What is the point of the Cupra Formentor 1.5 petrol?
Discussion
Ok let's put it a slightly more intelligent way: VW Group already has the main 4 brands of Skoda, Seat, VW and Audi, who all do SUVs (and others) on the MQB Evo platform. A LOT is shared on this platform, for example the steering wheel controls, headlamp switch, a lot of other switchgear, suspension components, engines (there may be slight differences in spec/tuning) etc. The Cupra "brand" was an offshoot of the "Seat" brand, which is distinguished by being "sporty" compared to the Skoda or VW brand (let's pretend the Audi brand is actually a bit more premium than the aforementioned). Is there really space for the SEAT brand anyway, doesn't it just steal sales from Audi/VW? And similarly, doesn't Cupra just split up Seat into two different shades of sporty?
Then the body, yes its unique to the Cupra but only because its an SUV with a coupe rear end treatment. Are buyers choosing SUVs really hankering for a coupe rear end and happy to forego the practicality? I guess there may be an argument here, for a higher body/seating position, but no need for practicality, so they'd choose this over eg Golf/Leon/Audi A3.
And with it being the 1.5 petrol, its NOT sporty. Doesn't that simply dilute the Cupra brand distinction?
I get that manufacturers would make one platform but run two (or more) brands, but there would need to be a measurable uplift in sales across all, to justify the duplication of dealer networks, marketing, etc etc.
Or maybe we're just seeing a half-hearted effort in the last generation of the Golf, before 2030 (2035 for hybrids) when they can't sell them any more in Europe?
Then the body, yes its unique to the Cupra but only because its an SUV with a coupe rear end treatment. Are buyers choosing SUVs really hankering for a coupe rear end and happy to forego the practicality? I guess there may be an argument here, for a higher body/seating position, but no need for practicality, so they'd choose this over eg Golf/Leon/Audi A3.
And with it being the 1.5 petrol, its NOT sporty. Doesn't that simply dilute the Cupra brand distinction?
I get that manufacturers would make one platform but run two (or more) brands, but there would need to be a measurable uplift in sales across all, to justify the duplication of dealer networks, marketing, etc etc.
Or maybe we're just seeing a half-hearted effort in the last generation of the Golf, before 2030 (2035 for hybrids) when they can't sell them any more in Europe?
People like choice? Does it matter at VAG board level whether Bob next door buys a Formentor or the Skoda/VW/Audi equivalent? Maybe Bob likes the "sporty" look of the Formentor but wants something economical (I don't know a thing about the Cupra range as they excite me as much as a yoghurt would but I assume theres a model with the 2.0t GTI/R type engine in it too?)? As for coupe-SUVs, blame BMW and Mercedes for starting with those abominations but (blind) people buy them...
VAG will have done some market research and decided there is a market for them. It might not be in Britain, it might be in some part of the 99.9% of the world that isn’t Britain, so we might never see many of them. There’s little appeal for those gigantic pickups that are about the same footprint as a London bus, but there is a huge market for them in the US and Australia to name two large markets. They may try to sell them here and decide it doesn’t work, or it might work and they might then decide not to sell a similar but slightly different car from their other multiple brands as a result.
The point is that, just because you don’t like them or think there’s a market for them, doesn’t mean there isn’t a market for them. I personally think that super cars are some of the most ridiculous cars on our roads from a driver perspective, but Ferrari, McLaren et al still do quite well with their sales numbers.
The point is that, just because you don’t like them or think there’s a market for them, doesn’t mean there isn’t a market for them. I personally think that super cars are some of the most ridiculous cars on our roads from a driver perspective, but Ferrari, McLaren et al still do quite well with their sales numbers.
I don't know for certain, but I guess that the Cupra Formentor 1.5 may fall into the 50% of VW Group models which the CEO has admitted are pointless.
Autocar said:
CEO Oliver Blume told journalists that the firm is preparing “a major reduction of up to 50% of our product”
https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/vw-gro...DaveyBoyWonder said:
Maybe Bob likes the "sporty" look of the Formentor but wants something economical (I don't know a thing about the Cupra range as they excite me as much as a yoghurt would but I assume theres a model with the 2.0t GTI/R type engine in it too?)?
There's one with the 2.5T too.They basically all look the same, so as you say, if Bob likes how they look, and how they go around corners, and how they ride, but doesn't need to do any if it outrageously fast (the 1.5 is 9 seconds to 60 which isn't downright slow), the 1.5 is fairly economical.
Personalky I think the Formentor looks better than any other crossover-coupe I can think of. Less blobby.
Sporky said:
DaveyBoyWonder said:
Maybe Bob likes the "sporty" look of the Formentor but wants something economical (I don't know a thing about the Cupra range as they excite me as much as a yoghurt would but I assume theres a model with the 2.0t GTI/R type engine in it too?)?
There's one with the 2.5T too.They basically all look the same, so as you say, if Bob likes how they look, and how they go around corners, and how they ride, but doesn't need to do any if it outrageously fast (the 1.5 is 9 seconds to 60 which isn't downright slow), the 1.5 is fairly economical.
Personally I think the Formentor looks better than any other crossover-coupe I can think of. Less blobby.
Wait until he finds out about the Terramar & Tavascan!
samoht said:
I found that article too, in my own independent research, but couldn't find it a second time.Having driven many Golf Mk7-based cars (the "old" MQB platform) and been generally impressed, then more recently a LOT of MQB Evo platform cars, the quality and ease-of-use of the controls just isn't there any more. It is a good example (along with Peugeot) of "ens
ttification" of cars in recent years, penny-pinching to make their costs lower and trading on previous loyalty. Peugeot is also a good comparison in that they too are based on a huge multi-brand company which has swallowed up many independent brands in the recent past. It would also be simplistic to say "they're dinosaurs, the Chinese will thrash them in the mass-market sector" because both VW Group and Stellantis have developed quite significant ties with Chinese car manufacturers too.VW did some kind of alliance with Ford over the development of electric cars, but I notice Ford have now also partnered with Geely and Renault, maybe because VW didn't quite get it right (or the brand diversification just made everything a complicated mess) with their ID range.
From my study of economics some 30 years ago, consumer "demand" at a macro level can be split into loads of smaller demand curves for different products.
So the more a manufacturer can capture that demand via different offerings, the more sales they will get.
They have to balance sales against profits of course, but a cupra badge and a bit of styling probably doesn't cost vag as much as it makes them.
So the more a manufacturer can capture that demand via different offerings, the more sales they will get.
They have to balance sales against profits of course, but a cupra badge and a bit of styling probably doesn't cost vag as much as it makes them.
Ian Geary said:
From my study of economics some 30 years ago, consumer "demand" at a macro level can be split into loads of smaller demand curves for different products.
So the more a manufacturer can capture that demand via different offerings, the more sales they will get.
Hence supermarkets selling own brand, no frills and 'finest' versions of many products.So the more a manufacturer can capture that demand via different offerings, the more sales they will get.
But in this case, it seems that WV haven't made clear enough distinctions between their sub-brands,
with the result that they are cannibalising each others sales rather than competing with other car companies.
I thought this too!
It seems like the cupra brand is just badly thought out and doesn t really make any sense
Obviously it was first the seat sporty models, but then they launched cupra with the Leon and ateca, but only the fast ones, but then they came out with the Leon 1.5 and plug in hybrid, which you could also get as a seat, so it was the same car with different badges and worse styling
Then the forementor came along, again a stand alone model, they now have several ugly SUVs mostly electric and the seat brand seems to have been completely abandoned?
I just don t get why they didn t bring out the forementor as a seat and then sell a Seat forementor cupra,
So VW are basically killing of seat which was a cheaper end sporty brand, for cupra, which is a . Cheaper end sporty brand? But worse with those tragic bronze bits?
The only consolation is currently they seem so disinterested in seat that you can still buy the Ibiza and arona and ateca brand new and they ALL have climate control buttons and knobs!
I don t get it at all!
I always thought of the brands as
Seat - sporter cheaper models for younger buyers
Skoda - cheaper models focused on practicality for fleet and middle aged people a bit like Tesco
VW - sensible refined models for people with a bit of extra cash who like to go to M&S
Audi - stylish without being show off (not anymore) for people who go to Waitrose
Cupra seems like a brand for fat people who wear tracksuits and shop at farm foods or Iceland, right up to trash with cash
It seems like the cupra brand is just badly thought out and doesn t really make any sense
Obviously it was first the seat sporty models, but then they launched cupra with the Leon and ateca, but only the fast ones, but then they came out with the Leon 1.5 and plug in hybrid, which you could also get as a seat, so it was the same car with different badges and worse styling
Then the forementor came along, again a stand alone model, they now have several ugly SUVs mostly electric and the seat brand seems to have been completely abandoned?
I just don t get why they didn t bring out the forementor as a seat and then sell a Seat forementor cupra,
So VW are basically killing of seat which was a cheaper end sporty brand, for cupra, which is a . Cheaper end sporty brand? But worse with those tragic bronze bits?
The only consolation is currently they seem so disinterested in seat that you can still buy the Ibiza and arona and ateca brand new and they ALL have climate control buttons and knobs!
I don t get it at all!
I always thought of the brands as
Seat - sporter cheaper models for younger buyers
Skoda - cheaper models focused on practicality for fleet and middle aged people a bit like Tesco
VW - sensible refined models for people with a bit of extra cash who like to go to M&S
Audi - stylish without being show off (not anymore) for people who go to Waitrose
Cupra seems like a brand for fat people who wear tracksuits and shop at farm foods or Iceland, right up to trash with cash
Edited by Quattr04. on Tuesday 28th July 23:52
Edited by Quattr04. on Tuesday 28th July 23:56
PBCD said:
Hence supermarkets selling own brand, no frills and 'finest' versions of many products.
But in this case, it seems that WV haven't made clear enough distinctions between their sub-brands,
with the result that they are cannibalising each others sales rather than competing with other car companies.
Supermarkets also sell branded products alongside their many own brand variants, all of which will be competing against each other. It still works though. But in this case, it seems that WV haven't made clear enough distinctions between their sub-brands,
with the result that they are cannibalising each others sales rather than competing with other car companies.
Quattr04. said:
I always thought of the brands as
Seat - sporter cheaper models for younger buyers
Skoda - cheaper models focused on practicality for fleet and middle aged people a bit like Tesco
VW - sensible refined models for people with a bit of extra cash who like to go to M&S
Audi - stylish without being show off (not anymore) for people who go to Waitrose
Does that mean I have to change supermarket when I swap my VW for a Skoda? Seat - sporter cheaper models for younger buyers
Skoda - cheaper models focused on practicality for fleet and middle aged people a bit like Tesco
VW - sensible refined models for people with a bit of extra cash who like to go to M&S
Audi - stylish without being show off (not anymore) for people who go to Waitrose
I was never really clear on what the point in SEAT was, they had a phase of making everything look like an MPV, then a load of forgettable stuff, and now some cars that look exactly like everything else VAG make, but Cupra?
Absolutely no idea, I thought it was a trim level but then so was FR so I'm not sure what it means, and I thought they were all quick but then the other day some twit in one was trying it on and it wasn't quick so...
What is the point in Cupra? Or, indeed, SEAT.
I assume the only way anyone picks between the various identical VAG SUVs is to pick the rough size they want and then find the one with the cheapest lease that week anyway, I can't imagine actually caring if you had a VW, Seat, Skoda, or Cupra badge on your identikit SUV, they seem to have less distinction that Wolseley, Austin, and Morris ever did on the 1800/2200 range.
ETA and now there is some other brand/trim/whatever called Formentor? How does anyone summon the energy to care enough to find out about this bks.
Absolutely no idea, I thought it was a trim level but then so was FR so I'm not sure what it means, and I thought they were all quick but then the other day some twit in one was trying it on and it wasn't quick so...
What is the point in Cupra? Or, indeed, SEAT.
I assume the only way anyone picks between the various identical VAG SUVs is to pick the rough size they want and then find the one with the cheapest lease that week anyway, I can't imagine actually caring if you had a VW, Seat, Skoda, or Cupra badge on your identikit SUV, they seem to have less distinction that Wolseley, Austin, and Morris ever did on the 1800/2200 range.
ETA and now there is some other brand/trim/whatever called Formentor? How does anyone summon the energy to care enough to find out about this b
ks.Edited by GeniusOfLove on Wednesday 29th July 19:51
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