Volkswagen T-Roc review - Practicality, comfort and boot space

The T-Roc does the family stuff pretty much as well as a Golf, if not a touch better with slightly raised seating positions all round. A six-foot tall passenger can sit behind a six-foot tall driver in comfort. 

There’s decent width across the back seats, too, so seating five inside isn’t too much of a struggle. The T-Roc also boasts doors that open reasonably wide and a higher seating position than in a standard hatch, which will make getting in and out or fitting a child seat easier. The view out is good for those in the back, too. 

If you’re in the front you’ll have no complaints about space or comfort, with seats and a steering wheel that are all multi-adjustable for the perfect driving position. With the T-Roc’s fairly conventional crossover shape, visibility out of the front, rear and side windows is absolutely fine from the driver’s seat, while the chunky C-pillars don’t create as much of a blind spot as, say, an Audi Q2. 

One of the highlights of the T-Roc Cabriolet is that wind noise and buffeting aren’t an issue with the roof down, even at higher speeds. With the top lowered – which takes just nine seconds, at speeds of up to 19mph – and the windows up, you can enjoy the sunshine without feeling too windswept.

Size

It takes up about the same space on the road as a Golf, but there’s more space inside the T-Roc and the view out is better. Against the tape measure, the T-Roc is 4,234mm long, making it 252mm shorter than the Tiguan – the next model up in Volkswagen’s SUV line-up. It’s actually slightly shorter than a Golf too, though only by a whisker. With a width of 1,819mm and a height of 1,573mm, it’s wider and taller than the hatchback. 

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Leg room, head room & passenger space

Inside there’s plenty of space for four people – five can fit for shorter trips – with decent rear head and legroom even for taller adults sitting in the back behind similarly-sized people in the front. The SUV proportions mean there’s no problem with headroom either. 

Boot

The boot offers 445 litres of luggage space, considerably more than the 380 litres in a Golf. It’s a nice square shape with a level loading lip to make getting heavy loads in easy, while the rear seats fold easily in a 60:40 split to reveal a useful 1,290 litres of overall capacity. The floor can also be mounted in two positions, creating hidden storage underneath when you create a level floor, or a deeper single load area for large loads.

Those looking to maximise practicality should avoid the 4MOTION system though. Adding the all-wheel-drive setup eats into boot space, resulting in a shallow loading area just 392 litres in size (1,237 litres with seats folded).

The Cabriolet has a 280-litre boot capacity, with enough space for shopping and everyday use, but a normal T-Roc is much more practical for things like buggies, bikes and holiday bags. The small opening limits what you can get in the cabrio, but you can fold the rear bench to open up space behind the front seats.

Towing

The 108bhp 1.0-litre petrol T-Roc is rated to tow up to 1,300kg, while the more powerful 148bhp version has a maximum towing limit of 1,500kg, as does the 113bhp diesel.