Volkswagen Amarok W600 inspiration emerges

The hype surrounding the second-generation Volkswagen Amarok is reaching fever pitch ahead of its Aussie arrival in February 2023, and the all-new Ford Ranger-based ute will again be topped by a trail-slaying off-road flagship engineered right here in Australia.

While the tough truck you see here was put together by German-based Delta4x4 and dubbed the Beast 2.0, it could provide clues as to how Walkinshaw may modify the next-gen Amarok-based W-Series range of dual-cab 4x4 utes.

Early this year, Volkswagen Australia’s commercial vehicles director Ryan Davies told carsales a successor for the sold-out W580X tough truck was all but certain, making a new ‘W600X’ a pretty safe bet.

“We will definitely investigate a continued collaboration with Walkinshaw. We’d be mad not to,” said Davies.

“Having something in that [tough truck] space is definitely on our radar and Walkinshaw are the best people to partner with going forward with something like that,” he added.

It’s understood the next Amarok-tuned Walkinshaw off-roader won’t surface until around 2025, but if this design out of Germany is any indication it should look as tough as nails.

Based on the top-spec VW Amarok PanAmericana 4x4 dual-cab, this beefed-up V6-powered German-designed ute features fettled suspension with a massive ride height lift of almost six inches (150mm).

Big beadlock wheels are available with either BF Goodrich A/T or Mickey Thompson Baja Boss tyres, shrouded by extreme wheel-arch extensions and delivering a significantly wider track.

A winch is also part of the package and there’s a reasonably beefy bash plate mounted underneath the engine. It’s connected to a meagre bull bar that looks like it would collapse in a collision with a butterfly, and includes an LED light bar precariously perched on top.

We know from the current Volkswagen Amarok W580X that Walkinshaw engineers will do a more thorough job with their locally-developed off-road ute, including more underbody protection.

The new W-Series models are also unlikely to get a roof rack/plate with LED light bar and various accessories, but you can bet the ex-HSV masterminds will deliver a number of upgrades to give the ‘W600’ range more off-road capability than any previous factory-backed Amarok.

Expect to see a handful of cabin upgrades as well, such as unique seat embroidery and identifying build plates.

When the new-generation Volkswagen Amarok arrives in early 2023, it’ll be offered to Aussie buyers with three engine types, opening with a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel (125kW/405Nm) matched to a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic.

Then there’s a twin-turbo version of the 2.0-litre oiler (154kW/500Nm) that gains a more advanced 10-speed automatic transmission and a selectable 4x4 system.

Top-spec utes – and the Walkinshaw-tuned Amarok W600 – step up to the same beefy 3.0-litre turbo-diesel V6 (184kW/600Nm) fitted to premium Ford Ranger models.

Volkswagen isn’t hiding the fact its next Amarok is based on the new Ranger (although the German brand will have no answer for the range-topping Raptor, nor the Everest wagon), but the new South African-made model will come with more standard equipment than its Ranger equivalents.

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