ALMOST ROCKING

Though it may not have an aggressive butch look, it has proved to be rock solid since it has earned a 5-star Euro NCAP rating for adult and child occupants.

Volkswagen Group of Germany has not been getting it 100 per cent perfect in India. Though they have been pumping in huge sums of money into the market and has introduced several reliable products into the Indian market, there is something amiss in their offerings. At least that is what we felt when we got our hands on the T-Roc SUV which was launched by the company early this year.

There were a lot of expectations from the T-Roc, especially after the company had launched its spacious Tiguan Allspace earlier. At an introductory price of Rs 19.99 lakh, one expected a lot of fancy features in the vehicle apart from some good performance. But alas, there was something terribly wrong and that was the front seat adjustment mechanism. It still continues to be a large unwieldy knob. Can you imagine turning the massive knob each time you want to change the seat backrest position?

And later when I was checking out the car while driving I realised there is no Cruise Control in this vehicle. These were a huge turnoff for me. You don’t expect all these misses in a Rs 20 lakh car. Nevertheless, keeping my emotions under check, I went about exploring the vehicle.

SPECIFICATIONS

ENGINE 1498cc, 1.5L TSI EVO with ACT

TRANSMISSION 7-Speed DSG

MAX POWER 148hp@5000-6000rpm

PEAK TORQUE 250Nm@1500-3500rpm

SUSPENSION Front: Independent with coil spring, Rear: Twist beam axle with separate spring and shock absorber

TYRES 215/55 R17

PRICE ₹19.99 lakh (ex-showroom introductory price)