Cupra will price small EV higher than VW brand's version

MUNICH -- Cupra will price its full-electric small car at "about 25,000 euros" ($29,500), when it launches in 2025.

The cost will be 5,000 euros higher than the 20,000 euros starting price for Volkswagen brand's small EV, also due in 2025.

Both cars will be based on a shortened version of VW Group's MEB electric architectures that is used for compact EVs including the Cupra Born, VW ID3 and ID4, Skoda Enyaq and Audi Q4 e-tron.

"The Cupra version of the car will be priced higher because we want it to be positioned between the mass and the premium segments," Cupra CEO Wayne Griffiths said at the Munich auto show earlier this month.

Cupra previewed its small EV in Munich with the UrbanRebel concept, which had a motorsports-inspired design. At the Munich show, VW brand unveiled the ID Life concept that will be launched as its entry-level battery-powered car.

Skoda is also expected to get a version called the Elroq but Cupra's parent brand, Seat, is not planning a version.

The production Cupra small EV will keep the same design language of the UrbanRebel, Griffiths said.

"We will do a very provocative design. The series car is very near to the UrbanRebel. You take the fin off the back and the spoiler off the front, and then you get very very close to what we want to do with the car we want to launch in 2025," he said.

The reason the design will be so distinctive is that it will be one of the key elements to differentiate the model from other electric performance cars which all have similar performance, Griffiths said.

The Cupra Born, the brand's first full-electric car, will arrive in showrooms in November.

Griffiths said Cupra had faced a challenge in making the Born's handling and suspension feel sporty due to the weight of the batteries in the car's platform.

The UrbanRebel-based small EV would be the next step, he said, and its length and weight would make the car very sporty.

The car will be powered by a 170-kilowatt electric motor and a battery up to 55 kW. This will allow for a 400 km (248 mile) range on a single charge.

The EV will take 6.9 seconds to accelerate from 0 to 100 kph (0 to 62 mph), more than double than the time of 3.2 seconds claimed for the UrbanRebel.

VW Group plans to build small EVs for the different brands in Spain, with capacity for up to 500,000 units a year.

Seat's factory in Martorell, near Barcelona, is due to be converted into an EV production hub. VW brand's factory in Pamplona, Spain, could also be involved in the production of EVs, Griffiths said.

Spain announced in July a plan to invest 4.3 billion euros to support the production of electric vehicles and batteries in the country.

Seat intends to apply for the funds, which will also use money from the EU.

"The Spanish government supports us and it is currently discussing with the EU. If we want to launch the car in 2025 we need decisions to be taken by the end of this year," Griffiths said.