Cupra Terramar long-term test: report 9

With its racy demeanour, does the Cupra Terramar put the sport in sport utility vehicle? We've got six months to find out.....

Published27 April 2026

The car Cupra Terramar V2 1.5 e-Hybrid 204PS DSG Run by Stuart Milne, digital editor

Why it’s here To see if the Terramar could be a practical, low-cost Porsche Macan alternative

Needs to deliver the driving experience those looks promise, while being an economical family workhorse

Miles covered 11,544 Price £46,700 Target price £39,999 Price as tested £47,395 Official economy 176.5mpg Test economy 70.6mpg

27 April 2026 – Getting a handle on the situation

You can tell a lot from a handshake. An overly firm handshake can feel aggressive, a limp handshake disinterested and one with a lack of eye contact feels awkward and impersonal.

And it’s the latter which troubled a couple of friends recently, because when they pulled the rear door handles of my Cupra Terramar…nothing. You see, for reasons that are not at all clear, the keyless entry only works on the front door handles. That means as the keyholder, I have to approach the car first and tap the front handles to unlock the car.

But much like a handshake that has been ignored, the rear ones have no bearing on the locking mechanism. That’s left my friends awkwardly hanging as I fumble for the keys, else they’ll have to wait for me to arrive and touch one of the front door handles. It’s worse in a tight parking space where I may need to squeeze down the side to tap the front handle in order for my kids to open the rear doors.

And even after more than 11,000 miles, I still don’t find the car’s starting procedure particularly intuitive. About 50% of the time I thumb the steering wheel mounted starter button apparently incorrectly – because while the dashboard lights up ready to go, I’m unable to select a gear.

Cue twisting the gear selector back and forth until realising I’ve not pushed the start button for long enough. On some days it’s a mild irritation; other days it’s enough to elicit an expletive or two.

Of lesser irritation is the delightful old-school switch on the driver’s door pocket to release the fuel filler cap. It takes me back to some of my first cars which had a floor-mounted arrangement. The nostalgia makes me forget that quite a lot of the time I’m prodding the fuel filler cap wondering why it’s not releasing.

Better are the straps to release the rear seat backs. They’re located where the seat backs and bases meet, and are easy to use and the position has left me thinking why all car manufacturers don’t do something similar. There’s a long, thin cubby in the centre console that’s perfect for a packet of mints, and I’ve really enjoyed the way the Terramar automatically activates the heated steering wheel and seats through the winter. They’ve both been very acceptable greetings.

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