The 320 HP Cupra Born VZ Is Here To Prove EVs Can Get Hotter And Hatchier

If you’re in the market for a fun little electric car, your options are fairly limited here in the U.S. thanks to automakers sticking with pickups and SUVs for most of their electric models. However, in a magical place called Europe, there’s a raft of fun little EVs that just got a new leader in the form of the Cupra Born VZ.

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For anyone not in the know, the Cupra Born was already a fun looking little electric hatchback. Based on Volkswagen’s ID.3, the Born added a bunch of neat styling tweaks to make it stand out from the crowd, and came with some fun performance updates to appeal to hot hatch aficionados.

Now, however, some updates have ramped the Cupra up a notch with the VZ, which takes its name from the Spanish word for fast: veloz.

For this new hotter hatch, VW offshoot Cupra has given the car more power, quite a lot more power actually. The Born VZ now packs 240kW of electric power, which is equivalent to around 320 hp. This gives it more power than a GR Corolla.

Nice, but practical. Image: Cupra

That impressive 40 percent increase in power means that the Born VZ will hit 62mph in 5.7 seconds and has a top speed of 124 mph.

But the Born VZ is about more than just pure power, and Cupra has made several changes to the chassis and handling of the electric hot hatch. First among those is an upgrade to the car’s suspension, with new dampers and springs going into the rear and new anti-roll bars fitted.

The brakes have also been updated to feel more “robust,” says Cupra, and the car’s responsiveness has also been improved.

To show everyone that you’re driving the new, faster Born, Cupra has made a few subtle styling tweaks for the VZ. Chief among them is a set of 20-inch alloy wheels that feature new copper inserts. There’s also a set of wider high performance tires at each corner and new color options.

Styling updates include new colors and alloy rims. Image: Cupra

In true hot hatch style, however, this increased performance hasn’t come at the cost of the Born’s practicalities. Cupra says the new car will still achieve a range of around 330 miles, thanks to a 2kWh increase in the car’s battery capacity.

The Born VZ can also top up at some pretty speedy chargers, including 170kW DC powerpoints, which can take the car from 10 percent up to 80 percent in around 30 minutes.

Pricing for the hotter, hatchier Born VZ hasn’t been announced yet, but Cupra says that will come later this year when the model is ready to roll out to buyers. Sadly, while Cupra does have ambitions to launch its cars in the U.S., it doesn’t appear as though this will be one of the cars it brings stateside.