Cupra Born lands in Australia ahead of late 2022 on-sale

The first Cupra Born EV has landed in Australia for local testing and to allow the local Volkswagen Group team familiarisation with the product.

It is the first of three Borns planned to head Down Under over coming months as part of a 30,000km local evaluation program.

The all-electric hatchback that is based on the Volkswagen ID.3 is set to go on sale in Australia late in 2022, beating parent Volkswagen to the electric car race.

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Ahead of the Cupra brand’s launch with a range of petrol and plug-in hybrid models mid-year the team has imported the Born to get a better understanding of the challenges ahead with EVs.

While the Spanish brand that was spun out from Volkswagen-owned Seat has not cemented the Born’s Australian launch for 2022, it has previously said it is “a certainty”.

In a short announcement of the arrival of the Born in Australia, local Cupra director Ben Wilks says there was a “determination to bring the Born EV to market by year’s end”.

“Born is undoubtedly our halo car, one that embodies all of Cupra’s performance and design allure in a zero emissions package,” said Wilks.

Crucially the Born will come with a price tag that will land it in the sweet spot of the EV market.

Cupra has previously said the Born will be “considerably less expensive than a Tesla”, suggesting its price will be somewhere in the low-$50,000 bracket.

The Born uses the same Volkswagen MEB platform underpinning the ID.3 and is a similar size to VW’s first EV.

But it gets distinctive styling including the generous use of Cupra’s signature copper highlights.

There’s also the availability of an e-Boost system that allows it to produce 20kW more power than the ID.3, for 170kW in total. Torque peaks at 310Nm, contributing to the claimed 6.6-second 0-100km/h time.

Overseas the Born is available with a 58kWh battery for about 420km of WLTP range and it’s likely to be that car that is the price leader in Australia.

There’s also a 77kWh battery with about 540km of range that could also be offered here.

The three Borns heading to Australia ahead of a planned late-2022 on-sale arrival will no doubt provide valuable insights into EV technology for Volkswagen Australia.

Volkswagen is still pushing to make the ID.4 the first EV VW for Australia and EV Central understands there’s a chance it could happen as soon as late 2022. If not, expect the Volkswagen ID.4 here in 2023.