New Cupra Terramar spotted on the road to a 2024 reveal

The Cupra Terramar is on the way – and we’ve spied it testing once again. It’s a busy period for the Spanish brand, with the upcoming Raval electric supermini, updates for the Leon and its first electric SUV, the Tavascan all in the pipeline.

While the future of Cupra is electric, there will be several updates to its combustion engined cars in the coming years. And the Terramar will be the last all-new Cupra to use a petrol engine when it arrives later in 2024.

It’ll be positioned as the flagship Cupra model and will have a plug-in hybrid powertrain. We’ve already seen this PHEV unit in the similarly-sized Volkswagen Tiguan eHybrid, where it comprises a 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine, single electric motor and 19.7kWh battery.

In the VW, that’s enough for a 62-mile electric range, with 268bhp and 400Nm of torque. A lesser-powered PHEV is available on the Tiguan with 201bhp and 350Nm of torque, and this could bolster the Terramar’s line-up later on. Pure-petrol versions of the Terramar will also be available, most likely with a choice of front or all-wheel drive, but Cupra has not yet outlined the full extent of what will be available.

The engine line-up shouldn’t be too much of a surprise given the Terramar uses the updated version of the Volkswagen Group’s MQB platform that also underpins the new Volkswagen Tiguan and the next-generation Audi Q3. 

We’ve seen the Terramar undergoing testing in the Arctic Circle, but these new shots show it in a much warmer climate. Without the huge spot lamps on the front, we can now get a clearer look at the front-end design. We expect a familiar look to the updated Leon and the new Formentor, for a recognisable Cupra line-up. 

The production-ready Terramar should also look pretty similar to the model presented in 2022. It sported a similar design language to the all-electric Tavascan and features many of the same design elements, including the three-triangle headlight signature, copper Cupra badge on the nose and full-width rear light bar. While both cars also have aggressive front-end designs, the Terramar’s imposing apron and angular air intakes are unique to it.

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The Terramar is described by Cupra design director Jorge Diez as a 4.5-metre-long mid-size SUV with ‘Cupra DNA’ and a ‘driver-oriented cockpit’. Other striking family SUVs that the Terramar could challenge include the Hyundai Tucson, facelifted Ford Kuga and new Peugeot 3008. 

We’ve yet to get a look inside the Terramar, but it could feature a ‘central spine’ between the driver and front passenger, like the Tavascan, to help create a more driver-focused layout. The Terramar is also likely to receive the same 10.25-inch digital driver’s display, plus a 12.9 or 15-inch central touchscreen as found in the latest Volkswagen Tiguan.

The Terramar takes its name from the historic Autódromo de Sitges-Terramar racing circuit around the corner from the brand’s base in Martorell, Barcelona. However, Cupra has confirmed that the Terramar will be built alongside the Audi Q3 in Hungary. 

The Terramar has been designed as a totally new model and is not intended as a replacement for anything else in the Cupra or SEAT line-ups, despite the similarly sized SEAT Ateca now heading towards the the end of a typical model lifecycle of seven years on sale. SEAT and Cupra CEO Wayne Griffiths said of the Terramar in 2022: “This is not the successor of the Cupra Ateca, this is something totally different.” 

2024 is going to be a busy year for Cupra, because in addition to the Terramar’s reveal, it’s also unveiling the facelifted versions of the best-selling Formentor, and Leon hatchback and estate. A hotter version of the Cupra Born electric hatchback, called the Born VZ, has already been revealed too.

Do you like the look of the Cupra Terramar? Have your say in the comments section below...