Volkswagen T-Roc 2021 review: 110TSI Style

If we are talking about appearance, this T-Roc looks pretty damn good! Inside and out. The sporty exterior has a flashy front grille, nice looking lights, roof rails as standard and a bulked up back, rounding out that SUV look.

The alloy wheels and smooth lines all add up to the sleek but fun appearance.

The alloy wheels and smooth lines all add up to the sleek but fun appearance.

Inside the lines are smooth and refined, with some luxury touches thanks to the inclusion of the optional packages - but more on that below.

This T-Roc looks pretty damn good!

For a small SUV the space isn’t too bad - but it’s not huge, as you’d expect. Inside it feels very much like you’re in a rather nice Golf. 

The seats are very comfortable.

The seats are very comfortable, and the back is best suited to children. My little one described it as ‘cosy’ - funny from someone less than a metre tall. 

I had two car seats in the back, one booster and one five-point harness, and you’d really be pushing it to include a third seat.

The back is best suited to children.

The boot is 445 litres (VDA) - really good for a car of this size, and you can certainly get a pram or a few suitcases in there. There is also an adjustable base to the boot which you can raise for easier access, or drop down for more room.

The boot is 445 litres (VDA).

In addition is easy access from the back seat into the boot through the middle seat, making packing those skis or longer items into the car simple.

You can certainly get a pram or a few suitcases in the boot.

There are only two cupholders in the front console, and two in the door (that are a little impractical to use with most bigger bottles) but there’s not really room for any more. 

There are two more cupholders for the back seat in the flip down middle console. The back seat also gets directional air vents, which is a bonus in a car this size, as well as two USB-C ports.

Flip down middle console for two more cupholders.

Inside this optioned up version has high quality leather seats with a three-colour accent to the trim, and they are super comfy to sit in. 

These seats come as part of one of the two optional packs fitted to this car, totalling $5800! Which makes it more like a $40,000 small SUV.

These high quality leather seats have a three-colour accent to the trim.

There is keyless entry and start, and it is easy to open and close the boot (it opens with a button on the remote, and can close with either the remote or a button on the door). 

The sound system in this car rocks. This model came with the optional Beats premium audio which gives a quality sound that is easily adjusted to exactly how you like to listen to your tunes on the road.

Safety features include 'Front Assist' (VW-speak for AEB) with 'Pedestrian Monitoring', 'Blind Spot Monitoring' with rear cross-traffic alert and 'Lane Assist' - and beyond this, this car feels very secure when driving.

Airbags are in the front for the driver and front passenger with side curtain airbags that go to the back row. 

The T-Roc scored a maximum five ANCAP stars.

There are two ISOFIX points and three top-tether points for kids car seats - but to get the three in one seat would need to be very narrow.

The T-Roc scores a maximum five ANCAP stars, against 2018 criteria.

Pricing starts at $33,990, plus on road costs and extras. The version I drove had two extra options packs totalling $5800 ('Luxury Package' - $3800 / 'Sound & Vision Package' - $2000).

Fuel efficiency from my time on the road was 12.2L/100km. Not great, but this was in some heavy city traffic that was stop/start for quite a while. This is also against the official combined cycle fuel figure of 7.2L/100km.

Fuel efficiency from my time on the road was 12.2L/100km.