VW slashes price of V6 Amarok tow tug
Cut-price Volkswagen Amarok V6 manual with 3500kg towing due JulyVolkswagen will offer a manual version of the V6 Amarok from as early as July this year, the car-maker’s Australian arm says.
The Amarok V6 Sportline manual dual-cab should land in showrooms in the third quarter of 2019 with an official sticker price of $49,990 drive away – a $3000 saving on the current automatic Sportline equivalent.
Along with its six-speed manual transmission, the newcomer will add dual-range four-wheel drive to the Amarok V6 mix, thanks to installation of a low-range function. The automatic’s permanent all-wheel drive function currently offers an off-road mode and locking rear diff in the absence of a low-range setting.
Power figures from the V6 diesel are expected to remain unchanged at 180kW (165kW without overboost) and 550Nm.
“It’s the most affordable version of the V6 3.0-litre TDI engine ever,” says Volkswagen Australia spokesman Paul Pottinger.
The only V6 rival for the Volkswagen Amarok is the Mercedes-Benz X-Class V6, which touches down in Australia this month from $73,270 in auto-only guise.
At $49,990, the incoming VW manual matches the entry-level V6 Core automatic on price, though the latter goes without a heap of equipment.
Conversely, the manual V6 is expected to mirror the current Sportline Amarok specification, featuring as standard: 18-inch alloy wheels with a full-size spare, dual-zone climate control, a reversing camera, front and rear parking sensors, and a 6.5-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
Compared with thehigher-specification Highline, the Sportline manual is set to omit its sports bar and side steps, tyre pressure monitoring, bi-xenon headlights and LED daytime running lights.
A carry-over 3.5-tonne towing capacity is anticipated, as are the current model’s four-wheel disc brakes. Meantime, the car’s official payload is set to exceed 1000kg thanks to the deletion of Highline equipment, and the fitment of a lighter manual transmission – handy, given there’s space between the rear wheel arches to fit a full-size pallet.
Asked whether the newcomer presented an opportunity to re-visit the Amarok’s safety credentials – specifically, the absence of rear curtain airbags – Volkswagen Australia managing director Michael Bartsch said there was no immediate remedy.
“Rear air bags are not in the equation,” he said. “It would be a major engineering change and that’s not going to happen.
“There will be evolutions of the vehicle still, but rear curtain airbags won’t be a factor.”
Volkswagen will continue to offer the current generation of Amarok until around the end of 2021, at which point the car-maker will introduce a replacement co-developed alongside the Ford Ranger under a new alliance.
Volkswagen Australia says it will formalise an official landing time for the Amarok V6 manual Sportline closer to the dual-cab’s Australian arrival.
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