Skoda Karoq vs Volkswagen T-Roc: which is the better used buy?

Neither, on the evidence. Their first-time MOT pass rates sit 1.1 percentage points apart once each is compared against the national rate for cars of the same age, which is too close to call (we name a winner only at 2 points or more). A pass with rectification at the station counts as a pass here, and as a failure in DVSA's own initial-test measure. Pick on the specific faults each is prone to instead.

91.3% of Skoda Karoqs pass their MOT first time (6,182 tests in DVSA's records) and 92.9% of Volkswagen T-Rocs pass their MOT first time (9,266 tests). The national first-time rate is 77.3%, but cars of the Skoda Karoq's age average 87.9% and cars of the Volkswagen T-Roc's age 88.4% — so the Skoda Karoq runs 3.4 points better than its age group and the Volkswagen T-Roc runs 4.5 points better than its own. A pass with rectification at the station counts as a pass here, and as a failure in DVSA's own initial-test measure.

Skoda Karoq: 2017–2018 launch-year 1.5 TSI Karoqs with Active Cylinder Management (ACT) suffered from well-documented kangarooing and stalling at low engine speeds. It is widely reported on UK owner forums, including Briskoda. Skoda issued software updates from 2019, but pre-update cars sometimes still hesitate at junctions. Pre-2019 1.6 TDI cars paired with the DQ200 dry-clutch DSG also have an elevated mechatronic-failure rate above 60,000 miles. The DVSA MOT table on this page rates 2018 registrations above all cars registered that year, so it is not named as a year to avoid. Volkswagen T-Roc: No year is named: DVSA’s MOT table rates every T-Roc registration year above all cars registered that year (2018 by 7.4 points). Launch-year cars carry five small recalls: R/2018/066 (an owner’s manual supplement, built November 2017 to January 2018), R/2018/301 and R/2020/112 (electric parking brake software, built October 2017 to June 2018), R/2019/005 (rear spoiler bond, January to June 2018) and R/2018/352 (rear seat backrest weld, May to August 2018), so check the car by registration.

On fuel it depends on the engine. Skoda Karoq: 1.0 TSI 115: 38–44 mpg real-world. 1.5 TSI 150: 35–42 mpg. 2.0 TDI 150 manual: 44–51 mpg. 2.0 TSI 190 4x4: 28–33 mpg on UK mixed driving. Volkswagen T-Roc: No sourced real-world figure for the T-Roc, so none is printed: the official lab figure depends on the engine and on the test cycle the car was approved under, so use the figure for the exact version you are looking at. For cars registered from April 2017, vehicle tax works the same way for both: the £200/year standard rate from the second year, hybrids included, plus the £440/year Expensive Car Supplement in years 2–6 on a car that listed at over £40,000 new — the price when new, not what you pay for it used (2026/27 rates). Insurance differs mainly by driver and postcode rather than by model, so treat any model-level insurance figure with caution.