The Volkswagen Amarok is one of Europe’s most popular pickup trucks. We still don’t know why the maker of autobahn Passats and Golfs wanted to sell a truck, but it’s stuck around long enough to have a successor. Meet the 2023 Amarok… as it will be when it comes out.
Yesterday, Ford pulled the international covers of its new Ranger Raptor and it’s an amazing piece of kit. Thanks to the platform shared with the Bronco, it’s powered by the most amazing engine this segment has ever seen, a 3.0-liter EcoBoost twin-turbo V6 pushing close to 400 hp.
Not many people know this, but the upcoming Volkswagen Amarok will also use that platform. Ford and VW signed a partnership to share some development costs. Without it, the Germans would have stopped selling the Amarok because it’s simply not making enough money for them.
VW is also trying to push for a squeaky-clean reputation, having just released the ID. Buzz for testing and reviews. It’s basically the ID.4, but shaped like a classic van. And the TDI-powered Amarok doesn’t necessarily fit, but we still think it’s cool, particularly after seeing these previews.
The Russian website Kolesa made these renderings happen right after the Ranger debut. Usually, they work from spy photos, but that wasn’t the case here, as Volkswagen released several sketches to show what it had planned. As you can see, it’s quite a bold design, quite a match for the Ford sister model in the styling department. It’s a real shame that Volkswagen USA won’t bring this over, even though we’re seeing resourceful people bringing them over from Mexico.
VW Amarok came out in 2010
The original Amarok was a clean design styled by Walter de Silva. But this Mk2 has the blood of the Atlas Cross. Black body cladding, silver trim, LEDs, and orange accents all contribute to its Subaru-like ruggedness. Inside, it will receive a digital dashboard, a Golf 8-like wheel, and large portrait-style infotainment.
We know a few things about its proportions as well. The 2023 Amarok is based on the T6 platform from Ford and is 100mm (4 inches) longer than its predecessor. The overall width has also increased by 40mm (1.5 inches).
“We emphasize the different, expressive front designs of our pickup with a charismatic Amarok signature that is also found with very large letters on the cargo box at the rear and is sported very proudly by the Amarok,” said Albert-Johann Kirzinger, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles head of design.
We’ve saved the best piece of information until last. In a recent interview, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles told Australiaโsย Carsguideย that it would be interested in making an Amarok R. Obviously, the 3.0-liter EcoBoost is off-limits, but Volkswagen has some pretty impressive V6 engines of its own, like the 3.0 BiTDI and 3.0 TFSI powering Audi S models and the Touareg. Even if Ford is a no-go, the Australian division says it can work with a local engineering firm called Walkinshaw Performance to make a limited edition model.