Volkswagen T-Cross 2019 revealed

Volkswagen's baby SUV has finally made its official debut, with the brand’s all-new T-Cross revealed ahead of its Australian launch next year.

After a long campaign of teaser sketches and camouflaged spy shots, we can at last gaze upon the finished T-Cross in the metal, and, in pictures at least, it appears to have been worth the wait.

While the family resemblance is clear, the T-Cross is more than a mini Tiguan, looking boxier than its bigger brother, and sporting plenty of design flair inside and out.

VW’s first small SUV is based on the brand’s scaleable MQB platform, and will be offered internationally with a choice of four engines (three petrol and one diesel), though which of those will make it to Australia remains to be seen.

Shorter than the T-Roc, the T-Cross has been designed exclusively for city life (hence the FWD-only configuration), and it stretches some 4.11m in length and 1.558m in height, while riding on a 2.56m wheelbase. VW says the dimensions allow enough room in the cabin for five people to travel in comfort.

Like its Tiguan big brother, the rear seats sit on a rail, and so can be slid forwards or backwards to prioritise either passenger room or luggage space. In its most comfortable (for passengers) position, the boot holds 385 litres, but with the seats slid forward, that expands to 455 litres. Drop the backseat entirely and that number swells to a very useable 1281 litres.

Internationally, VW is talking up its 1.0-litre TSI, three-cylinder petrol engine range, available in 70kW or 85kW guise. The pick of the petrol bunch, though, is the 1.5-litre TSI four-cylinder engine, which ups the outputs to 110kW. A 70kW, 1.6-litre diesel is offered overseas, too.

Aussie specification is likely a long way off being finalised, but VW is promising its T-Cross will “include numerous driver assistance systems which were previously reserved for higher vehicle classes”, with city AEB and pedestrian monitoring, lane keeping assistant, lane assist, hill start assist, blind spot detection and rear cross-traffic alert all standard. On the tech front, expect inductive smartphone charging and four available USB points scattered throughout the cabin.

While pricing is yet to be confirmed for Oz, VW in Australia has previously spoken of its plan to align the T-Cross with its Golf. If that proves the case, it would position the new SUV above its Polo donor car (much like most other small SUVs from rival brands), with pricing kicking off from under $25,000 with an automatic transmission.

Is the VW T-Cross your kind of baby SUV? Tell us in the comments below.