Volkswagen T-Roc - Interior, design and technology

While many rivals to the Volkswagen T-Roc only come in a small SUV bodystyle, the T-Roc is also available as a four-seater convertible. Some might consider the latter a little mad, but at least that versions offers a reasonable amount of practicality as far as convertibles go, even if it isn’t the most rational version of T-Roc available.

The T-Roc sits on the same MQB platform that supports so many other VW Group cars, there’s a whole host of the very latest tech features – whether it’s connectivity or driver assistance – all controlled through the touchscreen.

With the sportier Volkswagen Taigo coupe-SUV joining the range in 2021, the T-Roc was facelifted in 2022 to keep it fresh alongside its new sibling. This introduced tweaks to the T-Roc's lighting; all models now include LED headlamps, with Black Edition and R Black Edition versions gaining a thin light strip that runs through the middle of the grille - as you'll find on the Volkswagen Polo and Volkswagen Golf. Scrolling indicators are featured at the rear, while Volkswagen has also brought in fresh wheel designs and additional paint colours. Interior quality is noticeably improved over the previous model, with softer plastics in use, too.

An eight-inch 'floating' style touchscreen controls the infotainment system, while Style variants and above come with VW's 10.25-inch digital dashboard display, which is a nearly £400 option on the entry-level Life and Match trim models. 

Volkswagen has seen fit to dispense with physical switches for the climate control function and introduce touch-sensitive buttons. We're not a fan of the change because they simply don't work as well as before, being fiddly and distracting to use on the move.

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Sat-nav, stereo and infotainment

The eight-inch infotainment touchscreen has wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and a pair of USB-C ports. Integrated sat-nav is standard with Style models and above, although we’d suggest you save your money and utilise an app-based navigation program from a smartphone and make use of the standard wireless charging pad.

The touchscreen is responsive and easy to use, but it’s been rather unceremoniously plonked on the dash rather than seamlessly integrated like earlier models. The standard eight-inch digital instrument cluster is useful. It can be customised to a certain degree to provide plenty of trip information. Still, the optional 10.25-inch Digital Cockpit Pro (standard from Style trim and above) provides a greater amount of customisation. It can be configured to show navigation information if you utilise the standard sat-nav on higher trim levels.

VW’s Discover Media system is standard on Style trim and above but isn’t the most feature-laden option in the T-Roc range. For that, you need to step up to the Discover Pro system, which costs an extra £1,120. Most buyers will find the standard system absolutely fine – and in some ways better.

This is because the screen is surrounded by touch-sensitive shortcuts for all the key functions, plus two physical dials – one for the volume, and another for zooming in and out on the map screen. Loading times, especially when route planning, are impressively quick, and when we tested the T-Roc against a Mazda CX-30, we found the Volkswagen’s map screen showed the route in a little more detail than the Mazda.

The standard 6-speaker sound system has decent sound quality, but you can upgrade it to a 300-watt Beats audio sound system if you value your music.