New Cupra Born driven: Useful updates for a likeable class leader

The improvement this brings in on-the-move utility is vast; after just a short time at the helm you know where everything is by touch – so you don't have to take your eyes of the road – and all the buttons respond immediately when pressed, where the old touch icons used to need a good old stab. Plus, there's less chance of inadvertently brushing against a button while turning and changing the radio station or deactivating the cruise control.

Curiously, the much-lambasted touch sliders for the temperature and volume control still sit pride of place under the chunky touchscreen – having been banished from the ID 3's cabin in favour of a simple, almost retro toggle switch panel – and they remain irritating to use, but do at least light up these days so you can use them at night. Plus, because there's a volume scroller on the wheel and the climate control bar is now pinned to the lower half of the touchscreen, you find yourself fumbling around for them less than you needed to before.

Meanwhile, the digital driver display has doubled in size – at 10.25in – while the 12.9in central touchscreen remains but now runs a new-generation infotainment system powered by Android. It looks mostly the same as the previous system (and follows the same fundamental layout as all other VW Group cars) but definitely feels a touch slicker and more intuitive in its operation - particularly when adjusting ADAS settings and mucking about with the temperature. 

Otherwise, though, there is little that's significantly materially different about the Born, and that’s no huge shame because it remains a supremely comfortable and pleasant car to spend time in, and continues to serve as one of the more engaging and dynamically well-rounded EV hatches on the market. 

The steering is pleasingly quick and direct but never too twitchy, and enticingly weighty off-centre; the suspension is just stiff enough to add poise and purpose without inviting too much crashiness over crumblier sections; the brake pedal is feelsome and intuitively mapped; and the motor serves up its power generously but considerately even under full throttle, so you can keep stabbing away with your right foot without things getting too tiresomely frenetic. 

New for 2026 on the bigger-batteried Borns is a launch control function that liberates the full reserves from rest - but as is usually the case with hot EVs, it’s not a mode you’ll find yourself using often, given the one-dimensionality and nauseating nature of instant electric torque.

Being rear driven always made the Born feel a bit more lithe and malleable than front-motored alternatives, and that’s particularly true of this most potent variant, which will reward exuberance with a little shuffle-and-flick on corner exit, before hunkering down on its back axle and deploying its generous reserves to slingshot you out towards the next one with amusing immediacy.