The immediate reassurance first: the second generation of the combustion Volkswagen T-Roc (including hybrids) is going to Autoeuropa, exactly as always planned. Production begins in this first half of the year.
The all-new 100% electric T-Roc, which is still a few years away, will instead be built at Volkswagen’s headquarters in Wolfsburg (Germany).
Two Volkswagen T-Roc versions: combustion and electric
Despite sharing the same name, the electric T-Roc will be a different proposition from the combustion T-Roc, because it will be based on its own dedicated platform designed specifically for electric models.
A good illustration of this approach is the current Mini Cooper range: from the outside they look identical, but the combustion Cooper and the electric Cooper sit on different platforms.
SSP platform timeline and what it means for the electric Volkswagen T-Roc
The platform for the future electric T-Roc is the long-anticipated SSP (Scalable Systems Platform). It will replace the MEB (which underpins the entire ID family) and the PPE (Porsche Macan, Audi A6 e-tron, etc.).
The first SSP-based model was originally expected to arrive in 2026 (the Trinity project). However, with the range of issues that have hit Volkswagen over the last 4-5 years-structural challenges, software (which delayed launches), and electric-car sales below expectations-the introduction of SSP has been pushed back to 2028.
Even so, it will not be the electric T-Roc that launches SSP first, but the future electric Golf. That is what Thomas Schäfer, Volkswagen’s chief executive, announced at a recent event with workers in Wolfsburg.
The electric future of Wolfsburg
Plenty of eyebrows were raised when Volkswagen confirmed the historic decision to move production of the iconic Golf from Wolfsburg to Mexico. The reasoning behind that move is now fully clear.
Hall 54 in Wolfsburg, where the combustion Golf has been built, will be converted to produce the new generation of SSP-based electric vehicles-namely the Golf and the T-Roc. The Golf is planned for 2028, with the T-Roc arriving afterwards, perhaps in 2029.
“This will establish Wolfsburg as the capital of our new class of compact electric models”.
Thomas Schäfer, Volkswagen CEO
The expectations are ambitious. Once production of both electric models is running at full speed, around 500 thousand units a year will come off Wolfsburg’s lines.
Does Autoeuropa have an electric car in its future?
Even though Autoeuropa will not get production of the electric T-Roc, it remains in the running to build a new 100% electric Volkswagen.
This new EV will be the German brand’s cheapest, with a price around 20 thousand euros, and it was confirmed at the same event-where we also saw the first teaser.
For now it is known as the ID.1, but the final name has not yet been confirmed. What we do know is that it will arrive in 2027. Here are more details:
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