Jalopnik
That's right folks, this is the first photo of the upcoming Volkswagen Robust — VW's pickup truck pants party gate crasher. Although the segment was once dominated by the 'mericans, it seems everyone's checking their coat at the door in exchange for a pair of steel-toes. But those boots'll be sitting in a double-cab that'll have some 4x4 capabilities. And it'll have to, because In addition to the Robust, we're also expecting to see a full-size SUV built on the same platform to sit smack dab in the center of the Tiguan and Touareg in VW's current lineup.
Really, Volkswagen is hoping to build a utility vehicle that'll be able to compete with competitors with some off-road credibility like the Nissan Pathfinder. That level of full-size SUV will, when combined with this new pickup truck, be able to finally flesh out the VW team into a lineup with all the little bits and pieces needed to succeed in a global automotive environment. Still, given the brand's track record here in the US when it comes to profitability and sales, we're wondering if that level of brand expansion will give them the cojones they need to boost sales to a more "robust" level. Hah. We're so punny. Anyway, we shouldn't have to worry as we're not even sure the US will be a target market — we're hearing it's a little bit further South. Maybe they should call it the "Robusto." [AutoExpress]
Comments
I'm guessing it's another Dodge Platform Prostitution.
Volkswagen is known for making sporty, comfortable, and spacious cars that eat oil like a two-stroke and start breaking down after 30,000 miles.
Pickup trucks are sold to people who want to be able to haul 8x4's over long distance with minimal expenditure of time and money on keeping the truck running. Yes, they have a gearbox of antediluvian crudeness. Yes, Conestoga wagons offer a marked improvement in ride quality. And yes, they handle-by definition-like a truck.
It seems to me that Volkswagen has completely missed the point.
Sounds good, provided it's not based on a Dodge, since that'll likely mean a cheap interior and dated styling. It'll be good news if it has a high level of crash safety too, given the recent Navara debacle.
hmmmm...just in time to rake in the tanking sales of full size trucks and suvs.
sounds like farago might want to start a VW suicide watch.
@Spasticteapot:
8x4's? I mean.. Really?
Truckvernugen!
"Close-to-trucken"?
Somebody check on Ray. He's losing it.
Actually, I recall seeing some of those old VW pickups...through a cloud of burnt oil when I was stuck behind them on a double yellow line; they'd creep and grind along even with nothing loaded. They all had rusted dings and gouges and strangely, most seemed to list to one side or the other.
Sure, VDub--why not have another go?
Wouldn't it be cool if, in some alternate world, the American automakers could just up and get out of the pickup business altogether and leave the imports holding the bag? Can't happen in this world, of course, but an interesting thought-excercise nonetheless.
@Novaload: [Ralph Wiggum] I like paste! [/Ralph Wiggum]
I have this recurring dream where the El Camino is a commercial success enough to spur VW to introduce a Jettamino back into the US.
Does the picture have anything to do with the VW in question? If so, it might not be a Dodge platform, as the Dakota doesn't have that weird angle between the cab and the bed. Though, it would be nice if it was this:
April...
Fool?
I suppose that's better than Farfrumpuken.
The "People's Truck"? What's next, the People's Eyebrow?
Can the "People's Transmission" hold that truck stuff? What's it called . . . uhm, torque? What's on the big TDI Q7?
An 8x4? What the heck is that?
VW pick-up?
It's a bit like ABBA reforming and releasing a hardcore death metal album. Can they do it convincingly?
Buckaroo Banzai: It flies like a truck.
John Parker: Good, what is a truck?
any other Hong Kong cavaliers out there?
if you know this movie, then you already know that no truck is a match for buckaroo's ford PU.
BBR
@CEman:
@way_down_east:
I may be dense and missing an ironic humorous question, but I interpret "8x4" to be a reference to 8 ft. x 4 ft. sheets of plywood or drywall/plaster board so commonly specified in U.S. construction. If I missed some big joke, go ahead and laugh at me... I deserve it...
What chassis/platform would they use for the underpinnings? A derivative of the Audi Q7? I am really at a loss... Would it be a whole new beast?
@Spasticteapot: haven't bought a new truck lately, have you?
Antiquated running gear means that your "minimal" expenditure of time and money will be going straight to Exxon. Some people would rather put the same amount of money into creature features.
Bestellbar am kühle Farben aus Orangen!!
@charles_barrett: if it is Q7-derived, VW better give me a cut of the profits, because i already designed it for them...
@Branden.Tang: I'm holding out for a Routan Caddy.
@charles_barrett: It will be ( loosely )based off the VW Crafter, twin of the Mercedes Sprinter, also known as the Dodge Sprinter. So yeah, it kinda will be a Dodge, only not really.
I've seen a few full-sized American pickups in Germany, including a Dodge Ram with a Cummins making time along the autobahn somewhere near Stuttgart. There has to be a domestic market of at least a few dozen units for VW.
Looks an awful lot like the Nissan Titan. I wonder if VW is pulling a Suzuki and making use of Nissan's underutilized production capacity.
Looks like a Mitsubishi L200. Google it.
I must have gotten confused from the last rumor...it was a Robust chassis with a Hilux body...so I thought it was based off the Hilux? I don't know...
It's not like the US is all, or even most of VW's market. They sell commercial vehicles in much of the rest of the world. There was a Japanese-made badge-engineered Toyota Hilux in the past ([jalopnik.com]) and the Crafter is built by MB. Given the worldwide market for Hilux-type trucks it probably makes sense to get in on that - in the US, maybe not so much.
@mcryder: Junior Blue Blaze Irregular Number 41.5 at your service.
@Omaxem: How does VW have access to a former Diamler-Chrysler chassis? I was unaware of their being in bed together...
@charles_barrett: Dude the Germans'll do anything in bed. Didn't you see the Max Mosley sex vid yet?
Of course VW can do trucks!
[www.primafoundry.com]
for the record i didn't copy and paste this.
Theres a Lady who's sure all that glitters is gold
and shes buying the stairway to heaven
and when she gets there she knows if the stores all are closed
with a word she can get what she came for
woh oh oh oh oh oh
and she's buying the stairway to heaven
there's a sighn on the wall but she wants to be sure
and you sometimes words have two meanings
in a tree by the brook theres a song bird who sings
sometimes all of are thoughts are misgiven
woh oh oh oh oh oh
and she's buying the stairway to heaven.
its not that this has anything to do with
previouse posts.
I just felt like reciting a few verses of stairway.
im also hoping this will create a bunny trail like the pr0n name thing do to the boring nature of the subject of volkswagon pickup trucks.
i bet 15 people will have posted by the time i finish this comment.
Okay im done now.
@Ray Wert: Darlin', German pervy is something I know, but seriously, I was unaware of any platform sharing between VW-Porsche-Audi-Seat-Skoda and the former DiamlerChrysler. I mean, I would be less shocked if Renault were to have a full size pickup or SUV, since they could use the Nissan Armada as a basis, and that relationship is well documented.
First Google result came up with this dots: [jalopnik.com]
Is it April 1st in the UK yet?
@my favorite car is a motorcycle:
Of the people I know who own pick-up trucks, the #1 reason for owning one is "Because I can't fit (insert object here) in anything else." One basically stated that a pick-up truck is pointless unless you can fit an 8"x4" sheet in the back. I think she's right.
Of course, quite a lot of posers buy pick-ups for image. These people are all silly.
@Charles_Barrett
Platform sharing between DaimlerChrysler and Volkwagen... let's see
1st generation Sprinter was pretty much an ientical twin of the Volkswagen LT, with different drivetrain and front clip
Current sprinter shares everything but drivetrains with the Volkswagen Crafter.
1st generation Mercedes V-Class was available with a Volkswagen VR6 engine.
Many Chryslers/Dodges/Jeeps have Volkswagen 2.0 diesel engines.(Compass, Patriot, Avenger, Sebring, Caliber)
@Spasticteapot:
"...a pick-up truck is pointless unless you can fit an 8"x4" sheet in the back.
Not to be a picky-ass queen, but I assume you mean 8' x 4' sheet, as 8" x 4" would fit in my glovebox.
@MR42HH: Being in SoCal, I was unaware of those chassis/drivetrain/engine shares, as they were not (to my knowledge) offered in these parts. Thank you for the info.
Unless the Rock's German cousin is behind the wheel in the spy photo, that doesn't look very full-sized to me. A Ranger-sized pickup with a TDI option (high diesel prices notwithstanding) could be an unmitigated hit over here.
@Novaload: Sure, judge an entire make based on a few ill-kept examples. Don't take care of your car, don't keep it tuned, of course it looks and runs badly.
My answer to the "I can't buy anything smaller than a pickup because I want to carry big stuff" is ... just rent one for a day when you need it.
@graverobber: I also initially thought that it does look Nissan-y, but it doesn't seem to match up with either the Titan or Frontier in profile.
With what looks like a separate bed, it would seem to be a body on frame arrangement, very truck like. It also doesn't appear to match up with the Dakota well... Ram?
Heavy restyle of any of the aforementioned? Revised platforms of same?
Additional educated guesses?
I am surprised at Americans view of VW build quality. Here in Britain, VW is known as a really quality product, a cut above Fords, Vauxhalls, Toyotas etc….
Yet from what I read, Americans think VW is a badly built product and the US sales reflect that. I don't get how the US and Europe have different views on VW quality. This may sound a silly question, but where are the VW's sold in America built? Would that effect the build quality?
As for the pickup - well pickup sales are still huge so I can understand VW wanting to get into the market more effectively.
@charles_barrett: And that would be 4x8- and semi-redundant, since this is by far the most common size for plywood and drywall sheets; it's implied.
I think the point is, either way, there's no way you're hauling drywall with a VW.
What happened to crewcabs having a longer frame, instead of making the bed almost completely worthless?
@charles_barrett:
Charles, my friend, just as a point of information for the future.... The smaller dimension is usually stated first, i.e.,
4' X 8', instead of 8' X 4'. Tends to cause a little less confusion for some of the more literate minded here...
@slantsick:
@Vintage Racer:
A man like Chuck B.'s gotta think in terms of length before width!
@BUSTEЯ ATHOL: I'm not sure I want to hear CB's response to that theory, but I'm gonna guess that's not necessarily true.
"Not that there's anything wrong with that."
And I think that may be "literal-minded"- Charles is one of the more literate members from what I've seen.
@slantsick:
It was 5:30 in the morning and I hadn,t had my coffee yet... I was still a little off track from seeing Max and the Nazi's...
@Vintage Racer:
hadn't... No excuse for that one. Just an idiot today...
Not for nothin', but when are we ever gonna get an edit button?? Please????