Amarok in USA?

dsnover

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And so the story begins a couple of weeks ago, while driving to Pensacola Florida. Heading south on I-65, cruise control set to 75 MPH, and just enjoying the ride, at least as much as you can when you have wife and kids on a 1200 mile journey in the car (I refuse to subject myself and my family to TSA molestation, but back to the topic).

And there it was. Sorry no pictures, but there, in the right lane, was a VW that I'd never even heard of. A very nice looking white VW Amarok TDI.

I was thinking there was a new model VW in the USA, but a google search produced nothing in the way of the Amarok being sold here. I can only surmise that it was on a road trip from the relatively close VW plant in Chatanooga.

I only wish I had been able to take a few pictures.

So, anyone know the scoop on these things? I don't see any mention on VWoA website, and the local dealer seems to be equally oblivious (no surprise there I suppose)....
 

AlcoC420

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I think someone else has seen a VW Amorok somewhere on U.S. roads. You're right -- it's not sold in North America and VW has stated that it has no plans to sell it here. Not sure why it's here, but it's really neat that you saw one. I know that they're sold in the UK probably a lot of other nations too.
 

JSWTDI09

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I think someone else has seen a VW Amorok somewhere on U.S. roads. You're right -- it's not sold in North America and VW has stated that it has no plans to sell it here. Not sure why it's here, but it's really neat that you saw one. I know that they're sold in the UK probably a lot of other nations too.

Mexico is generally considered part of North America. It would be more correct to say that the Amarok is not sold in the US and Canada. That said, I agree that I do not understand why they don't try to sell it in the USA (the land of pick-up trucks).

Have Fun!

Don
 

CountOfGamble

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Mexico is generally considered part of North America. It would be more correct to say that the Amarok is not sold in the US and Canada. That said, I agree that I do not understand why they don't try to sell it in the USA (the land of pick-up trucks).

Have Fun!

Don
It has to do with the chicken tax imposed in 1963. Read up on it.
 
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TDI smile

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Mexico is generally considered part of North America. It would be more correct to say that the Amarok is not sold in the US and Canada. ........................
.....................
Mexico is part of Central Amerika.....;)
 

FirstOrbit84

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I saw an Amarok 4motion TDI 4 door in El Salvador but my wife wouldn't let me take a pic because she thought we would get shot. So awesome. I saw another one in south Carolina, not TDI, with Mexican plates.
 

TNriverjet

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Man, you think a bank would finance $40K on a vehicle worth $32K? If they would, I'd think about getting one. Ha! I just think for $40K you should get a decked out high line version. I wonder what the resale would be?
 

axellgt

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I am not sure if any of you guys actually sit in Amarok, but I went back home to Europe few months ago and when I saw Amarok I could not resist so I had to try it and see what is all this about. Man, this truck is cheap ( poor quality ), have really bad and hard plastic in interior, everything about it is not high in any standard. Instrument cluster taken from VW Polo, plastic steering wheel, noisy cabin ( due to poor isolation ) etc...
I would not buy it even if they bring it here. Definitely not worth any money if you ask me. That was my 2 cents...
 

Ski in NC

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DSN- Did you notice where the tags were from? Maybe it was from Mexico?

A buddy's girlfriend from Panama drove from there to Fla in a 300ZX. Car really stood out with Panama tags. Heck of a girl.
 

JSWTDI09

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I would buy one of those right now if it wasnt 40,000. I thought that everything is cheaper in mexico. Sigh...:confused:
Remember, that ad is for the "crew cab" version. A "standard" version is probably cheaper, plus it would have a longer bed. Also remember that you are paying a company to import is. That might include modifications to bring it up to American emissions and/or crash worthiness standards. I'm not saying that it's worth the price, but you have to realize what you are paying for.

Have Fun!

Don
 

WutGas?

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I am not sure if any of you guys actually sit in Amarok, but I went back home to Europe few months ago and when I saw Amarok I could not resist so I had to try it and see what is all this about. Man, this truck is cheap ( poor quality ), have really bad and hard plastic in interior, everything about it is not high in any standard. Instrument cluster taken from VW Polo, plastic steering wheel, noisy cabin ( due to poor isolation ) etc...
I would not buy it even if they bring it here. Definitely not worth any money if you ask me. That was my 2 cents...
They do look like a lot of plastic, but I could live with it...

 

dsnover

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DSN- Did you notice where the tags were from? Maybe it was from Mexico?

A buddy's girlfriend from Panama drove from there to Fla in a 300ZX. Car really stood out with Panama tags. Heck of a girl.
As I recall, it had Alabama plates on it. Wishing I would've got some pictures of it. It's like seeing a Bigfoot....
 

dsnover

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I am not sure if any of you guys actually sit in Amarok, but I went back home to Europe few months ago and when I saw Amarok I could not resist so I had to try it and see what is all this about. Man, this truck is cheap ( poor quality ), have really bad and hard plastic in interior, everything about it is not high in any standard. Instrument cluster taken from VW Polo, plastic steering wheel, noisy cabin ( due to poor isolation ) etc...
I would not buy it even if they bring it here. Definitely not worth any money if you ask me. That was my 2 cents...
It's a commercial type vehicle, so I wouldn't expect it to be all posh and fluffy. Maybe being able to hose it out is a good thing...
;)
 

VW Derf

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G60ING

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They do look like a lot of plastic, but I could live with it...

Have you sat in a Toyota Tacoma recently? They are dated, very plastic filled and lacking VW's level of appointments. On top of that they get horrible MPGs. I'd love to have an Amarok which in my opinion is a tacoma with VW's interior and drivetrain, a win win.
 

rme

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Stupid question--but could you buy one in Canada and be EPA compliant in N/A? I know the Lexus RX's are built in Canada but I think they are built to U.S. specs.
 

German_1er_diesel

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It's a commercial type vehicle, so I wouldn't expect it to be all posh and fluffy. Maybe being able to hose it out is a good thing...
;)
It's a commercial vehicle that is priced to compete with Japanese compact trucks in emerging markets, but offers a wider bed and a roomier cab. Of course it has a hard plastic interior...

Here's a little comparison table I did, comparing it to a 2003 F-150, the American Ford Ranger and the latest international Ranger.
 

G60ING

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I never had a problem in my 1997 tacoma but I did it with the tailgate up. In 12 years that I had it I racked up 330k and the only issues I had were related to it not being a crew cab and the MPG.
 

rme

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I agree with the mpg on the Tacoma. I have a 95 and am waiting on the Amarok. Mine is a 95 with 190,000 miles and it is small. Not like the Tacoma's today. I believe there is a market for the Amarok here and if VW doesn't accelerate it's production for the U.S. (provided our dollars will be worth anything) they will have to fight for market share from Nissan who says they are going to put a Cummins diesel in the Titan in 2015. I'm not sure how far brand loyalty goes but alot of people will need a truck between now and 2015 and if the Titan delivers as promised it's sales will be out of this world.
 

G60ING

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I agree with the mpg on the Tacoma. I have a 95 and am waiting on the Amarok. Mine is a 95 with 190,000 miles and it is small. Not like the Tacoma's today. I believe there is a market for the Amarok here and if VW doesn't accelerate it's production for the U.S. (provided our dollars will be worth anything) they will have to fight for market share from Nissan who says they are going to put a Cummins diesel in the Titan in 2015. I'm not sure how far brand loyalty goes but alot of people will need a truck between now and 2015 and if the Titan delivers as promised it's sales will be out of this world.

Bingo
 

kydsid

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Stupid question--but could you buy one in Canada and be EPA compliant in N/A? I know the Lexus RX's are built in Canada but I think they are built to U.S. specs.

It's not stupid, it gets overlooked by almost everyone. You need to pass FMVSS (safety) and EPA to import. Canadian vehicles get special exemptions. Essentially if you can get VWOA to certify it meets FMVSS and EPA you can import it. The first is easy, as CMVSS (Canadia safety) mirrors ours, the second is highly variable.
 
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