Cupra Ateca review

With the exception of the family-friendly Skoda Octavia vRS, no conventional hot hatch is quite a match for the Cupra Ateca when it comes to ferrying around people and their accompanying paraphernalia.

Let’s start with the front seats, which are certainly easier to get into, and out of, than the Honda Civic Type R’s thanks to being higher off the ground. And once inside, anyone with even a mild tendency towards claustrophobia will appreciate the extra room above their head.

It’s a similar story in the back, because although leg room isn’t significantly greater than in some hot hatchbacks, head room most definitely is. A couple of six-footers will fit quite comfortably, despite the Cupra not packing clever features like the sliding and reclining rear seats that you'll find available on pricier performance SUVs such as the Skoda Kodiaq vRS and Audi SQ5.
 
Boot space is just as impressive as in the regular Ateca, and should comfortably hold enough luggage for a family of four on a week’s holiday. Incidentally, we managed to fit seven carry-on suitcases below the parcel shelf – the same number that we squeezed in the both Porsche Macan and our favourite conventional hot hatch, the Civic Type R.