User Experience owning Cupra Formentor

[AsuraDeva]

Hi,

I registered myself just to share the difficulties and issues i have faced with my Formentor.
The car has been bought 2023 autumn and initial experience was very good but now owning the car for about a year the issues have started to pile up.

The Bad:

1. After first couple of months the (Idk how its actually called and could not find any info about it on owners manual) - The Central Light between front seats on the roof where you have SOS button etc. - That system went "berserk" lights started to be permanently on and car started to call SOS all the time: This got replaced by Warranty but not about a month ago the first signs of exactly the same issue is reemerging, car is trying to randomly call "SOS".

2. The Central Infortainment system also somewhat broke down. I am still not sure if it was related with my mobile phone or not. Either way Android Auto connection decided its time to randomly change the volume on my phone (when phone was connected with car) when trying to do anything with phone the infortainment system self "reset" on its own without giving any command or approval. - This was a one time thing and happily has not happend again but still puzzled as to why.

3. Central Locking (By hand) does not work if the weather is snowy or its raining. Locking worked fine but unlocking the car did not work.

4. Since i never owned a car that has automatic gearbox im not sure if this is exactly an issue or its natural way of automatic gearbox job - At some times on higher speeds it gets confused weather to change gear or not and then REV-s go pretty high unless i manually change gear with the pads on wheel.

5. Can't seem to be able to turn off Start/Stop permanently (Mazda CX3 you could turn off Start/stop permanently for example). In addition also Lane Assist can't be turned off permanently but have to be turned off each time you start a car. During Winter the car tries to steer you off-road because of lane assist which is pretty dangerous.

The Good:

It has alot of room inside and spacious, i really do like the setup they did with front driver seat i wished passanger seat would also have this automatic features of seat setting.
The 360 Camera view is also very helpful and so far has worked perfectly, the engine is smooth and quiet (i have 110Kw engine frontwheel drive version)

Overall: I am happy with the car but there are some issues that i was not informed about by the salesperson (Namely issue 5 for example).
But since my experience is quite small i hope atleast when someone tries to google issues about Cupra like i did, they find this post helpful (I did not find much info when i tried googling the issues).

 

[Delanor]

Well I had a V2 4WD 190 bhp which proved to be completely fault free and I was really impressed with it, now I have VZN and it has been OK apart from the Sunroof which when you open/close it when its hot it has a mind of its own and doesn`t want to do as its told apparently its a known fault with a replacement switch panel replacement required, along with that the courtesy lights come on and you cannot turn them off unless you turn the ignition off, they also come on if driving on a particularly bumpy road - apart from that the VZN has been OK and I am pleased with it obviously apart from the Sunroof switch panel - I`ll get it seen to shortly at the dealers when I have chance!

 

[KJA]

For me like Delanor I have same VZN.
Twice infotainment froze for whole of Journey with no audio Sat nav etc.
But after leaving car locked for sometime everything was normal.
Was thinking to do a reset but on those occasions but didn't.

Courtesy light it's been 2 occasions now it comes ON by itself and then switches OFF by itself.....maybe a living Ghost in my car....

Wireless charging pad is rubbish it's a heat magnet.

Overall happy with the car.

Had Audi Q3 2020 Vorsprung from new previously and it had its own list of issues to name few. Panroof water leaking,
child lock fault every now and then since it was electric lock.
SOS error every now and then.
So mainly leaky roof was the real issue.
Formentor is doing well no leaks.
Summary every brand or model would have some issues some major some minor.
I have come to terms that live with it if it's a minor one and drive ability is not affected.

 

[Delanor]

Summary every brand or model would have some issues some major some minor.
I have come to terms that live with it if it's a minor one and drive ability is not affected.

In fairness I also own a special edition Mazda RX-8 40th Anniversary bought new in 2008 it is only on 30K miles but have never had a problem with it only the poor. untrustworthy dishonest dealers, I have used 7 different Mazda dealers and would only return to one of them in fact in fact the RX-8 doesn`t go near dealers now!

 

[KJA]

For RX8s better to stay away from dealership

 

[Delanor]

Again to be honest yesterday it was hot and the Sunroof opened and shut perfectly although the courtesy lights did come on but they turned off OK - as Global Cooling is only weeks away I`ll stick with it as it is for now as I am allergic to dealers!

 

[AsuraDeva]

my Formentor has currently "solved"some of its issues itself.

Car is no longer panicly calling SoS for now (will monitor if its related to any specific weather)
All locks seem to be working fine (even when it was thunderstorm and heavy rain, it did work this time)
Tho i haven't figured out why the function that when you put the car in reverse the mirror should automaticly lower/aim down so you can see better but that does not seem to work now. The lane assist still tries to drive me off the road, even when the road has no markings on it , it keeps trying to push the car on the opposite lane. So for me it has become a habbit when i start the car, i instantly turn it off. Sort of annoying that you have to do it everytime but i have accepted that.

 

[KJA]

Cockpit checks, disable start stop, disable lane assist.
For the mirror dip it's just the passenger side that would work.
For that to work in reverse mirror knob should be pointed/ set to the passenger side.
And obviously set the way you want when in reverse.
If by any chance you skipped all this.

 

[AsuraDeva]

Cockpit checks, disable start stop, disable lane assist.
For the mirror dip it's just the passenger side that would work.
For that to work in reverse mirror knob should be pointed/ set to the passenger side.
And obviously set the way you want when in reverse.
If by any chance you skipped all this.

For the start stop and lane assist what exactly do you mean? Since i have turned and disabled them but after i turn engine off and turn it on again they are automaticly enabled again so i have to disable them at every single start. As far as i have read owner manual there does not seem to be any way you can permanently disable them so even when you turn off engine and turn it on again they stay disabled by default
Thanks for the tips on the mirrors tho, was not aware that it has to be pointed to passanger side.

 

[KJA]

Yeah that's how it is, start stop, lane assist etc. Even the driver profile goes back to comfort at every engine restart. So that's why I said Cockpit check every time.
So first adjust the mirror while in neutral for normal driving without putting in Reverse.
Once that is done then put in reverse gear and then adjust the dip settings of mirror.

And leave the physical switch in that position if you want that to work in reverse.

 

[Agnes.Surrey]

You should be able to code out Lane Assist with OBD11 and it will stay disabled/enabled on next start, depending how you left it last time.

All new cars have annoying tech, that requires disabling at every start. But depending on the brand and model, it's easier or more difficult. For example, BMW allows you to press button on the dash for 10s and it disables all annoyanes. No need to waste time and change settings on touch screen.

 

[MACKY68]

my Formentor V2 1.5 DSG 21 plate has had a few issues with the Infortainment system, where I had the pink screen of death ,where you cant change anything and had to go back to the dealer for software updates, this has happen 3 times so far. key fob battery only lasting a few months, the biggest issue now is that the car goes into limp home mode , so being over 3 years old and out of warranty and only done 24500, I took it to the local mechanic who found a fault code P0805 clutch position sensor, after speaking with VW part person who had no idea what I was talking about! and after speaking with lots of mechanics , i was told to speak with an DSG gearbox expert! who has said yep they go all the time, ok so how much to fix? its a fault with your mechatronic unit to repair £1600+vat and to replace £3000 3500!
Has anyone else had this issue?.

 

[Delanor]

Well that was a first, I was washing the Formentor and just had started to hose it off at the back when the boot hatch suddenly decided to open itself. a good job I was watching or with my high pressure hose I could have ended up with a decidedly damp interior!

 

[KJA]

Well that was a first, I was washing the Formentor and just had started to hose it off at the back when the boot hatch suddenly decided to open itself. a good job I was watching or with my high pressure hose I could have ended up with a decidedly damp interior!

Gadgets of convenience

 

[Bear]

My experience of owning my Cupra Formentor VZ2 can be summed up like this...I bloody love it. No issues, the missus drives it like a bank robber and enjoys it even more than I do (22mpg). There ain't many motors that offer the package that the VZ2 provides at the same £.

 

[Bear]

You should be able to code out Lane Assist with OBD11 and it will stay disabled/enabled on next start, depending how you left it last time.

All new cars have annoying tech, that requires disabling at every start. But depending on the brand and model, it's easier or more difficult. For example, BMW allows you to press button on the dash for 10s and it disables all annoyanes. No need to waste time and change settings on touch screen.

It takes about 3 seconds to turn off lane assist on the Formentor. Your time must be really precious.