adjustable driving modes, three-zone climate control, heated front seats, emergency adaptive braking, lane-keeping assistance, adaptive cruise control, 10.25-inch digital instrumentation, 12.9-inch infotainment touchscreen, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, wireless phone charging, and front and rear parking sensors.
Rivals to the Formentor encompass a broad swathe of models from the cheaper, but much less stylish Kia XCeed to the very stylish, but not at all sporty DS 4, to Toyota’s impressive C-HR PHEV.
Verdict - Should You Buy the 2025 Cupra Formentor VZ e-Hybrid?
Yes - with the caveat that the extra power over the 204hp e-Hybrid model costs a lot. Accepting, for a moment, the lofty price tag, we reckon that the Formentor is Cupra’s best all-round product right now, and the model that best reflects the company’s character. It’s practical yet fun to drive, and distinctive to look at without being OTT in its styling. That combo of long-travel suspension, long-electric range PHEV power and a sense of driving fun that’s too-often absent from some rivals makes this Formentor a seriously tempting prospect.
FAQs About the 2025 Cupra Formentor VZ e-Hybrid
How far can the Cupra Formentor go electrically?
Well, Cupra quotes an official electric range of 118km on a full charge of the battery, and when you combine a full tank and a fully charged battery, it supposedly goes for more than 1,000km without stopping. However, in our experience the useable electric range is more like 80km, which is still useful, and the combined range more like 600km.
Does the Cupra Formentor hybrid self-charge?
Yes, it can. Obviously, the idea is to charge up the battery from mains power and make as much use of the electric range as possible, but the Cupra Formentor e-Hybrid can also top up its own battery as it drives, although this comes at a considerable cost to fuel consumption.
How many child seats fit in the back of the Cupra Formentor?
There are three ISOFIX points in the Formentor: two in the outer back seats and one in the front passenger seat. You can theoretically fit a slim booster cushion in the centre rear seat, using the seatbelt, but it’s pretty narrow there.
Has the Cupra Formentor been assessed for safety by Euro NCAP?
Yes, although that was back in 2021 - NCAP says that the rating is still current. The Formentor scored a full five stars, with an impressive 93 per cent rating for adult occupants, 88 per cent for child occupants, 68 per cent for vulnerable road users and 80 per cent for active safety systems. You can read the full report here.
Want to know more about the Cupra Formentor?
Is there anything else you’d like to know about the Cupra Formentor VZ e-Hybrid? Or anything you feel we haven’t covered here? Then just head over to our Ask Us Anything section and, well, ask us anything. It’s a free service and we’ll do our best to answer your questions.
