Volkswagen T-Roc to be downgraded

The ongoing global semi-conductor shortage has forced Volkswagen Group Australia (VGA) to remove key safety equipment from its upcoming MY23 Volkswagen T-Roc, just as upgraded MY22 versions of the small German SUV arrive in showrooms this week.

The MY22 Volkswagen T-Roc is now available with higher levels of standard equipment and fresh tech, but VGA says the decision to de-spec MY23 T-Roc variants was made to get customers into cars sooner and to “restrict options where practical”.

That means three safety aids will be removed from MY23 T-Roc variants – Side Assist, Proactive Occupant Protection System and rear cross-traffic alert – all of which feature on current MY22 variants, but will only be standard in high-performance T-Roc R variants from 2023.

The revelation came at the recent launch of the facelifted Volkswagen T-Roc, where VGA officials revealed that production of the MY23 T-Roc range – 110TSI Style and 140TSI R-Line – is already underway ahead of first Australian deliveries in the coming months.

As a result of the omissions – which won’t affect the small SUV’s five-star ANCAP safety rating – VGA says it will knock $650 off the list price for MY23 examples, making them $36,600 (110TSI Style) and $44,700 (140TSI R-Line), each before on-road costs.

The German car-maker says there’s “plenty of stock” available for buyers that don’t wish to forgo the tech features, with around 1000 MY22 T-Roc vehicles (Style and R-Line) already in local dealerships, or soon to be.

Meanwhile, Volkswagen says stock of its first T-Roc R small performance SUV will also be plentiful.

VGA’s head of product for passenger vehicles Michelle Rowney said the brand’s approach has been “very customer-focussed”.

“The product team at Volkswagen have taken a very customer-focussed approach to the supply chain challenges that the industry had been facing,” said Rowney.

“Our approach has been really simple: we tell our customers what’s happening and we work on finding the best solution to get our customers in the cars they want as soon as we can.”

“Some of that has resulted in our most recent MY23 changes.”

Volkswagen says the piping-hot T-Roc R (both MY22 and MY23) will be unaffected by the changes.

How much does the MY22 Volkswagen T-Roc cost?
MY22 T-Roc 110TSI Style – $37,250
MY22 T-Roc 140TSI R-Line – $45,350
MY22 T-Roc R – $59,300
*Prices exclude on-road costs

How much does the MY23 Volkswagen T-Roc cost?
MY23 T-Roc 110TSI Style – $36,600 (-$650)
MY23 T-Roc 140TSI R-Line – $44,700 (-$650)
MY23 T-Roc R – $59,30
*Prices exclude on-road costs