• Volkswagen T-Roc SUV has been brought to India in fully-imported form (CBU)

• First batch of 1,000 units of the T-Roc have nearly been sold

• Due to cancelations, a few units of the T-Roc are still available for those interested

The Volkswagen T-Roc, which was launched in India in March this year, is sold by Volkswagen India dealers as a full import. We can confirm that almost all 1,000 units of the T-Roc allocated for the Indian market have been spoken for. This comes as something of a pleasant surprise for the Volkswagen brand, as the SUV went on sale just before the lockdown came into force. Imported under the 2,500 unit homologation-free quota scheme that is extended to all car manufacturers, what is even more impressive is the fact that VW has nearly run through its entire batch in just 40 days. For those still interested in buying the T-Roc, there are still a few cars available with dealers due to cancelations; mainly due to the fact that VW did not take a booking amount.

Part of the success of the T-Roc is due to the fact that it had been priced aggressively at Rs 19.99 lakh (ex-showroom, pan-India). Normally, this is not the type of SUV that catches the attention of the Indian car buying public. The T-Roc isn't a conventional-looking SUV in the truest sense of the word; it’s more a crossover, with a very raked glass house and sloping 'A' and 'C' pillars. However, what works in its favour is that the T-Roc is one of VW's more modern and progressive designs.

Available in a single fully-loaded trim, Volkswagen has packed in a fair bit of equipment in the T-Roc. Kit includes full-LED headlamps and tail-lamps, dual-tone alloy wheels, an 8.0-inch touchscreen (that is Android Auto and Apple CarPlay compatible), a digital instrument cluster, dual-zone automatic climate control, a panoramic sunroof and ‘Vienna’ leather seats. Standard safety kit comprises six airbags, ABS with EBD, ESC, a tyre pressure monitoring system, front and rear parking sensors and a rear parking camera.

The T-Roc is available with a single engine option – a 1.5-litre, four-cylinder, turbo-petrol TSI engine good for 150hp and 250Nm of torque. The unit comes with cylinder-deactivation tech and is paired with a 7-speed DSG gearbox as standard.

In VW’s India line-up, the T-Roc sits under the Tiguan Allspace but will be positioned above the upcoming Taigun SUV, which is due next year. Key rivals to the T-Roc include the new Skoda Karoq and the Jeep Compass.