New Cupra Leon, Formentor and Born revealed

A heavily facelifted 2023 Cupra Leon hatch, Cupra Formentor SUV and Born electric car have been revealed this week by the Volkswagen Group’s Spanish performance brand.

The updated models, which are tipped to land in Australia later next year, were shown at an event where the forthcoming electrified 2024 Cupra Terramar and Cupra Tavascan SUVs and the 2025 Cupra UrbanRebel electric crossover were also unveiled.

The current 2022 Cupra Leon and Cupra Formentor, as well as the Cupra Ateca small SUV, are on the cusp of launching in Australia next month, while the Cupra Born is due here early next year.

That means the battery-electric small car could pick up the latest changes before landing Down Under, which from the brief glimpse provided this week appears to include yet more stylistic tweaks to help distinguish it from the closely related Volkswagen ID.3.

The biggest changes have been reserved for the Cupra Leon.

The updated hatch gets a pair of slimmer headlights that feature the brand’s new trademark triple-triangular design elements.

Between the new lamps, the Seat Leon-based hatch also sports a more pronounced shark-nose snout that helps link it with incoming models like the UrbanRebel.

Beneath the pointier nose a dramatic rectangular air dam flanked by U-shaped air blades that incorporate air curtains to slash turbulence within the front wheel-arches for improved efficiency.

The Formentor, which isn’t based on any current Seat product, has also been revised with a new set of headlights and a redesigned lower front bumper.

Cupra hopes the changes will end comparisons with it and the smaller, cheaper Ateca and align the sporty SUV with the latest Terramar.

Full details are still to be released, but under the bonnet it’s expected both the Leon and Formentor will carry updated electrified combustion engines consisting of mild hybrids and the same plug-in powertrain found in the new Terramar.

The latter should bestow the refreshed Formentor with a pure-electric range of more than 100km.

During the presentation, Cupra chief executive Wayne Griffiths stressed that the Terramar would be the Spanish brand’s last combustion-powered model and that, by 2030, Cupra will have transitioned to an all-electric brand.