New VW Amarok under pressure to succeed

Australia loves a high-end ute and we are expected to be the number one market for this brand’s first new workhorse in 12 years.

2023 VW Amarok Pan Americana

The new Volkswagen Amarok needs to be a success.

Starved of supply of once-popular cars such as the VW Golf, Volkswagen Australia’s fortunes ride in the tray of a reworked Ford Ranger.

Ryan Davies, director of commercial vehicles for VW Australia, says there is “a huge amount of importance placed on us to succeed”.

The new VW Amarok has arrived in Australia.

“Amarok is the most important vehicle in the commercial vehicle range and it’s going to be the highest volume-selling Volkswagen in Australia,” he says.

“When we talk about the fact that we haven’t launched an all-new Amarok for the last 12 years, it becomes something of escalated importance.”

The national obsession with dual-cab utes makes VW’s local arm a global focal point for the new Amarok, with Australia expected to be the number one market.

Powerful V6 diesel models include the Core, Aventura and Pan Americana.

While the Amarok won’t have the numbers to challenge the Ford Ranger or Toyota HiLux at the top of the sales charts, Davies expects around 8000 examples to reach Australia this year.

The new Amarok is built in a Ford Factory in South Africa, using the same core ingredients as the latest Ranger.

Having witnessed the failure of Mercedes’ Nissan Navara-based X-Class ute, Davies says it is important for customers to see the Amarok as a genuine effort.

The Mercedes X-Class (front) struggled to draw customers away from the Amarok and Ranger. Photo: Mark Bean.

“The reality is, with the X-Class and Navara, what you could see in the parking lot was two practically identical silhouettes. It was problematic for them from the start,” he says.

“I think you’ll find that doesn’t happen with the Amarok.

“We are supremely confident we are not going to end up in a situation like that, coupled with the fact we’ve been able to differentiate it in other ways, whether it be the quality of the interior trim, the styling … even the switchgear.

On the outside, the Amarok shares only its roof with the new Ford Ranger.

“These are the things that our customers will identify with and recognise from our overall range. When they see that they will be delighted with what we’ve been able to achieve.”

The Amarok is priced at a premium to the Ranger.

Top-end Amarok Aventura and Pan Americana models cost about $87,500 drive-away, roughly $8500 more than a similarly powered Ford Ranger.

The VW Amarok Style lines up against Ford’s Ranger Wildtrak.

But mid-grade Volkswagen Amarok Style priced from about $74,000 drive-away get a digital dash, huge infotainment screen and adaptive matrix LED headlights reserved for the top-end Ranger Platinum priced $10,000 upstream.

“Right from the start we decided to load our cars up with a lot of equipment perhaps that some other brands might have considered too premium for certain model grades,” Davies says.

“We deliberately took that position because we know our customer base.

VW customers will recognise familiar elements of the interior.

“We know that they want the latest and greatest tech. Whether you’re driving an Aventura or a Style, you’re going to want the big screens, the 360 degree camera, the ‘IQ matrix’ lights.

“These are no longer things that are just for the top of the range. These are things that people expect.”

Originally published as New VW Amarok under pressure to succeed