Long-term report: The Cupra Terramar is a pretty easy car to live with

I’ve racked up several hundred miles in my long-term Cupra Terramar recently, which has made me realise that SUVs do have a place in the market.

If you’re like me – and you love cars – you will have overlooked many of these high-riding family wagons due to their lacklustre appeal and drab image.

Thankfully, my time with the Cupra Terramar has been far from a disaster, as I’ve travelled to several destinations in this comfortable, refined and stylish Spanish counterpart.

Over the last four weeks, the Cupra and I have just completed a trip up to Guildford, followed via a small diversion down to Chichester and back – a round trip of nearly 200 miles.

My passengers complimented the car for its excellent ride quality, while higher-spec versions of the Terramar get acoustic glass in the back, all to aid cabin refinement further.

I haven’t changed my opinion on the Terramar’s ability to soak up the miles with ease, covering the length of the A3 and M27 without any fuss thanks to its comfortable bucket seats and limited wind and road noise entering the cabin.

Last week, the Cupra became the transportation of choice to pick up my 96-year-old grandfather’s new wheelchair, which was easily swallowed up by its impressive 630-litre boot capacity. There was no need to even fold the rear seats down, as the boxy shape meant that the wheelchair could slide in with no drama.

Economy isn’t too bad either, with the car averaging around 40 to 45mpg on a good run, though around town the fuel economy suffers and drops to around 28mpg.

However, putting the positives to one side, the Terramar still has a few electrical gremlins living inside; the most recent one being the front passenger window not wanting to roll up. Instead, my front passenger had to gradually touch the window switch in order for the glass to fully close. This has been a one-off scenario and it hasn’t happened since, but a dodgy window switch on a near-brand-new-car does question the build quality.

The usual flickering ‘P’ parking assist button is back to its old tricks on the infotainment screen too. Even though I’ve updated the system several times, the P button still glitches all the time – I’ve got no idea how to stop it?

Other issues are related to the car’s gearbox, which I’ve mentioned many times in previous reports. Under acceleration, the revs seem to hold out without changing gear, making the engine scream up and down the rev range. I can’t help but think this is why the fuel economy suffers around town?

My time with the Cupra Terramar will be coming to an end soon, with its replacement due within the next couple of months.

In the five and half months of running this SUV, I can honestly say that it’s been a pleasant surprise. My initial reaction was rather doom and gloom, but after 2,500 miles and plenty of memories made, the Terramar is definitely worth a mention if you’re looking for a practical, comfortable and good-looking SUV.

From my experience, I would stay clear of the 2.0-litre 201bhp turbocharged petrol engine in our test car, as around town it can be quite thirsty. There is the option of a smaller 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol unit, and there is even a fuel-saving plug-in hybrid model, which is the perfect counterpart if you’re a company car driver.

But in the last few weeks, the Terramar has fitted into my life very nicely, with it being a well-packaged all-round SUV.