Volkswagen Amarok Pickup Concept

In case you're not a Volkswagen fan, you are about to become one. The German manufacturer continues the concepts and special edition models launches frenzy with a brand new prototype to be sold as Amarok. The concept, which comes in the form of a pickup, was first displayed last year and is due to be launched in Europe in 2010.

Wondering where does the name come from? Volkswagen says "the new name means ‘wolf’ in the language of the Inuit, one of the Eskimo people who live in northern Canada and Greenland who highly regard the wolf as king of the wilderness and a figure of robustness, endurance and superiority". In other words, the name translates into "he loves stones" which gives us a into the features of the new car.

"This name fits the characteristics of our pickup perfectly, which will set new standards in its class," says Stephan Schaller, CEO of Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles. "We took great care selecting this name, which can be used globally and is meant to invoke positive associations in all relevant international markets. The Amarok is a powerful and robust vehicle with great stamina – just like the wolf," he continued.

To get to some more technical stuff, the Amarok is a double-cab pickup featuring four-wheel drive, but a singe-cab version is already projected to be introduced later. Although details on the powertrain are not yet available, we do know it will be powered by a common rail turbo diesel unit, particularly aimed at reducing fuel consumption and emissions.

The Amarok will be produced at Volkswagen's Pacheco plant near Buenos Aires in Argentina and will be launched South America in early 2010, followed by Central America in spring 2010, then Russia and Europe in the summer, as well as Africa and Australia.