The Volkswagen T-Cross isnow available in South Africa and we've driven it. Should you considerthe Wolfsburg-based brand's first foray into the compact family-carsegment or opt for one of its more established rivals instead?

As the dust settlesafter Dieselgate, Volkswagen is keen to starta new chapter. Electrification is a hot topic at present and the recently-unveiledID3 represents the brand's first attempt at an all-electric mainstream vehicle. It's such a momentous occasion that Volkswagen suggests the ID3 is as significant as the Beetle and Golf in the brand's history. However, electric vehicles are still on the horizon for South Africa as our country does not have extensive charging infrastructure (but that's progressing rapidly), nor incentives(such as tax rebates)to bring them in at a cost-effective price.

Therefore, despite the motoring world'ssurge towards electrification, Mzansi looks set to remaina market focused on vehicles powered byinternal combustionenginesforthe foreseeable future. Therefore, Volkswagen'sfocus in South Africa is to introduce models in segments of the market in which the brand doesn't compete. The compact family car segment, contested by cars such as the Ford EcoSport, Hyundai Creta, Suzuki Vitara and Renault Duster, has grown tremendously over the past few years.In fact, Volkswagen's been conspicuous byits absence. Well, not anymore…

What's on offer?

The turquoise colour featured on the Volkswagen T-Cross really gives it some youthful appeal

The T-Cross is a Polo-based SUV, with similar dimensions and equipment to the derivatives in the top-selling compact hatchback. The launch line-up comprises 2 versions powered by a 1.0-litre 3-cylinder turbopetrol (85 kW/200 Nm) driving the front wheels via a 7-speed dual-clutch (automatic) transmission. Volkswagen claims a 0-100-kph sprint time of10.2 seconds,a top speed of 193 kph and an average fuel consumption figure of 4.9 L/100 km.Later on, there'll be a manually-equipped derivativewith a bit less power and spec,as well as a 110 kW1.5-litre 4-cylinder version.

Basedon Volkswagen's MQB platform, the Spanish-built T-Cross is 4.2 metres long(182 mm longer than a Polo) and boasts a wheelbase of 2 551 mm, which should giveyou some idea of its practicality.A novel feature is that you can slide the rear bench fore/aft to either increase luggagespace orrear legroom, depending onyour requirements. The range of adjustment is 140 mm, which means the load bay's capacity varies between 377 and455 litres. If you fold that rear seatbackdown,1 281 litres of utility space is available – whichis more than any of its competitors can offer!

There are 9 exterior colours and 3 alloy-wheel sizes to choose from. Anumber of nice-to-have features are optional, but the standard specis quite competitive, so there is noneed to nearly double the asking price of the car, which can happen if you spec up some premium manufacturers' wares.

Features?

The cabin of the Volkswagen T-Cross is on-trend and thoroughly well-designed.

There are 2 levels of trim available from launch, while the aforementioned entry-level (Trendline) derivative is scheduled to be introduced in 2020. The Comfortline kicks off the range and its exterior features LED daytime running lights and tail-lights, 16-inch Belmontalloy wheels, black roof rails andfront fog lights. Inside, Volkswagen has fitted a leather-trimmed multifunction steering wheel, a multi-function display, height- and lumbar-adjustable driverand front passenger's seats, electrically adjustable (and heated) side mirrors, electric windows, split-folding rear seatback, a tyre pressure monitoring system, dual front- and side airbags, park-distance control (front and rear), cruise control, and the Light and Sight package.

Highline specification adds sports front seats, an inductive wirelesscharging pad, driving modes, climate control (automatic aircon), LED headlights, a Composition Media infotainment system (with App-Connect) and 18-inch Colognealloy wheels. Options range from the R-Line exterior kit, which includes 17-inch alloy wheels, a higher-grade infotainment screen, some trim upgrades (such as Energetic Orange Design Package), as well as additional safety features like adaptive cruise control and blind-spot monitoring. You can, of course, addsome featuresfrom the Highline spec to your Comfortlinederivative and we'd heartily suggest considering the excellent Beats sound system, as well as the wireless charging pad.

Impressively, the vehicle comes with 4 USB ports (2 at the front and 2 at the rear), which will perfectly suit youngcouples or small families and their myriadelectronic devices. In terms of safety, the T-Cross boasts a 5-star Euro NCAP rating. You can increase the standard safety offering by adding on features such as thefront-assist monitoring system, the lane-keeping assistant (lane assist), hill-start assist, the proactive occupant protection system, automatic adaptive cruise control, park assist and the blind-spot detection/lane change assist system with the integrated rear-traffic alert.

Ride quality is firm, but not uncomfortable. Light steering makes the T-Cross nimble.

What's it like to drive?

Our launch route through the Garden Route featured a combination of road surfaces. Given the freedom to take any route, my co-driver and I opted to leave the highway and explore some of the gorgeous ribbons of tarmac in the "back and beyond" parts of the Eastern Cape. Our initial concerns that the engine's outputs would be a bit meagre for a compact family carproved unfounded… The responsivedual-clutch 'boxkept the engine in its sweet spot when it needed to be (such as when brisk overtaking acceleration was required). All 200 Nm wasused judiciously and at no point did the powertrainbaulk. Yes, the engine is tractable, but we are curiousto see how it'll fare with 2 more adults on board and a bit more cargo in the back.

When we tackled some uneven sections of tarmac, we noticed the T-Cross' ride quality was a tad harder than what we'd deem "excellent" in asmall crossover/compact family car. It's not a dealbreaker – and only really apparent on exceptionally poor roads –but for those who prioritise occupant comfort, we'd suggest thinking twice beforefittinglarger alloys, which also add some degree of road noise on the coarser tarmac. Alternatively, you could simplydrown out thunkswith the excellent Beats audio system. On the plus side, when the worst ruts had passed and the tarmac smoothed out, the T-Cross delivered quite a sporty ride. Given its MQB hardware, it gets the balance between refinement and sportiness almost spot-on.

Meanwhile, the Volkswagen T-Cross' steering setup is decently direct and light, which makesthe newcomer quite maneuvrable in and around the city (where itwill probably spend most of its days);it could benefit from a bit more heft and feel for the open road, which would negatethe need to makeconstant micro-adjustments to keep the vehicle tracking straight. Some mightsay the T-Cross is a bit bland (even boring) to drive, but then again, customers in this segment wantcomfort, stability and predictability from the cars that whisk them from home to work (and back) every day.

Despite the harder-than-expected ride, which we'd attribute mostly tothe additionally-specced larger alloy wheels, the T-Cross should prove quite comfortable on longer journeys. I'm almost 1.9 metres in height and the Volkswagen passed the sit-behind-myself test. With the rear bench set back as far as it'd go, the legroom is acceptable for adults. Headroom and the driving position are commendable too. The bonus? After 4 hours of driving, the fuel consumption wasa healthy 7.4 L/100 km, which we think is fair given that we were hustling the T-Cross along at a brisker-than-usual pace.

Foibles? Compared with its bigger brother (the Tiguan), theT-Cross competesin a particularly price-sensitive space of the market and we duly expected its cabin materials to reflect that. Even though we could not justifiably expect it to be as well-made as the former, but we did notice a few worryinginterior quality issues. Perhaps it was unique to our car after a particularly brisk session on some gravel, but numerous rattles and squeaks emanated from the dashboard and transmission tunnel. Considering Volkswagen's solid andimpressive build quality, it's not something we're used to. There are also marginal finishes along the top of the doors, which is odd considering the Polo (which the T-Cross is based upon) shows few signs of that. Speaking of which, the T-Cross is the Polo-based SUV and for those who wanta bit more, the Golf-based T-Roc is coming in 2020.

Summary

While the Volkswagen T-Cross will compete in the A0 segment, the Golf-based T-Roc will arrive in South Africain 2020.

We thought Volkswagen would deliver a knockout blowwhen the T-Crossarrivedin this segment. It hasn't quite done that, but the punch it's landed will certainlystun the opposition. As such a potent force in the budget- and compact hatchbackmarkets,Volkswagen's absence from the "small crossover/SUV"segment has been glaring, which allowedits rivals to entrench themselves.With excellent specification, punchy engines and the strong reputation (not to mention sheer desirability) of the Volkswagen brand, the T-Cross is likely to garner afew hundred sales every month (at the very least) and it's no surprise that the1.0 TSIHighline R-Line is in the running to win its category in the 2019/20 Cars.co.za Consumer Awards powered by WesBank. Now, what doesFord, Hyundai, Mahindra, Opel, Renault, Suzuki,Toyota and othershave in store to counter theT-Cross? We cannotwait to find out. Expecta comparative review featuring the T-Cross and its rival compact family cars on Cars.co.za in the near future!

Volkswagen T-Cross Price in South Africa (September 2019)

The Volkswagen T-Cross comes standard with a 3 year/120 000km warranty, a 3 year/ 45000km Volkswagen Service Plan and a 12-year anti-corrosion warranty. Service intervals are every15 000 km.

1.0 TSI 85kW Comfortline DSG R334 600

1.0 TSI 85kW Highline DSG R365000

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