Volkswagen Amarok: A stylish workhorse

the streets of Harare over the past few months.
It’s stylish and fit for the rough work too which is why I would really want to meet its designer Walter de Silva just to ask him how he managed that. When I went for the test drive with Eddie from FCM Motors (well he didn’t want his surname in the paper for reasons known only to himself . . . ha ha ha) I was thinking to myself . . . gosh not another truck. I’ve driven trucks which have made me loose my lunch . . . why? Because the handling and suspension on a truck is always so messed up that I shake half the drive – but not with the Amarok. The name sounds sexy too and I can assure you it drives well. We took our drive from the dealership to Borrowdale and back.
I tell you this is no ordinary truck. The Amarok range consists of single cab and double cab, combined with either rear-wheel drive or four-motion four-wheel drive, and is powered by Turbocharged Direct Injection (TDI) diesel engines. VWCV considers the Toyota Hilux, Nissan Navara and Mitsubishi Triton to be Amarok competitors
Following its launch in Argentina, the Amarok was a key support vehicle in the 2010 Dakar Rally with 45 vehicles participating. German rocker, founder of the Scorpions, guitarist Rudolf Schenker, is a supporter of the Amarok and himself drove one during the 2010 Dakar Rally. So you see it’s a celebrity endorsed vehicle.
“Amarok” means “Wolf” in the Inuit language, and Interbrand (the research company that came up with the name) also claims it is associated with “he loves stones” in Romanic [sic] languages. (Although recusing that phrase back into Romance languages produces significant differences, e.g. in Spanish “él ama a las rocas”.) It also resembles “tomorrow” in Irish. It is also the title of a 1990 record album by musician Mike Oldfield, a 2000 album of the German black metal solo project Nargaroth and the name of an open-source music player (version 1,0 in 2004). So you see it’s not ordinary it has a strong history to it.
The Amarok is powered by a range of Turbocharged Direct Injection (TDI) common rail diesel engines, and Fuel Stratified Injection (FSI) petrol engine.
The engine range consists of two 2.0L Turbocharged Direct Injection (TDI) common rail diesel engines which is taken from the Volkswagen-Transporter- (T5), it has been tuned for more torque but less power; the entry-level version produces 90kW which develops a maximum torque of 340 N·m from 2000 rpm. The top of the line bi-turbo version produces 120kW which develops a maximum torque of 400 N·m from 1500 rpm.
Fuel consumption in a combined cycle format is as low as 7,6 L/100km on the rear wheel drive variant to 8,1 L/100km on the 4Motion theoretically giving the Amarok a 1 000 km range before filling up for fuel.
The Amarok has three drive concepts: rear wheel drive, shiftable 4-Motion and permanent 4-Motion. The shiftable all wheel drive system can shift drive between the axles whereas the permanent full time all wheel drive system distributes power through a Torque Sensing (Torsen) differential with a 40:60 ratio between the front and rear axles.
It’s available in base version, Trendline and Highline. The base version comes equipped with 16-inch steel wheels, height-adjustable front seats, variable folding rear bench seats, locking glove box, cargo platform lighting, antenna integrated within wing mirrors, manual window regulators, manual door locking and manual wing mirror adjustment. The front bumper, wing mirrors and door handles come in black.
The Trendline grade has over the base version electrically operated door locking, electric windows and wing mirror adjustment as well as a radio with a CD player, climate control (climatic), multi-functional display, cruise control, front fog lights, 17-inch aluminium wheels. Also painted in the body colour are the front bumper, door handles and wing mirrors.
The Highline grade has over the Trendline part chrome mirror housings, chrome strips on radiator grille and around the fog lights, chrome rear bumper bar 18-inch aluminium wheels, automatic climate control (Climatronic), leatherette/ leather fabric on the interior.
The pick-up’s active and passive safety systems and convenience features all match up to passenger car levels. Yet the Amarok is extremely rugged. In both concept and style, the Volkswagen Amarok is clearly influenced by the new Volkswagen Design DNA.
This is reflected in its typical emphasis of horizontal lines, in the well-defined interplay of body surfaces and high precision of its workmanship.
Specifically, one of its most prominent identifying features is the visual unit formed by the horizontal headlights and radiator grille and decorative trim accents. Extending back from the vehicle’s front face is a surface that develops over the fender contour to the side windows and encloses them in an arch.
The cleanly sculpted curvatures of the pick-up’s side body panels and engine hood give the Amarok the typical rugged look of a pick-up. At the rear, the prominent Volkswagen logo catches the eye on the tailgate whose smooth surface still embodies a high level of excitement. It is framed by the pick-up’s taillights, whose distinctive signature is their characteristic night design.
The truck’s exceptional interior dimensions make it the most spacious in its class. The vehicle’s finely tuned ergonomics are typical of Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles and the Amarok. Easy entry, a generous seating layout and lots of headroom characterise the workspace behind the wheel. Ample legroom on the rear bench also makes the Amarok a full-fledged five-seater. When only two persons are aboard, the rear seat folds to increase interior cargo space.
The truck bed of the Volkswagen Amarok Double Cab serves up the largest dimensions in its class as well. It measures 1 555 millimetres long by 1 620 millimetres wide, yielding an impressive truck bed area of 2,52 square metres. For the first time on a mid-size pick-up, this makes it possible to load Euro pallets (1,2 x 0,8m) sideways, a space-saving feature.
It is easy to transport sports equipment like quads as well as bulky machinery, thanks to its large dimensions, load sill height of 780 millimetres and payload capacity of up to 1,15 metric tonnes. Four tie-down eyes at the corners of the truck bed protect cargo during the drive. When pulling a trailer, the pickup can handle up to 2,8 metric tonnes of trailer load.
What more can you ask for . . . starting from a little under US$40 000, this could be yours. Visit the showroom at FCM along Samora Machel Avenue so that they furnish you with all the details from test drives to finance options.
Till next week . . . keep pumping it.
l Fact D. Jeke is a motoring enthusiast who has attended auto shows, rallies and has written for various publications in the region for the last decade. She can be contacted via email on [email protected]