2020 VW T-Roc

Europe has had it for a little while, even our friends across the ditch in New Zealand have enjoyed it for a bit; and now it’s our turn to take the latest offering from VW and suss out just how nice and enjoyable it will be to drive.  Based on the Golf, the more grown up, larger-looking Volkswagen T-Roc compact SUV is attractive and nicely styled with its sporty lines, panel creasing and big wheel arches.

Buyers after a new small SUV have plenty of choices, the luxury lot made up of the likes of the premium VW T-Roc, BMW’s X2, Volvo’s excellent XC40 or the snazzy Jaguar E-Pace.  I think people are going to like what VW offers here – the T-Roc is stylish, practical and delivers sensible space for the small urban family.  It looks cool and wears a funky styling that will appeal to many who have to traverse the urban jungle on a daily basis.  That’s not to say that it won’t play nicely with their country cousins, however.  It does ride nicely and cruises well on the open road and on gravel surfaces, especially AWD models.

Given that SUVs are now all the rage, the little Volkswagen T-Roc sits on the size scale beneath the larger Tiguan and Touareg variants.  This is a cunning ploy from VW, as the T-Roc delivers a sharper, younger look that will appeal to many – including myself.

R-Line VW T-Rocs are the spunkiest, with the extra exterior detailing working well with the Roc’s smooth lines.  R-Line models also boast all the gadgets and so feature an interactive digital dashboard that lets you choose how you want your instrument display to look.  You also get the infotainment system that has its ‘CBD’ control network in the new 8-inch touchscreen which scrolls everything really well and is fast.

A full array of safety features, tweaked for the city, delivers itself in spades, and should attract urban dwellers with its rear traffic alert, blind spot monitoring and live traffic navigation systems.  Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, cruise control, parking assist and ESC are present on all models, and the top of the line T-Roc comes with a classy digital driver’s display, satellite navigation with live traffic updates, snazzy leather seats and an optional glass roof. You can also get T-Rocs with adjustable suspensions, so that’s a pretty nice feature.

As I mentioned earlier, the new Volkswagen T-Roc is based on the latest VW Golf.  You can fit a bit more gear into the T-Roc and it looks a bit musclier than the Golf.  With that in mind, when you flick the boot lid up you’ll see that the boot space is larger (by close to a fifth) and it swallows suitcases with ease.  Of course, you can fold the split-folding rear seats down flat to fit a whole lot more stuff inside the Roc if you need to.  Under floor storage, a space saver wheel, tethering points and a ski hatch in the back of the rear seats make up a practical T-Roc companion.

Rear seat window passengers have plenty of head room – even with models that are equipped with the glass roof.  Leg room is also good.  The passenger in the middle will need to be a bit smaller to enjoy a comfortable long journey between the other two rear seat occupants.  There is a fold down centre armrest in the back which also has adjustable cup holders for the two window seat passengers.

Front seat occupants get lovely seats that are enjoyable for long periods.  There is plenty of leg space and both seats are multi adjustable in all directions.  The driver has a soft touch steering wheel that is rake and reach adjustable, so eventually you’ll settle on a rather comfy position if you are the one driving.

Storage bins in the doors, both front and rear, provide space for bottles, and there are spacious cubby holes in the front for all sorts of things.  You’ll find two USB charging points in front of the gear lever as well.

2020 VW T-Roc Interior

Typically very well laid out switchgear and instrumentation helps make your life pretty relaxed when driving the new Volkswagen T-Roc.  There are some harder plastics that have snuck their way into the T-Roc dash and upper door surfaces which might seem a bit cheap for VW but they are functional and look smart.

Safety in the 2020 Volkswagen T-Roc is excellent – a five star safety tick is the result.  All-round visibility is very good, you sit up higher than non-SUV vehicles and it sits solidly on the road.  Golf-like handling characteristics ensures that the steering is direct, the handling grippy, and the ride comfortable.

Manual and automatic gearbox options are available and there are also some engine choices.  A 1.5-litre turbo-petrol is fuel efficient, refined and flexible.  There is also the 2.0-litre turbo-diesel that is very fuel efficient and stacks up decent torque figures which jump off the paper and down onto the road very well indeed.  The 1.0-litre, 3-cylinder turbo-petrol is offered in some countries as well.

A very nice T-Roc 2.0-litre turbo-petrol is a sweet drive and it chucks down the power instantly (0-100 in less than 8 seconds), while the torque is strong across a wide spread of revs, handing over almost directly to peak power at a whisker over 4000 rpm, and coming on strong for another 2000 rpm.  It is a well sorted powerhouse for the AWD system that it’s connected with, and in this model you get a stiffer suspension for even more fun.  Fuel consumption in this range topping engine is actually pretty sweet – expect about 6-to-7 litres/100 km on average.  You really get-up-and-go with this TFSI engine.

The 2020 Volkswagen T-Roc is nominally an SUV, and the drive-mode selector includes an off-road setting which is great for loose gravel or slippery roads, but the ground clearance just isn’t there for serious off-road excursions.  Again, this is a funked-up sporting Golf with spunk and decent handling which will be much more appealing to the masses.

Get yourself into one of these if you’re on the lookout for a compact SUV that isn’t too expensive, is classy, practical and safe.

2020 VW T-Roc R-Line

The 2020 VW T-Roc models include the:

• VW T-Roc FWD
• VW T-Roc AWD

For any more information on the new Volkswagen T-Roc or, for that matter, any other new car, contact one of our friendly consultants on 1300 303 181.  If you’d like some fleet discount pricing (yes even for private buyers!), we can submit vehicle quote requests out to our national network of Volkswagen dealers and come back with pricing within 24 hours.  Private Fleet – car buying made easy!