Commercial Volkswagen - cars that do not give up!
Should a work machine be boring? Somehow, it is assumed that the word "utility" is mainly associated with the construction and carrying of bags of cement. However, the German brand shows that this should not be the case.
To see what the Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles SUV is capable of, we went to the outskirts of Frankfurt am Main, to the town of Wächtersbach. On a vast wooded area prepared routes of different levels of difficulty. We had three attempts, in each of which we had to drive a different car.
Transporter T6
We chose the Rockton Transporter for the first time. This is a T-six on steroids, designed to transport people and goods to hard-to-reach places. It has a standard rear differential lock, two batteries and steel rims. In addition, the Rockton Transporter has a 30 mm higher suspension and is additionally equipped with an air filter with a dust indicator. The interior is also built to withstand tough conditions, with dirt-resistant upholstery and corrugated sheet metal flooring.
At first, the route was not very demanding. After a few kilometers of asphalt road, we turned onto a gravel forest path. Everything indicated that the trip would be more like a Sunday mushroom hunt than anything off-road. The six colored Transporters moved lazily through the pines, keeping a near-perfect distance. However, after a few kilometers, the compacted surface was replaced by clay mud, which mercilessly stuck to the wheels. The ruts were so deep at times that the Transporters bounced their bellies on the ground, but the 4Motion drive did not disappoint. Although the ride was quite slow, neither car lost the fight in thick and deep mud.
The hardest test was the steep climb, which was also a 180-degree turn. And as if that wasn't enough, the surface was like thick chocolate pudding. The transporters clambered slowly up the muddy driveway. Sometimes the wheel bounced, some kind of dirt flew. But the machines coped with it without problems. It is known that the transporter can hardly be called an SUV, but thanks to the 4Motion drive, the cars coped well with the dirt, which at first glance was more suitable for old Defenders, and not for vans.
Amarok V6
By far the most off-road vehicle we've had was the Volkswagen Amarok, with a 6-litre VXNUMX diesel. Raised, equipped with winches and typical off-road tires, were tempting. For driving, however, we had all-civilian DSG variants dressed in typical tarmac tyres.
No one began to wash the cars, which are about to be covered with mud. We went for a test drive in pickup trucks, the color of which was difficult to determine in places below the glass line. This gave me hope that the tour would be really interesting. It started quietly again. The instructor led the peloton through forests, hills and large puddles. The terrain didn't require much for the pickup to be able to lift. At the moment when the first signs of disappointment began to appear on the faces of the participants, the instructor stopped the group and asked to increase the gaps between the cars. Behind a large pine tree, we turned left onto a road that was practically non-existent…
Imagine a monster roadster. For example, a raised Nissan Patrol or another Defender. A car on 35-inch wheels, with metal bumpers, which, while lazily driving along a forest path, suddenly decided to just turn off, ignoring the off-road, and go along a completely virgin path. The “route” that we followed with the instructor looked as if it had been laid by an enchanted roadster blazed through forest paths. Ruts almost to the knees, densely growing trees, combined with mud warmed by yesterday's rain, did not facilitate the crossing. Despite this, Amarok was doing very well. Slowly and with easy labor, he trudged through the mud, covering the wheel arches with earthen silt.
Amarok can already be called an SUV. Thanks to a ground clearance of 25 cm and a significant fording depth of up to 500 mm, it is able to cope with more difficult terrain. In the case of steep, sandy descents, a system that uses ABS and ESP to permanently steer the car in the direction of travel will certainly come in handy. As a result, when driving down a steep hill, the driver does not have to worry about the vehicle tipping over on its side.
While the Amarok is very easy to ride off-road, its only downside is the steering system. It works very lightly, making it difficult to feel what is happening with the wheels when driving on difficult terrain. In addition, in deep ruts, the car does not react very well to any steering movements and drives its own way, behaving a bit like a tram.
Caddy and Panamericana
At the end of the day we had a leisurely sunset walk. This route was the easiest, and the most demanding point was a shallow puddle that the four-wheel drive Caddy probably didn't even notice.
The driver of the Volkswagen… lumberjack?
Few people know about it, but Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles is backed by Stihl. The brand is even a partner in a series of… sports lumber competitions. How does Amarok relate to wood cutting, explains Dr. Günter Scherelis, Head of Communications at Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles: “We make cars like the Amarok only for professionals who work professionally in this field, for people who earn money or spend their free time there. The international STIHL TIMBERSPORTS series is a great fit for the Amarok because it's all about strength, precision, technique and endurance."
If you want to buy a real SUV, it will be difficult to find something suitable in the Volkswagen stable. But let's be honest - look for such cars in modern automotive industry. The last SUVs in front of the capital "T" left the factory walls just a few years ago. With Patrols, Defenders or Pajero, no modern SUV can be compared in difficult terrain. However, Volkswagen trucks are not designed for playful SUVs, but primarily for working vehicles that are not afraid of difficult conditions. They have to handle heavy loads and challenging terrain without whining. And it must be admitted that under such conditions, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles feel like a fish in water.
