• Well-appointed interior but the style gets in the way of the spaciousness
• Lots of space for rear passengers
• Boot is a good size but sloped rooflining means it’s not as roomy as it could be

How much space is there?

It’s a mixed bag on the spaciousness front. The Tavascan is not a small car and largely it’s a practical choice, but certain design details get in the way of its usability. The ‘halo’-like centre console looks cool but makes accessing certain storage harder and generally doesn’t feel as spacious as rivals, such as the more open-feeling cabin of a Hyundai Ioniq 5. 

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Rear space is good, though, as despite the Tavascan’s coupe-like shape, the roof doesn’t taper until behind the heads of rear-seat passengers, meaning there’s no compromise in this respect. Adults will have plenty of head and legroom and there’s about enough space for three adults to sit across the rear bench, helped by an almost-flat floor. The rear Isofix sockets are easy to access, too, while you can also fit a child seat on the front passenger seat because it has mounting points. 

Cupra Tavascan boot space and storage

For most uses, the Tavascan’s boot is still a great size at 540 litres. There’s a height-adjustable boot floor, which we chose to have in its lowest setting for the majority of the time as it can be quite shallow if you have the floor flush with the loading sill. 

The sloping roofline also means it’s no use if you want to carry big boxy items in the boot, such as dog cages. For that we’d recommend the impressively practical Skoda Enyaq SUV (not the Coupe version). 

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With the rear seats folded, the space on offer increases to 1,550 litres, though we’d appreciate some handles in the boot to drop the rear seats. It also doesn’t get a front boot (frunk), something you’ll find on rivals such as the Tesla Model Y and Ford Mustang Mach-e.

While there is enough storage around the interior, with a large centre console bin and deep door pockets throughout, it lacks some of the clever storage ideas you find in the Skoda Enyaq, most notably in the boot. The entry-level V1-spec Tavascan also doesn’t get a fold-down centre armrest, which seems a bit penny-pinching on an electric SUV costing close to £50,000. 

Is it easy to park?

Rear visibility of the Tavascan could be better as a combination of a sloping roofline and a generally higher-up rear window means you can’t always see that much out the back. Big door mirrors are a bonus, though, as is a standard-fit reversing camera, which also comes with a camera washer. We found this a big help when driving the Tavascan in the winter months. An automated parking function is also included as standard. 

All but the entry-level V1 trim also come with a top-view camera, which is very handy when seeing if you’re parked straight within the lines of a parking space and when parallel parking. 

Safety

• Five-star Euro NCAP rating
• Lots of standard safety kit
• Easy-to-use tech and works well

The Tavascan was awarded a five-star Euro NCAP safety rating, with particularly high scores recorded in the adult occupant and child occupant categories of 89% and 86% respectively. 

It also comes comprehensively equipped with a raft of driver assistance tech as standard. There are no options in this respect as everything is included – such as an advanced adaptive cruise control, lane assist,blind spot monitoring and a feature that can warn of an approaching vehicle when you’re trying to open a car door. During our long-term loan, we never had an issue with any of the safety assists, with the adaptive cruise control being particularly well resolved.