2022 Cupra Ateca VZx review

Named after a small town in Spain, the 2022 Cupra Ateca VZx is a relatively fresh face in the blur of familiar medium SUVs in Australia.

The Ateca is one of only three models currently sold in Australia by Spanish performance brand Cupra, along with the Leon small hatchback and the Formentor SUV.

For the uninitiated, Cupra landed in Australia in 2022, but started its life as the high-performance motorsport subsidiary of Spanish carmaker Seat. Volkswagen Group officially spun Cupra off into a standalone brand in 2018, with the Ateca serving as its first model launch. 

Sharing its DNA with follow Volkswagen Group member the Skoda Karoq, the Ateca landed in Australia in facelifted form and is offered in a single trim grade, with some enticing on-paper performance credentials to boot. 

Can this newcomer lure buyers away from the medium SUV pack? Let’s investigate.

The Ateca is available in a single grade, the VZx. 

Pricing for the Ateca VZx kicks off from $60,990 plus on-road costs or $65,990 drive-away, making it the Cupra model with the most expensive starting point.

For that spend, you’ll get a 2.0-litre, four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine that drives all four wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. 

The powertrain can output an impressive 221kW of power and 400Nm of torque and sprint to 100km/h in 4.9 seconds – making it about as quick as the Volkswagen Golf R wagon. 

For your spend you’ll also get a raft of standard equipment, including a nine-speaker Beats sound system, heated leather seats, 19-inch alloy wheels, dual-zone climate control and keyless entry. 

My test car was fitted with optional 370mm Brembo performance brakes for an added $4050 and an Akrapovic quad sports exhaust for $5950 – totalling $10,000 in additional costs and bringing the as-tested price to $75,990 drive-away.

The only other option available is a panoramic electric sunroof, which adds an extra $1800 and, in my opinion, could really bring some X-factor to the cabin. 

In terms of competitors, it’s likely anyone shopping at Cupra might be comparing the Ateca to the similarly sized Formentor, which costs $66,990 drive-away for the top-spec VZx variant but offers marginally more power than the Ateca (228kW/400Nm).

It raises the question: why would you buy an Ateca instead of a top-spec Formentor when they’re similar in size and performance and not that far apart in price?

According to my very rudimentary investigations, the Ateca represents the more practical choice, with a bigger boot and more headroom, while the Formentor – Cupra’s first standalone model, not shared with the Seat brand overseas – offers a more impactful, sporty design, but sacrifices some interior space in the process. 

As for other competitors, it’s tricky to find rivals for the Ateca outside the Volkswagen Group stable.

The most obvious choice is the performance-focused Volkswagen Tiguan R, which starts at $68,990 plus on-road costs, but offers more power than the Ateca.

There’s also the Skoda Karoq, upon which the Ateca is based, which offers a more affordable top-spec, all-wheel-drive Sportline variant for $47,890 before on-road costs, but is obviously nowhere near as potent in the performance stakes. 

The highlight of the Cupra Ateca is undoubtedly the ample headroom available throughout.

A lowered seating position and high roof line mean getting into the car's front seat is easy, and even taller occupants will find the cabin feels spacious.

Given Cupra’s branding is quite eye-catching – with lashings of copper and a logo that looks like it belongs to some kind of anti-Malware software – I was surprised by how demure the interior appears on first glance.

To be fair, the sports seats upholstered in petrol blue leather are a nice departure from the typical black-and-red combo, and they’re heated, with electric adjustment for the driver’s seat. They’re comfortable and really supportive, but broader drivers might find the bolstering on the narrow side. 

Up front there are two cupholders – the smaller one is the perfect size for a takeaway coffee cup – plus a relatively small storage compartment in the centre console and deep door bins. 

The Ateca’s back seat is also surprisingly spacious for a medium SUV, with a lowered floor allowing for comfortable levels of leg, toe and knee room, plus expansive headroom – and the large windows allow plenty of light to enter the cabin. 

The rear bench width is probably best suited to two adult occupants, as fitting a third in the middle seat could prove a squeeze.

There are ISOFIX tether points on each of the outboard seats, with three top-tether attachments over the back of the seats, and I had no trouble fitting my son’s Britax Brava child seat in forward-facing mode. 

The back seat also features two central air vents and two USB-C ports, and an armrest with two cupholders that hides a ski slot for access to the boot. 

The Ateca’s boot is in line with much of the medium SUV class, offering 485L of cargo space, while the seats can fold in a 60:40 split to increase this storage area.

That’s bigger than the Formentor’s 420L boot, but less than rivals like the Skoda Karoq and Volkswagen Tiguan. It’s still enough to comfortably fit two medium suitcases with some extras, but the height might prove prohibitive for a larger family dog.

A power tailgate with kick sensor is included as standard, and the boot features levers to remotely lower the second row, plus a removable hard cargo cover. 

Typically, the Ateca receives an 18-inch space-saver spare wheel, but that’s replaced with a tyre inflation kit when you add the optional Brembo brakes. The tyre inflation kit lives under the boot floor in a styrofoam insert that also houses the subwoofer for the sound system, meaning there’s not much extra storage on offer. 

The Cupra Ateca’s infotainment system is housed in a 9.2-inch touchscreen – paired with a 10.25-inch digital driver's display – and it offers wireless Apple CarPlay and wireless Android Auto as standard.

The screen does feel on the smaller side in the context of all the wider displays popping up on more premium rivals, and the graphics are simple but attractive.

For the most part, I favoured the wireless Apple CarPlay, which connected easily and worked well throughout my time with the car. However, when bypassing CarPlay for the car’s in-built infotainment menu, I found the various options weren’t intuitive to navigate and swiping proved fiddly, requiring a level of precision that can be difficult to achieve while driving. 

Additionally, on one occasion the screen glitched and froze, requiring me to restart the car to regain functionality. 

Otherwise, the in-built satellite navigation is straightforward to use and there’s AM and FM radio, but no DAB+ digital radio.

The Beats sound system provided sound that was crisp and well balanced throughout the cabin, but not particularly immersive. 

The Cupra Ateca is yet to be rated by Australian safety assessor ANCAP, but received five stars from the European equivalent, NCAP, back in 2016.

As standard, it features seven airbags, including a driver's knee airbag, and plenty of active safety tech. 

Given it’s the sole specification option, the Cupra Ateca VZx's list of standard safety and driver assistance technology is comprehensive with no glaring omissions.

Adaptive cruise control is standard, as is Travel Assist, which refers to the car’s ability to automatically keep a safe distance from the car in front and slow to a stop before starting back up again, while maintaining lane position at motorway speeds. 

There’s also Lane Assist – which is a lane departure warning with active intervention to keep you from straying, plus Side Assist with Exit Assist, which monitors the areas to the side and rear of the vehicle to warn occupants of any oncoming traffic before exiting the vehicle.

Driver fatigue detection and forward autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist detection are also included. 

The Ateca also boasts front and rear parking sensors, plus an excellent 360-degree camera, which provides a split-screen view of both the overhead angle, as well as tighter angles you can toggle between.

I particularly loved the zoomed-in overhead view of the back of the car when reversing into tight spaces. 

The handy self-park system will complete all steering manoeuvres for you and is refreshingly simple to activate, without requiring plenty of button-pushing and prompts like other systems I’ve encountered. 

The 10.25-inch digital driver's display is more impactful than central screen in terms of graphics, but while you can toggle through different layouts, the digital speedometer remains on the small side. It also includes a lap timer, live fuel consumption, the active cruise-control status and the tyre pressure monitoring system.

All Cupra cars come with a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty, and if you buy the Ateca before December 31, 2022, you’ll get three years of free servicing thrown in too.

An additional two years of servicing can then be purchased for $1200. Depending on how you choose to look at it, that’s an average of $240 per year over five years, or $600 per year over two years.

Scheduled services for your Cupra are performed every 15,000km or 12 months (whichever comes first).

Every new Cupra model also receives five years of roadside assistance, providing 24-hour coverage including emergency accommodation, car rental and towing.

The Ateca will cost $1450.41 per year to insure based on a comparative quote for a 35-year-old male driver living in Chatswood, NSW. Insurance estimates may vary based on your location, driving history, and personal circumstances.

Unlike the Formentor and Leon, the Ateca isn’t available with a plug-in hybrid powertrain and proved quite thirsty during my week of inner-city driving, with one two-hour round trip on the freeway in the mix.

Quoted fuel consumption on a combined cycle is 7.8L/100km, but my consumption came in at 10.0L/100km, which was more in line with Cupra’s urban consumption claim of 9.9L/100km.

Keep in mind that the Ateca has a 55L fuel tank and requires petrol with a minimum octane rating of 98, which can often cost an extra 20 cents per litre at the bowser compared to 91 unleaded.

The Ateca walks the line between offering solid levels of cabin space without sacrificing on-the-road feel.

Getting into the Ateca for the first time and putting my foot on the throttle, I was actually startled by how quickly and eagerly it leapt forward. It drives like a smaller car and feels light and agile, quick to get going from a standstill and nimble going into corners. 

The steering is almost go-karty in nature, with the small flat-bottomed wheel only requiring light input to provide a sharp, direct response. 

The seven-speed dual-clutch transmission is impressively smooth and quick to deliver power when needed.

While the acceleration response is spirited and exciting, it’s still measured enough to handle at lower speeds and when manoeuvring. I did experience some lag when really planting my foot to merge onto a freeway, but for the most part the transmission works seamlessly, particularly from a standstill. 

The idle-stop system is imperceptible for the most part, but can grumble and become noticeable in stop-start traffic. 

Visibility, meanwhile, is completely serviceable, without any noticeable blind spots, and feels more or less in line with the car’s size.

The Ateca’s all-wheel-drive capabilities and grippy tyres allow for maximum confidence on various terrains, but I’d imagine it’s unlikely the ‘off-road’ and ‘snow’ drive modes will get much of a workout from Ateca buyers. 

The optional Brembo brakes are also a fantastic addition, proving immediately impactful, wonderfully firm, and giving an overall sense of control, even at higher speeds. 

One gripe, however, is that the Ateca offers a harder ride than you might expect from an SUV.

This suits the sporty feel to an extent, but you’ll also have more awareness of the road surface than you might like, plus there’s some tyre noise and notable clunking noises when passing over lumps and bumps.

I was surprised by how disruptive a typical speed bump could be, reverberating through the cabin and proving unexpectedly jarring given the car’s elevated ride height and SUV status. 

The car’s six drive modes – Comfort, Sport, Cupra, Individual, Off-road and Snow – can be changed using either a dial near the gearstick or a button on the steering wheel. 

Cupra is like Sport mode on steroids, offering sharpened acceleration and throttle response, with amped-up exhaust noise. 

I found I craved a little more visual drama from the driver's display when switching between modes, with only a discreet word in the top right corner alerting you to which mode was engaged.   

Although fitted with the optional Akrapovic exhaust, I was also surprised to find the exhaust note on the Ateca wasn’t quite as antisocial as in other performance SUVs I’ve driven.

The car emits a healthy snarl in Sport or Cupra mode, or when driving using the steering wheel-mounted paddle shifters, but is otherwise demure enough to co-exist with other road users around town.

The Cupra Ateca represents an intriguing new proposition in the medium SUV class, successfully combining performance and practicality.

Given it’s such a crowded class, it’s likely you can find a medium SUV with more interior space, better fuel economy and lower running costs, more value for money or a more luxurious, tech-laden interior.

But the Ateca does all of these things well enough to keep up with the pack, and then adds some serious X-factor in terms of potent performance and exciting handling. 

This X-factor is perhaps best enjoyed during weekend touring or when tackling bendy roads at speed, given the trade-off for the sharp performance is a harder ride around town and thirsty fuel consumption. 

But ‘exhilarating’ is not typically a word that’s attached to a medium SUV, so the Spanish newcomer should be applauded for creating a product that can confidently walk the fine line between versatility and vitality.