Volkswagen’s hotly-anticipated Amarok dual-cab ute is almost ready to launch.
Volkswagen Commercial design boss Albert-Johann Kirzinger has posted a video (below) offering a glimpse at the styling of the 2023 Amarok.
It’ll be revealed around the same time as the related Ford Ranger will be touching down in Australian showrooms (July 7). The Amarok will go on sale late in 2022 for Europe, and will arrive in Australia early in 2023.
There’s prominent LED daytime running lights and what looks like a squarer, more aggressive front end than the current car. Based on the shadowy teaser, there will be plenty to differentiate the new Amarok from its Ford Ranger platform-mate.
Update: VW Commercial has also confirmed that LED headlights will be standard-fit, while powerful IQ.Light matrix LEDs with auto-dipping will be offered on higher grades.
That’s in keeping with what we’ve heard from VW, which has previously promised it’ll pack “genuine Volkswagen DNA” when it launches.
“This is the car our designers both Melbourne and in Europe have been working on tirelessly over the last few years, to come up with a car that expresses what we know are the absolute attributes of Volkswagen,” Ryan Davies, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles Australia national sales manager, has previously told media.
Like the current car, the new Amarok will offer V6 power. Unlike the current car, however, the V6 turbo-diesel engine will be supplied by Ford.
In the Ranger, the 3.0-litre turbo-diesel engine makes 184kW of power and 600Nm of torque. It’s mated with a 10-speed automatic transmission, along with a full-time four-wheel drive system.
Ford Ranger
VW Amarok (current)
Volkswagen’s current Amarok flagship, the W580, makes 190kW and 580Nm from its 3.0-litre displacement.
Developed by teams in Australia and Europe, the latest version of the so-called ute will be produced in Silverton, South Africa in future. The current model is assembled in Argentina, and the Ranger will continue to come from Thailand, by contrast.
Volkswagen Commercial is also promising new-to-segment driver-assist features, superior off-road abilities, a more comfortable and premium interior, and a significant body design re-skin.