What's the news?
Volkswagen will reveal a turbocharged hot version of the T-Roc crossover, the T-Roc R at the upcoming Geneva motor show. Remember how we all got upset when Volkswagen announced that it was replacing the sporty Scirocco coupe with the T-Roc? Maybe we'll be a little less upset when we get to drive this...
Details are a little scant at the moment, but Volkswagen has shown us a sketch of the car, which shows that it gets a mean and muscular body kit and some fairly sizeable alloy wheels - that's the 'R-specific exterior styling, and Volkswagen says that the T-Roc's cabin will be 'R-specific' too.
Power is most likely to come from a version of the 310hp 2.0-litre turbo four-cylinder petrol engine found in the Golf R and the Cupra Ateca. Four-wheel drive should be available as an option.
According to Volkswagen: The T-Roc R is "a stylish all-rounder that combines the sovereignty of an SUV with the dynamics of a compact hatchback. The T-Roc is just as at home in the urban world as it is on the most beautiful routes in the world."
The R version has been specifically developed by Volkswagen R, the people behind Volkswagen's previously dominant World Rally Championship Polo R team (home of six-time World Rally champ Sebastian Ogier until he moved to Ford, and latterly to Citroen), and it has been tested at the famed (and infamous) Nurburgring race track in Germany. The development of the vehicle was also supported by the racing driver expertise of World Rallycross World Champion Petter Solberg and Volkswagen works driver Benjamin Leuchter.
The T-Roc, as predicted, has been a runaway success for Volkswagen since it was launched in 2017, and more than 200,000 have been sold around the world.