SURE IT SOUNDS LIKE A HARRY POTTER VILLIAN, BUT THE CUPRA FORMENTOR VZ5 IS A BEAST POWERED BY A 5-POT DAZA!
If you thought CUPRA had gone all corporate, think again. The Spanish renegade is back to its rebellious roots with the return of the Formentor VZ5, the hottest version of its already spicy crossover. Limited to just 4,000 units worldwide, this thing is the last great hurrah of the internal combustion age - a crossover that doesn’t just growl, it howls. The VZ5 sits at the top of CUPRA’s combustion family tree and reintroduces one of the most celebrated engines in modern performance motoring: the 2.5-litre turbocharged five-cylinder. It’s the same kind of heart that’s made fast Audis legendary, now tuned by CUPRA’s performance division to crank out 287 kW and 480 Nm of torque. It’s a sound that doesn’t whisper performance - it shouts it from the rooftops with that unmistakable uneven warble that makes petrolheads grin like idiots.
Power is fed through a seven-speed DSG dual-clutch transmission and sent to all four corners via CUPRA’s all-wheel-drive system with integrated torque splitter tech, meaning the VZ5 doesn’t just go fast in a straight line - it can carve corners like a champ. That torque splitter can shift power between the rear wheels on demand, effectively turning this fiery crossover into a grippy, sideways-savvy lunatic when you want it to be.
“The return of the CUPRA Formentor VZ5 is a bold statement of our commitment to performance and emotion,” says Sven Schuwirth, CUPRA’s Executive VP for Sales, Marketing & Aftersales. “With its iconic five-cylinder engine, this model embodies the essence of CUPRA - daring, unconventional, and driven by passion.”
For the first time, the VZ5 will be offered in both left- and right-hand drive, meaning markets like the UK finally get a taste of this Spanish thunder. Shame South Africa’s not on that list - because let’s be honest, it would’ve sold like churros at a fiesta.
Visually, the new VZ5 doesn’t do subtle. It’s meaner, lower, and wider, with flared arches, a reworked front bumper, and a front splitter engraved with the VZ5 logo. Out back, the diffuser integrates a set of diagonal copper-tipped exhausts that sit like badges of honour for those who know what they’re looking at. The 20-inch forged alloy wheels, finished in signature copper, complete the stance - the kind of wheel design that looks like it could cut tarmac to ribbons. Paint options are suitably bold too: Midnight Black, Dark Void, Magnetic Tech Matt, Century Bronze Matt, and Enceladus Grey Matt. Each one’s paired with dark chrome CUPRA badging, giving the car that stealth-meets-style aura CUPRA’s become known for. Inside, things get very focused. The CUPBucket seats hold you in place like a racing harness, while the mix of ambient lighting, soft-touch materials, and digital displays keeps the cabin feeling more spaceship than SUV. It’s all designed and built in Barcelona, where CUPRA continues to blur the line between road car and race car.
Since it first landed, the Formentor VZ5 has embodied CUPRA’s independent streak - it’s the car that took the idea of a crossover and gave it proper performance credibility. This latest version doesn’t reinvent the formula; it just refines and celebrates it. It’s CUPRA’s love letter to enthusiasts, wrapped in carbon, copper, and attitude. Production for the new Formentor VZ5 kicks off in the first quarter of 2026, marking what could very well be the end of an era - and the beginning of a collector’s dream. The five-cylinder lives on… and it’s got a Spanish accent this time.
Take a look at the YouTube video from the CUPRA media centre that shows off the brilliant new version of CUPRA's Formentor, easily the best looking SUV in the VAG stable: The new CUPRA Formentor VZ5 marks the return of the iconic 5 cylinder Original HQ | Media Centre
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