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UPDATE: Wheels24's Van der Post will be driving the new VW Golf and Amarok in Spain and Germany later this week. Stay tuned for more pictures and videos.
Cape Town - Wheels24 reader Johann Wehrmann got his hands on the latest Volkswagen Amarok 3.0-litre V6 model in Launceston, Tasmania.
Being the proud owner of a VW Amarok 2.0-litre, he was keen to sample the new 3.0-lire V6. Here's what he has to say about the bakkie:
READ: SA-bound bakkie - More details, pics of VW's Amarok V6
Johann Wehrmann says: "It was a lovely drive, but I can't see myself paying such a high premium for only the bigger engine (yet), especially because I don't plan on towing anything soon. The 3.0- liter accelerates like a dream and it sounds really good, but for my purposes my faithful 2.0-liter still makes me smile.
Here’s a quick report on my test drive in the VW 3.0-litre.
It felt as though I was driving m 2.0-litre as the interior of the V6 isn’t really different except for a few minor upgrades here and there it’s still basically the same.
On the exterior, it’s only the front of the facelifted vehicle that’s really good-looking for me. I particularly like the Bi-Xenon headlights and LED daytime running lights, but these are niceties you could get available on the 2.0-litre too these days.
The engine is naturally a completely different story. The 3.0-litre has a lovely roar as you speed up. It has loads of power and would definitely get me into trouble as the maximum speed limit here and in Australia is between 100- and 110km/h.
I also don’t like the fact that the V6 comes standard with chrome stepping plates and a roll bar because I need to use my Alu-Cab and the roll bar would bother me. The standard 18” wheels don’t look to bad, although I’d still prefer the 17” Aldo’s.
And then of course there’s the issue of pricing. Entry-level units here in Tasmania starts at about Australian $65 000 which translates to about R670 000 in SA, and most likely will even be more expensive when all the taxes are added. That means in South Africa the Ultimate model will probably cost well over R700 000.
Go and drive it when it arrives in SA, you have to feel the grunt of the engine, but I reckon my 2.0-litre is more than suffice for my needs. The latter also starts out at about AUD $48 000 with Bi-Xenon lights and that’s more suited to my pocket.
