Make no mistake, the Cupra Raval – in VZ spec, at least – is a proper little pocket rocket. Acceleration is strong, and torque instant, rushing the car forward at the flick of your right foot. The VZ even comes with a launch control function that pulses vibrations through your seat; not something you’ll use on a regular basis, but a party trick all the same.
The steering is accurate and well weighted, but it’s the way the Raval turns in that impresses most. Almost regardless of speed, you just pivot the wheel and the car reacts; seemingly relentless grip carries you through the bends and slingshots you out the other side. This, matched to unflappable body control, comfortably gifts the Raval the title of the best-handling small car on sale.
Yet none of this comes at the expense of comfort or ride quality – although admittedly our car had that aforementioned dynamic chassis control, adjustable through 15 stages. Sure, it’s maybe a little bouncy in town, but that’s more a victim of the relatively short wheelbase than anything else. At speed, it flows well, with a compliance to the ride that ensures longer journeys are no hassle.
Indeed, during our time with the Raval VZ, we averaged almost four miles per kWh – equivalent to over 200 miles of real-world range. We weren’t hanging about either; we reckon you’d come close to Cupra’s quoted maximum range in normal driving, without much effort at all.
When the time comes to topping up, while it might be straightforward, it isn’t quick. Base cars manage a peak speed of just 50kW – the same as the original BMW i3, which launched well over a decade ago. Mid-range models up this to 88kW, which might not sound like much, but given the size of the battery, is sufficient for a 10 to 80 per cent charge in 23 minutes. The 52kWh cars boost that figure again to 105kW – about par for the course alongside rivals like the R5 and MINI Cooper – but the larger capacity means it takes slightly longer (24 minutes) to hit 80 per cent.
