Wagons aren’t dead: Cupra Leon Sportstourer locked in for Australia
Volkswagen thinks wagons are dead in Australia, but its Spanish sibling Cupra disagrees – and has confirmed a new Leon 'Sportstourer' for showrooms with Golf R DNA.
The void left by the axing of the Volkswagen Golf R wagon in Australia will be filled by its twin under the skin, the 2025 Cupra Leon Sportstourer, due in local showrooms in July or August next year.
Sales of wagons in Australia have fallen by more than 80 per cent since the turn of the century, and have claimed iconic names from brands such as Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, BMW, Ford, Holden, Hyundai and Volkswagen.
However the Spanish subsidiary of the German car giant believes it has found a niche to justify adding the 'Sportstourer' version of the Leon five-door hatch – a twin of the Volkswagen Golf and Skoda Octavia – to the Cupra line-up in Australia.
The Leon Sportstourer – arriving in facelifted form – will fill the void left by the Volkswagen Golf R wagon axed last year, with a 'VZx' version that uses the flagship Golf's mechanicals.
It is set to be more powerful than any Golf R wagon sold in Australia, with a 245kW/420Nm version of the 2.0-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder engine, matched with a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission and all-wheel-drive for 0-100km/h in less than five seconds.
"It's hard to say [how many we'll sell], it's a niche. But it's a niche that's interesting to us ... it's a strength of Cupra as a brand, we don't need to be chasing volume like a mainstream brand needs to," Cupra Australia head of product Jeff Shafer told Australian media.
"I think the volume's going to be fairly limited, but I'm also prepared to be surprised."
A VZe plug-in hybrid version is likely to be offered, combining a 1.5-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder with an electric motor for a system output of 200kW.
It is estimated to be capable of a 0-100km/h acceleration time of about 6.5 to 7.0 seconds – with front-wheel drive – or when driven modestly, up to 100km of electric-only driving on a full charge of the 19.7kWh battery.
Cupra executives told media the Sportstourer will be marketed as a "high-end" model, so it is unlikely to offer the smaller and less powerful engines of cheaper Leon variants.
Prices are yet to be revealed, but the Sportstourer is expected to command a premium over the Leon hatch – itself set to incur a price rise for the facelifted version due in April 2025.
The current Leon VZx hatch is priced from $65,690 drive-away nationally – with front-wheel drive only – while the VZe costs $61,690 plus on-road costs, or $64,690 to $67,690 drive-away depending on where in Australia it is registered.
The Volkswagen Golf R wagon departed showrooms with an RRP of $71,990 plus on-road costs, $3000 more than the hatchback.
