The American truck market is not an easy one to break into. For years, the Ford F-150, Ram 1500, and the Chevrolet Silverado have been synonymous with the full-size segment, while the Toyota Tacoma and Ford Maverick have done well in the mid-size and compact segments, respectively.

At the recent NY Auto Show, Hyundai confirmed its intentions of making a body-on-frame pickup truck. Now it seems like Volkswagen might also be interested in grabbing a piece of the pickup market pie.

At a media roundtable conference, VW America CEO Kjell Gruner confirmed the company's intention of breaking into the pickup truck market.

“Of course, if a market is that size, you can't just say, I'm going to ignore it, and we don't. So, of course, we look at that," said Gruner. "We look at C-pickup, B-pickup, et cetera. You know, how are these segments developing? And I wouldn't want to rule it out at all. A pickup truck is not ruled out."

It isn’t like VW has not offered trucks in the U.S before, but Gruner’s comments about the segments he’s looking at are interesting for many reasons. Volkswagen does not have a body-on-frame platform available, and the mid-size and compact pickup segments typically use a monocoque platform, which is what VW might look to capitalize on.

Some might argue the case for bringing along the Amarok, which borrows its platform from the Ford Ranger. The Amarok is produced at Ford’s plant in Silverton, and importing it would result in heavy taxes. Add the fact that VW would have to position it above the Ranger, and you’ve already lost profit margins and a customer base.

Should VW Look At The Atlas Tanoak Concept Again?

First seen in 2018 (has it been that long?!), the Atlas Tanoak concept would have been the perfect candidate for Volkswagen to enter the U.S pickup truck market with. It would’ve been built on the highly modular MQB platform, which would prevent the carmaker from burning more money into development of an all-new platform.

Granted, it would not be as rugged or as capable off the road, but if the Ford Maverick’s success is anything to go by, buyers want a well-built compact truck that does nearly everything you ask of it.

However, if Volkswagen worked on building something based on the 2027 Atlas, gave it the familiar 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine with the 8-speed auto and all-wheel drive, who knows, it might just click?

Read more at Motor Culture!

Written by

Aaradhya Singh

Edited by

Godwin Issac Mathew