Australian tuner tackles the VW Amarok

There’s no avoiding stereotypes speaking about cars. Just like the buyers of sports cars tend to prioritize sheer acceleration power and looks over practicality, so do the owners of family haulers and pickup trucks value utility above all else. Or do they, really? Why not combine both? Here’s a good attempt by Walkinshaw Performance, a tuner firm from Australia.

The team worked with a 2020 Volkswagen Amarok. The main technical highlight of the project was boosting the engine to 258 hp (192 kW) and 580 Nm (428 lb-ft) of torque. These figures correspond to what the V8 of the German-made truck churns out on its domestic market, and there is no reason why the Southern continent should fall behind.

The rest of the mods hit the spot just as well: the taller suspension springs grant an additional 40 mm (1.6”) of ground clearance, and the Clayton 20”×9” alloys shod in Scorpion 275/50 R20 rubber neatly fill the widened arches. A sports exhaust system helps the engine stay cool, the headlights are bi-Xenon, and the anti-fog lamps are LED-based. A stylish sports bar adorns the truck bed and hopefully grants it some extra rigidity, too.

The Walkinshaw tuning kit goes on sale in Australia on December 1, 2020, and you can buy it through any VW authorized dealership.