Volkswagen unveiled its new T-Cross Breeze concept car at the Geneva Motor Show on March 1, signalling the brand’s desire to break into the emerging convertible SUV niche segment.
The four-seater concept SUV is powered by a 108-horsepower 1.0-litre turbo gasoline engine that drives the front wheels via a seven-speed automatic transmission. One hundred km/h shows up from zero in 10.3 seconds, and the T-Cross Breeze can continue on up to 188 km/h (117 mph).
Volkswagen says the T-Cross Breeze boasts an extremely small footprint but that it sits passengers higher up for a better view. The styling exhibits a marked break from the brand’s new design language, but VW says it was aiming for something distinct with the T-Cross Breeze anyway.
Like other concepts VW has shown off in the past, the T-Cross Breeze features controls accessible via touch-sensitive surfaces or via gesturing; plus several features accessed via a new Active Info Display, including one that predicts terrain ahead to aid in off-road performance.
“At the moment the T-Cross Breeze is purely a concept, but we can well imagine putting such a convertible on the market as a production model,” Volkswagen brand chair Herbert Diess said in a release. “This is an affordable fun car that is also entirely suitable for everyday use—it’s a genuine ‘People’s Car.’”
