Amarok wins top ute award again

Volkswagen’s Amarok one-tonne ute has once again overcome more popular rivals, including Holden Colorado and Ford Ranger, and taken out 4x4 Australia magazine’s 4x4 dual cab Ute of the Year, for the second year running.

The German-engineered, Argentina-built ute, which arrived Down Under early-2011, is currently the ninth most popular 4x4 ute in Australia, with less than five per cent market share.

But that didn’t seem to faze this year’s Ute of the Year judges, who gave the Amarok an overall score of 222 out of 250 – five points more than the runner-up, the just-released Toyota LandCruiser 79 Series double-cab ute.

Third position went to Ford’s Ranger Wildtrak with 202 points, followed by Holden’s Colorado LTZ (188) and Isuzu’s D-Max LS-T (186).

Throughout judging, the Amarok was praised for its effortless off-road abilities, despite it being the only finalist with a single-range 4x4 system. The Amarok’s ground-breaking, eight-speed auto transmission incorporates an ultra-low first gear in lieu of low-range gearing.

Out-grunted but not out-gunned, the Amarok triumphed despite having the smallest capacity engine and second lowest torque figure (420Nm, 2.0-litre, four-cylinder bi-turbo diesel). It also had the lowest towing capacity of 3000kg, along with the D-Max.

But its roomy cabin, big tray, and SUV-like refinement and handling helped seal its position in the top spot.

It was a tight contest, though, with one of the judges, 4x4 Australia editor Marcus Craft, admitting that on his score-card only one point separated the $48,990 Amarok Trendline tested, and $67,990 LandCruiser.

Just five utes vied for the award; chosen only from models released within the previous 12 months (so top-selling HiLux, Navara, Triton or BT-50 were not eligible).

Each were assessed on five different criteria, including value, doing the job, breaking new ground, built tough and ‘bushability’; which determined each vehicle’s suitability for off-road and outback travel.

The utes were tested over a mix of freeway, secondary back-roads, dirt roads and very steep, challenging national park and state forest tracks during a rigorous four-day test route.