Volkswagen has started testing the T-Roc SUV in India. The model was spotted on the outskirts of Pune by one of our staffers a few minutes ago.
The T-Roc SUV will sit below the Tiguan in VW's India line-up and will make its way here via the CBU route. In terms of dimensions, the upcoming SUV is shorter but wider than the Tiguan and has a much sportier stance. The world premiere of the T-Roc was at the 2017 Frankfurt motor show, and prior to that, it was previewed in concept form at the 2014 Geneva motor show.
The T-Roc is underpinned by the brand’s modular MQB platform on which the Tiguan is based as well. Among the key design cues is a new interpretation of the simple VW grille, now framed by relatively thin headlights that are wrapped around the front fenders. The thin profile of the headlights has been made possible by the decision to house the LED daytime running lamps and cornering lamps lower down, within the front bumper. There's also a prominent trapezoidal-shaped cooling duct and a silver-coloured kick plate within the bumper's lower section. The daytime running lamps serve as indicators as well, switching to orange colour when the turn signals are in operation.
The T-Roc's sides are dominated by relatively large wheelhouses with heavily structured wheel arches that give the SUV a sporty appearance. Other distinguishing styling features include a swage line that runs above the door handles to form a defined shoulder line, a chrome trim element extending from the A-pillar over the side of the roof, before ending at wide C-pillars. Also, as an option, the SUV gets a two-tone paint scheme in which the roof section, including the A-pillars and exterior mirror housings, boast a contrasting colour from the rest of the T-Roc’s five-door steel body.
The model sold abroad gets around 130mm of ground clearance, but, for India, expect the company to raise it at least to Tiguan levels (149mm), to help it tackle Indian roads well. Under the hood expect the India-bound T-Roc to feature a 150hp, 1.5-litre petrol engine mated to a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox. It will most likely be a front-wheel-drive version and will not feature Volkswagen’s 4Motion all-wheel-drive system.
Expect Volkswagen to price the T-Roc close to Rs 20 lakh (ex-showroom) in India, and as reported by us earlier, the SUV will go on sale in the coming months.
Dipan Sur
Viraaj Bhatnagar
Glenn Noronha
Dhruv Dhaka
