Volkswagen just lifting
the veil on the all-new T-Roc Cabriolet. Droptop crossovers have always
been rather odd and the T-Roc Cabriolet is no different. It will be the only
convertible Volkswagen on sale for the foreseeable future and will celebrate
its public debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September.
Rather than simply removing the roof of the standard
T-Roc, Volkswagen has drastically altered the vehicle’s structure and body. In
fact, its wheelbase is 37 mm longer than the standard T-Roc while its overall
length is up by 34 mm. In addition, the Volkswagen T-Roc Cabriolet features
structural strengthening in the underbody, side panels, cross members, doors,
and windscreen frame to make up for the lack of a roof.
The folding fabric roof developed by Volkswagen
retracts in just nine seconds at speeds of up to 30.5 km/h and is
similar in operation to the roof of the outgoing Golf Cabriolet. The presence
of the soft top reduces trunk space by 161 liters down from the 284 liters of
the run-of-the-mill T-Roc. We don’t think buyers will be too fussed about this,
however, because no one buys a convertible if practicality and luggage space is
important to them.
The German car manufacturer will sell the new T-Roc
Cabriolet with a 1.0-liter three-cylinder petrol engine delivering 113 hp and a
1.5-liter four-cylinder petrol with 148 hp from launch. The latter of these
engines is mated exclusively to a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic while the
1.0-liter model has a six-speed manual.
Two design packages will be made available. The
first, dubbed the Style package, features 17-inch wheels, standard ambient
lighting, and an available leather interior package. Also available is the
R-Line trim that adds fog lights, leatherette sport seats, 17-inch wheels, and
some tweaked body panels.
