2023 Subaru Outback vs 2022 Cupra Ateca

What's the difference?

Is it a station wagon or an SUV? It's kinda both. The new Outback AWD Sport XT has the AWD capabilities of an SUV but the concise handling of a station wagon and it's a wonderful combo for a family car.

The Sport XT is one of the two models Subaru is offering with a new turbo-petrol engine (hurrah) and it sits second from the top in the line-up but how does it stack up after a week with my family of three? Check it out below.

Meet the new Cupra Ateca. Actually, scratch that. Meet the new Cupra, the VW Group's Spanish performance brand that will be launching in Australia around the middle of this year.

Picture a pyramid, and then put VW at the top of it. Bottom left you've got Skoda, a brand that prides itself on practicality and clever features. Bottom right you've got Cupra, which promises to be the fun, sporty and energetic cousin, and to focus on performance, electrified or otherwise. But both are fed from Volkswagen.

Make sense?

The Ateca, then, is a nearly Tiguan-sized SUV that will launch in one hi-po trim level, and a significantly lower starting price than its better-known, R-badged relative.

It also promises to marry family duties with a fun-to-drive attitude. So how does it measure up?