Thanks to the Ford Ranger, the Amarok will see another generation.
Volkswagen and Ford have sorted out all details regarding their joint venture, which was first announced in 2019. It is now a fact that the second-generation Amarokdue 2022 will be developed by Ford at Silverton, South Africa. This platform will also underpin the future Ranger. We didn’t know that the fate of Amarok was different without the tie up with the Blue Oval. This week, Chairman Thomas Sedran made another important disclosure in a press release by Volkswagen commercial vehicles: “Ultimately, it is our customers who benefit [from the joint venture], because without the cooperation we wouldn’t have developed a new Amarok,” In other words, the Amarok, which will be celebrating its 10th year in 2020, would have been phased out at this generation’s end if it wasn’t for the Ford deal.
The collaboration between the two automotive giants will result in the launch of a Ford-badged, city delivery van that is based on the latest-generation Caddy. It will be manufactured in Poland starting in 2021 at the Poznan Transit Connect factory, where the Caddy 5 is expected to enter production in second half of the year. Ford will also be leading the “1Ton”, a project that involves light commercial vehicles. In 2023, an electric Ford built on VW’s MEB platform, will be available. The two companies will collaborate on autonomous driving tech using Argo AI. Both Ford and VW want to emphasize that the partnership “is not a merger” and that all vehicles are being sold independently. Cross-ownership is not part of the Volkswagen/Ford alliance. Both companies will continue to compete in the market.