Volkswagen has taken the wraps off its new Atlas Tanoak concept – a unibody bakkie (like the Honda Ridgeline) based on the Wolfsburg-based brand’s MQB platform – at the New York International Auto Show.
VW says “there are currently no production plans for the Atlas Tanoak”, but adds that it is “keen to gauge the reactions of buyers and media”.
Unlike the Amarok, which runs on a ladder-frame chassis, the Atlas Tanoak concept rides on the automaker’s latest modular passenger vehicle architecture, and appears closely related to the seven-seater Atlas (a concept version of an upcoming five-seater Atlas SUV was also revealed in New York).
The double-cab bakkie seats five and is powered by a 3,6-litre V6 petrol engine (worth 206 kW and 360 N.m), mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission and 4Motion all-wheel drive. VW says it will hit 100 km/h from standstill in around 8,5 seconds.
The double-cab concept, which rides on new 20-inch alloys wrapped in 275/55 rubber, also has a mode that provides a low-range gear reduction.
Named after a species of tree native to the Pacific Coast in the United States, the Atlas Tanoak concept measures 5 438 mm long, 2 029 mm wide and 1 844 mm tall, with a wheelbase of 3 259 mm. That makes it a little larger than the Amarok, which measures 5 254 mm long, with 3 095 mm between its axles.
