Confirmed: New Cupra Formentor will be electric

Having already soared to prominence as a hugely popular model for Cupra, the Cupra Formentor is poised for a transformation into a fully electric car. The new Cupra Formentor will gain the latest Volkswagen Group electric car technology, which will be key to the success of Cupra’s plans to sell the car to customers in the US. 

Cupra sold 120,000 Formentors in 2023, an increase of 23 per cent on the prior year’s total. As the brand’s most popular model, news that it is to continue into a second generation and evolve into an electric vehicle should come as no surprise. 

Cupra’s CEO, Wayne Griffiths, was in attendance at the annual media conference for SEAT in Barcelona where he revealed all of the exciting plans for the Formentor: "There will be a new version of Formentor towards the end of the decade.” Griffiths further disclosed that the electric version of the Forementor will harness an adaptation of the forthcoming Volkswagen Group SSP architecture.

In tandem with its electrification endeavours, Cupra is also charting a course into the lucrative American market before the decade is out. Griffiths further underscored the pivotal role that the Formentor EV will play in this strategic expansion, envisioning it as a cornerstone next to an all-new, larger electric SUV that will follow. "Electric Formentor and a larger electric SUV would make sense for the US market. It also makes sense to build them in the US." However the opinion of the SEAT CEO differs, highlighting his preference to have the electric Formentor built in house at the Martorell plant in Spain.

Scheduled to debut in 2026, the VW Group’s SSP (Scalable Systems Platform) will underpin Cupra’s transition to an EV-only brand. Beyond delivering enhanced power, the SSP is also anticipated to extend the range and reduce charging times. The Formentor will not be the first vehicle to show off this new technology as it’s set to appear on other VW Group cars from 2026.