- The T-Roc Cabriolet is the only convertible sold by Volkswagen.
- Weak demand is forcing VW to reduce production.
- The crossover-Cabrio will be retired by mid-2027.
As if we needed further proof that demand for convertibles is waning, Volkswagen is reducing production of the only car it sells with a folding roof. Then again, the T-Roc Cabriolet is no ordinary open-top model. It looks like someone took the image of a regular crossover and ran it through AI with the prompt: “Make it a convertible.”
The Evoque convertible’s mainstream successor, the fabric-roofed T-Roc, is struggling. reuters A VW spokesperson revealed that the traditional summer holidays at the Osnabruck factory will be extended by one week. Looking ahead, there will be more days when no vehicles roll off the assembly line at a German site.
Barring a production halt, the T-Roc Cabriolet doesn’t have much longer in this world anyway. VW has already announced that it will retire the company’s only convertible by the middle of next year. The future of the factory is up in the air, as the company has not yet decided what will happen next after production ends. It may be reused to serve defense companies, but no official announcement has been made.
Meanwhile, it is the only vehicle produced by the plant’s 2,300 employees. According to a works council spokesperson, they will effectively be working only four days a week due to the latest production cuts. reuters A VW spokesperson was quoted as saying that the decision was taken due to the seasonal nature of convertible vehicles, whose popularity peaks between spring and early summer in the Northern Hemisphere.
That doesn’t mean the broader VW group is abandoning convertibles. Porsche is putting the finishing touches to the fully electric 718 and has also announced plans to restart production of the Boxster with a combustion engine. Audi’s Concept C will transform into an electric sports car with a retractable Targa roof in 2027. Additionally, the recently unveiled Nuvolari is almost certain to get the Spider treatment.
Similarly, more exotic brands like Porsche, Bentley and Lamborghini will continue to sell high-end Cabriolet models. The Temerario Spyder may have already been seen, and it’s reasonable to expect the Revuelto Roadster at some point as well. We’re leaving Bugatti off the list because the Molsheim-based brand is no longer part of the VW Group. Porsche is selling its 45 percent stake in Bugatti Rimac to a New York-based investment firm, effectively ending the VW Group era for Bugatti.
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Motor1’s Opinion: We’re honestly not sad to see the T-Roc Cabriolet sink into oblivion, but the bigger issue is how VW will manage the factory after scrapping the last car built there. Job security matters more than ever, and it goes without saying that those 2,300 workers need answers, and they need them fast.
These are difficult times for the VW Group. It has already closed the Dresden plant in Germany, where the Phaeton and ID.3 were assembled. Additionally, Audi’s Brussels site in Forest, Belgium is slated to close in early 2025 due to low demand for the Q8 e-tron. The restructuring plan calls for cutting 50,000 jobs in Germany by 2030 and moving Golf production from Wolfsburg to Puebla, Mexico, in 2027.
