The new Volkswagen T-Cross, then. It’s a small SUV, and it’s kind of a big deal. It has just been launched with three separate events in Shanghai, São Paulo and Amsterdam; supermodel Cara Delevingne was even on hand to pose for photos at the latter.
It looks good, too, if you like that sort of thing. For customers looking for a small, affordable and practical SUV, I reckon it will be a compelling prospect. And I’m not just saying that because Cara Delevingne said so.
And yet you might think you’ve seen it before: that’s certainly the impression from some of the early reactions on social media and comments on our news story. Hasn’t Volkswagen already launched a new small SUV? In fact, hasn’t just about every car firm in the world launched about 38,700 different small SUVs?
Well, yes, there are a lot of them. But I can assure you the T-Cross is a brand-new model with a brand-new nameplate. I know: I was at the Amsterdam launch (although I reassure you I posed for fewer photos than Cara Delevingne).
New Volkswagen T-Cross: Nissan Juke rival launched
The confusion, in the case of the T-Cross, might be to do with the Volkswagen T-Roc, another brand-new model with a brand-new nameplate launched that was launched within the last year.
They’re both small Volkswagen SUVs, part of the firm’s 'T family'. And they’re actually quite different when you look at the details. So here’s an easy way to describe them: think of the T-Cross as an SUV version of the Volkswagen Polo and the T-Roc as the SUV equivalent of the Golf. The T-Polo and T-Golf, if you will. Or not.
Once you get close, there are further differences. Volkswagen has worked hard to ensure the two machines are aimed at different audiences: the T-Cross is focused on affordability and practicality, while the T-Roc is as more style-conscious and slightly more upmarket. Much like, say, the Polo and the Volkswagen Golf.
With the SUV market growing rapidly (Volkswagen estimates the high-riding machines will account for 50% of its sales by 2025), there’s plenty of room for both. Much like, say, the hatchback market can accommodate the Polo and Golf.
See? When you think of the Polo and Golf in relation to the T-Cross and T-Roc, they’re easy to compare. And that’s because pretty much everyone knows the difference between a Polo and a Golf – or, for another example, the Ford Fiesta and Ford Focus. It takes time for a car name to resonate with the public: nameplates like the Polo and Golf stretch back generations and have built-in brand equity and value.
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Size alone shows the T-Roc as being a supermini SUV
It's not unusual for car companies to have more than one model in a class of car in many markets. After all, in the UK Vauxhall for example offers two supermini SUVs in the Mokka and Crossland X, Ford offers the Fiesta and Ka+ as its supermini offerings, Skoda sells the Octavia and Rapid in the mid-size sector, a class which also sees Seat offering the Leon and Toledo. The difference with the T-Roc is that there are differing opinions as to which SUV class it fits in, supermini or mid-size. Price shouldn't determine a car's class otherwise you'd end up comparing apples with pears so purely on size, the T-Roc to me is VW's supermini SUV offering, as is the T-Cross. It's just that one is more conventional, less style-orientated and, presumably, more practical that the other.
Simple question.....
How many new Vehicles for 2019 aren’t an SUV....?
Suzuki must be flattered....
.....these suv ‘s all look like variations on atheir Vitara.....