Volkswagen has admitted that had it not partnered with Ford to spin the next-generation Amarok off the Ranger platform it would have died.
The Volkswagen Amarok has been around for more than a decade but Volkswagen has admitted that if it hadn’t signed an agreement with Ford, the Amarok would have been dropped.
Earlier this week, Ford and Volkswagen issued a joint statement confirming the brands will be collaborating on the development of new vehicles on each other’s platforms. But in another statement, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles chairman Thomas Sedran revealed VW’s involvement with Ford had saved the Amarok.
“Ultimately it is our customers who will benefit, as without the cooperation [with Ford] we would not have developed a new Amarok,” he said.
Both the new Amarok and Ford Ranger will be built at Ford’s Silverton plant in South Africa with VW confirming the Amarok would be out in 2022. It’s expected the Ranger will be released first.
Platform sharing is nothing new, indeed the current Ford Ranger and Mazda BT-50 are twins under the skin and, going forward both the new Isuzu D-Max and Mazda BT-50 will become twins.
According to Sedran,“Through custom designs and interfaces we will clearly differentiate the two models. For us as Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, our sights with the Amarok successor are on our main markets, above all in the EMEA economic area [Europe, Middle East and Africa].
“What is important for both partners is the utilisation of the same platform. At the same time we will both be able to fully deploy our strengths,” he concluded.
While you’re here subscribe to the MotoFomo Newsletter
Sign Up for the latest news, reviews, advice, buying guides and more delivered to your inbox every week