Volkswagen T-Cross review

Of course, there have been increases since the T-Cross was first launched back in 2019. So, prices for the entry-level Life trim start at £23,975, for which you get 16-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights, DAB radio, an 8.0-inch infotainment screen with Apple CarPlay/Android Auto and VW’s Travel Assist system that combines adaptive cruise control and lane keep assist for a decent driver assist system.

Match trim starts at £24,150 and adds 17-inch wheels, a rear-view camera and keyless entry.

Step up to Style trim and you lose the option of the 94bhp three-cylinder, so the entry price jumps to £27,630. For that you do get LED matrix headlights, silver painted roof rails and VW’s upgraded ‘Discover Media’ infotainment system (still 8.0-inches) with navigation, though.

R-Line trim is top of the tree and gets a schporty bodykit, similarly sporty seats and the 10.25-inch infotainment screen plus a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster. That’ll set you back £28,565 for the 113bhp 1.0-litre manual, or a hefty £31,675 for the four-pot with a DSG auto.

The warranty is an acceptable three years and 60,000 miles.

Remember the T-Cross is basically a Polo, so while fuel economy and CO2 emissions from both the 1.0-litre engines will probably be a bit worse thanks to the bigger, heavier, less aerodynamic body, for the most part the costs involved in running a T-Cross will be broadly comparable to running a Polo.

All models emit between 128 and 135g/km of CO2. The most economical model – interestingly the more powerful three-cylinder with a manual gearbox (the one we would go for) – claims 50.4mpg, with the others all dropping just below 50. The lowest WLTP figure is the 47.1mpg for the 1.5-litre four-pot, but on an (admittedly rather spirited) drive using that engine we recorded a real-world figure of 34mpg. Ouch.