Cupra, Seat’s sporty electric arm, just revealed three new models that it wants to add to its range in the near future. The most notable appearance for us was the UrbanRebel electric city car, but among the trio was also the vehicle that may be the last Cupra to burn fuel, the Terramar hybrid, basically Cupra’s version of the Audi Q3.
Seat is no stranger to repurposing Audi models for its own use - the Seat Exeo was a restyled Audi A4 (albeit one generation older than the one Audi was selling at the time) that was in production between 2008 and 2013. The new Terramar will be built in the same factory as the Audi Q3, in Gyor, Hungary, and feature some of the same mild hybrid and plug-in hybrid powertrains.
The PHEV version that interests us will probably mirror Audi Q3 45 TFSIe, so it will get the same powertrain that pairs a 1.4-liter turbocharged four cylinder with an electric motor to deliver a combined 245 horsepower and 400 Nm (295 pound-feet). Electric range of the Q3 PHEV is lower than what Cupra claims for the Terramar, which is expected to nudge 100 km (62 miles) on one charge.
The current Q3 PHEV has a 13 kWh battery pack that takes it around 50 km (31 miles) on one charge, so a simple calculation tells us the Cupra model (and probably the Q3 as part of a future update or a new generation) will get a pack that is around twice the size. In terms of its design, though, the Terramar looks nothing like an Audi (the same could not be said of the aforementioned Exeo), and just like the rest of the Cupra lineup, it’s a sporty looking thing with aggressive details.
According to Jorge Diez, Design Director at Cupra,
Terramar,our new sporty hybrid SUV, perfectly combines bold proportions with a long striking bonnet, while the shark nose means breakthrough resistance and the determination to win.
Thinking of how the driver will feel, we provide a unique experience with the latest technology, thanks to the driver oriented interior concept. All in all, a 4.5 metre long SUV, with CUPRA DNA ready to shake one of the most competitive segments.
