My Ownership experience of the Karoq
I have a running of 15k kms/year of which ~5k are highway drives. Been driving a GT TSI for the last 7 years and increasingly, the lack of space was becoming a problem. Especially on long drives, if there are 4 adults, the rear legroom being non-existent, people in the rear have no room to move. I guess the Polo is a 2 door car in other parts of the world.
Also, last year, I had a breakdown in my GT TSI, when on a trip with my wife and 3yo son. Fuel pump choked and overheated. Had to stay the night in a suspicious hotel in an unknown small town and from then on, I’ve been wanting to restrict the GT for city runs and get a bigger vehicle for highway runs.
The T Roc
Had been following the proposed launch of T-Roc. Wanted a DSG only since my experience so far with the gearbox has been delightful. Booked the T-Roc immediately after launch. And then waited for ages just to get a test drive. Which I didn’t get in the end. Went and checked out the display car at VW and while I remained smitten by the exteriors, the interiors were a let down. Barebones, maybe? Not acceptable for 23L, I felt. My GT has better interiors, honestly. The reassuring thud of the door closing which I got used to in the GT was missing, too. And the biggest reason of course was space (or the lack of it), which was the primary reason I was looking for a car. While I tried to convince myself that the drive will make up for it, the wife was just not impressed by the rear legroom. It felt like a taller Polo. Still hung on to the booking hoping a test drive will change our opinion.
and the Karoq
In the meanwhile, Karoq launched. I balked at the price (an eye watering 5L over an already stretched budget of 23L). But the more we checked out the brochures, the more we were impressed. Reluctantly asked for a test drive.
I still feel that the Karoq is no match in exterior styling to the stunning T-Roc. However, sitting inside, it was a different world. Well appointed, felt premium and had lots of nooks and crannies with clever touches. I’m 5’9” and for my driving position, the rear seat had ample room for me to sit. Boot was much larger. Cruise control. Powered seat adjustment. Booked it.
The car came to the stockyard in 10 days and I went and checked it out. Took delivery a couple of days later. Dealership experience was satisfactory. So, in short, I badly wanted a T-Roc, but test drove only the Karoq and bought it!
The car has been covered in detail by Mr.Perera. After logging in 1000kms, below are some of my observations, in no particular order. Most of my comparisons are with the GT which, though does not fall in the same category, has matching build quality and the same gearbox.
- The DSG coasting feature is welcome as it ekes out mileage from the engine. From my daily runs to work, which is a slow 15km round trip, I see that both cars return the same mileage, around 11kmpl, which I had not at all expected from the Karoq. Coasting behaviour is seen only up to 6th gear. 7th is probably overdrive. Highway runs easily return ~15kmpl.
- The car is very easy to drive, with excellent visibility in the front. Suspension is softer than the GT and the Karoq handles bad patches well, keeping passengers insulated. While the GT stays planted over bad patches, it transmits quite a bit to the passengers.
- Front seats are roomy and very comfortable. Rear seats have ample leg room and I like the seat-back position. My 4yo is mesmerised by the sunroof and insists on sitting in the rear and staring out of it. Keeps him occupied for ages. Ambient lighting could’ve been extended to the rear door panels as well. Cabin is full of numerous felt-lined storage spaces. Glove box is very very small. Impractical, even.
- Build quality is quite good overall and premium/nice-to-touch materials everywhere, but some of the switches, especially ones on the steering wheel and the power window switches, seem to have a lot of play and feel like they’ll give way in a few months. On the GT, 8th year now, not a single switch or stalk has malfunctioned, and the click response feels top notch.
- 3 stage door - On the GT, the 2 stages are well defined and with a certain push, the door will go and rest on the 2nd stage. By habit, I gave the same push on the Karoq and the door crossed all stages and was about to crash into a pillar. I had to lunge and grab the door handle!
- Noise wise, the cabin is well insulated with minimal engine growl and road noise. The GT has a very silent cabin too but when it rains, there is a lot of clatter inside whereas in the Karoq, it is much quieter even in a downpour. Karoq’s engine is heard in the 1st to 3rd gears and I can clearly make out its shifts by noise, even in low rev city traffic.
- The issue of the gearbox shifting to D1 on rough patches is very much present and unlike what I’d mentioned in an earlier post, the engine start-stop system has no influence on this behaviour. The Karoq randomly shifts to D1 on rough patches at low speeds and the RPM shoots up and it takes unusually long for it to get to D2. So a couple of times, I had to use the paddle shift to bring it to 2nd gear. This behaviour is just not seen on the GT, not at all. GT takes all patches and speed breakers in D2 unless I almost come to a standstill.
- Boot is spacious and has all those nets and belts and partitions. Biggest miss is the powered tailgate. I mean, I just can’t get it as to why it isn’t there. The door is quite heavy and it is not easy to bring it down with one hand. Looks like it was built for a motor to do the work.
- Water wash for the rear camera is such a clever touch. Used it many times this monsoon and it is quite effective in clearing grime off the camera.
- Automatic wipers work well mostly but sometimes go off to sleep and let the droplets accumulate. I either have to nudge it back by changing the speed or patiently wait until I can barely see and it’ll finally wake up and start wiping and after that it’ll continue flawlessly if the rainfall is consistent. Since it is raining, I’d left the stalk on ‘Int’ for the auto wipers to do their work but on a sunny day, after having driven about 20 kms and the windscreen full of dust, the wiper came on for a single wipe !!! I was horrified and from then on, have been keeping it Off only.
The Karoq has been an enjoyable experience so far. Built for a relaxed driving style, with ample space for road trips and the bad roads that come with it. Hope it will be as reliable a companion as the GT continues to be.