Volkswagen India is fast upping the ante on the SUV front. The German carmaker today launched its second SUV in 2020, the new T-Roc, priced at Rs 19.99 lakh (ex-showroom).

Imported as a CBU, the T-Roc sits under the recently launched Tiguan Allspace but will slot above the made-for-India Taigun SUV that is due in the second half of 2021. As with the Tiguan Allspace, the T-Roc is being brought into India under the 2,500 cars import rule.

Showcased at Auto Expo 2020 in February, the T-Roc looks distinctive with its broad shoulders, large wheel arches, sloping rear windscreen, and rectangular LED elements that sit below the headlamps. The cabin is in line with other VW models with its fairly conventional dashboard design but uses coloured inserts to liven up the cabin.

Available in a single fully-loaded trim, Volkswagen has packed in a fair bit of equipment in the T-Roc. The kit includes an 8.0-inch touchscreen, full-LED headlamps and tail-lamps, dual-tone alloy wheels, front and rear parking sensors, 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 and a 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 is paired with a 7-speed DSG gearbox as standard.

The T-Roc will rival the Kia Seltos, new Hyundai Creta, MG Hector, Tata Harrier, Nissan Kicks and Renault Captur in the Indian market. Incidentally, this as a segment where Kia especially is seeing considerable interest despite current subdued market conditions. Kia raced to 75,000 unit sales in just seven months. Right from the launch of the Seltos, its first product in India, on August 22 last year, Kia has seen surging demand for the SUV and till end-February 2020 has sold a total of 74,320 units, which works out to a monthly average of 10,617 units. 

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