Cupra is growing its footprint in Australia after selling 5000 vehicles since launching here less than two years ago.
It’s opening new service centres in South Brisbane and the NSW Central Coast in March, and has announced a new sales and service centre in Essendon Fields, Victoria.
The latter will open early in 2025.
Prior to its opening, Cupra will run a ‘pop-up’ sales and service centre nearby at Zagame Tullamarine in April 2024.
Cupra says it has now sold more than 5000 vehicles in less than two years, having sold 1111 vehicles in 2022 and 3765 in 2023 – plus another 366 thus far in 2024.
Essendon Fields rendering
In contrast, Skoda didn’t reach 5000 sales until its fifth year on the market following its 2007 relaunch. In its first four years on the market, it sold 3868 vehicles.
Cupra is also doing far better than the brand it was spun off from – SEAT – in Australia. That brand sold just 3561 vehicles over its truncated 1995-99 run, back when Cupra was merely a trim level on the Ibiza hatch.
The sporty Spanish brand said in 2022 it wanted to sell 1600 vehicles in Australia that year – a goal it didn’t meet – and sell 7000 vehicles annually by 2025, which it is making progress towards.
In the medium term, Cupra wants to sell 500,000 vehicles per year globally. Last year, it delivered 230,700 vehicles, up 50.9 per cent year-on-year.
With 3765 sales in Australia in 2023, Cupra outsold various much older brands in Australia including Peugeot (2516) and Alfa Romeo (716).
Cupra says 38 per cent of its Australian sales in 2023 were electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles.
It currently sells just four models: the petrol and plug-in hybrid Leon hatchback and Formentor crossover; the petrol-powered Ateca crossover; and the electric Born hatchback.
In 2025, it’s adding the electric Tavascan as well as the Terramar, the latter of which is expected to offer a choice of petrol and plug-in hybrid power.
The company currently has nine sales locations (called Cupra Garages) and nine service locations across the ACT, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia.
