2019 Volkswagen T-Roc
Last December, we joined Volkswagen’s engineering team completing their summer testing regimen in South Africa’s Kalahari Desert. We drove a T-Roc prototype, but we were told there was virtually no chance such a vehicle would be sold in the U.S., so we focused our attention on the new VW Arteon and the upsized Tiguan.
Then, in mid-March, VW brand chief Herbert Diess announced in Wolfsburg, Germany, that the company had decided to add a sub-Tiguan SUV for 2019, in reference to the T-Roc. Diess further confirmed that North America would get in on the subcompact-SUV action, which sent VW’s U.S. dealers into fits of glee. Was our decision not to focus on the T-Roc a tactical error? Not exactly. We now understand the T-Roc will be too expensive to offer here on account of its assembly location in Portugal, so our compact SUVeeDub will be substantially different—and likely will wear a different name. Still, we gleaned insights about VW’s approach to this white-hot market segment.
Indeed, with the Tiguan moving up in size and seating space—up to seven when the optional third row is added—and the freshest VW being the big three-row Atlas SUV, Volkswagen dealers certainly could use an entry in the thriving class of smaller SUVs. Three years ago, VW showed a T-Roc concept at Geneva that blended crossover and convertible genes. It had beguiling two-door proportions and a lift-off roof panel. Alas, little of that theme will arrive on these—or any—shores because two-door crossovers are, for all intents, dead on arrival. Peer through the camo on photos of the prototype we drove and about all that’s recognizable from the sexy Geneva concept is the grille texture.
While the T-Roc and its U.S.-market sibling will share key underpinnings, such as electrical architecture, with fellow MQB platform-mates Golf and the Audi A3, the version in use here has its own distinctive design language, basic dimensions, and powertrain options. Specifications shared in Africa quoted a 102.2-inch wheelbase and an overall length of 166.6 inches, both slightly shorter than the Golf and in the ballpark of a Chevrolet Trax. You can see where product planners thought the Golf Alltrack might cover this space in the market.
The T-Roc prototype’s 71.6-inch width and 60.7-inch height exceed Golf dimensions by 0.8 and 3.5 inches, as you’d expect for a high-riding rock flicker, although it’s 4.1 inches lower than the aforementioned Trax. Compared with the outgoing Tiguan, which was transparently a taller Golf, the T-Roc is 7.9 inches shorter in length, 0.4 inch wider, and 6.4 inches lower at its rooftop.
The T-Roc will be sold around the globe with power supplied by three- and four-cylinder turbocharged gasoline and diesel engines ranging from 1.0 to 2.0 liters of displacement. When production begins later this year for European customers, maximum horsepower is unlikely to top the 200 mark. When our T-Roc analogue goes on sale, it’s a good guess that we’ll see 1.8- and 2.0-liter four-cylinder engines, front drive as standard, and 4MOTION all-wheel drive optional. There’s a chance that a manual transmission will be offered to keep the base price well below $25,000, although a six-speed dual-clutch automatic surely will be the volume choice.
Most of the miles we drove were on gravel roads, the ideal means of gauging the body and architecture’s structural integrity as well as the fling-ability of the chassis. Both were superb. The T-Roc felt rock solid over poorly maintained and rippled South African rural roads. Thrust too quickly into sweepers, and this VW slid with endearing agility. It never felt cumbersome or top-heavy, and the steering was quick enough to catch and control every drift we initiated. We’re counting on any VW in this space to bring renewed vitality to the lethargic crossover class.
Unfortunately, back-seat assessment, cargo-hold examination, and any serious look at the dash displays were off limits, so our notebooks remain blank in those areas. And there’s not enough detail available about the drivetrain hardware to even hazard a guess at performance numbers. But given the stakes associated with any new nameplate and VW’s plan to offer four painless steps up the crossover/SUV ladder, our T-Roc experience indicates that the company is on a fruitful path.
