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Dec 9, 2020 by Michael Butler Industry News / 9 Comments
Powered by and built by Ford, the German carmaker insists it will have VW DNA.
Ford fans got pretty excited when the manufacturer announced that the Ford Ranger would be coming to the US, and since its launch, the truck has been chipping away at popular models such as the Toyota Tacoma and Chevy Colorado.
The battle for midsize pickup truck supremacy is only going to get hotter after the announcement that the Volkswagen Amarok will potentially be entering the market. The German pickup will share a large part of its components with the Ranger as stated in a 2019 agreement between the two companies. With the second-generation Amarok in the works, Volkswagen wants to make it crystal clear that the Amarok will have 'Volkswagen DNA', and not be just a reskinned Ranger.
According to Caradvice, Volkswagen sent a team of designers to Australia to start work on the next generation Amarok, which will be jointly developed with Ford at its Melbourne design and engineering centers. Head of design for Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Albert Johann Kirzinger confirmed the news. "For the last one and a half years, the Volkswagen design team have been co-developing the new car together with our co-operation partner, Ford." Information around the technicalities of the new Amarok are scarce, and Volkswagen are still tight lipped about topics such as powertrains.
It is believed that both the next Ford Ranger and Volkswagen Amarok will make use of a twin-turbo 2.0-liter diesel and a single turbo 3.0-liter V6 diesel, mated to a ten-speed automatic transmission. Volkswagen is adamant that the two cars will however be two separate offerings completely. Head of Volkswagen Australia Michael Bartsch told the media that "it will not be the same mistake Mercedes made with the X-Class," referencing the failed collaboration between Mercedes-Benz Nissan's Nivara.
Whether these cars will offer the exact same driving experience remains to be seen, but Volkswagen has some serious work to do to convince loyal fans that its pickup isn't just a Ranger in disguise. The next-gen Amarok is set to arrive in Europe in 2022, with American release dates not yet announced.
