Sales of the Amarok will kick-off in November, while pricing for the full Transporter range will be announced later.
Billed as two of its key products debuting in the final half of 2025, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles officially revealed pricing of the all-new Transporter at the Kyalami Festival of Motoring this past week, in addition to providing a glimpse of the petrol-powered 222 kW Amarok.
222 kW Amarok
Systematically delayed for South Africa ever since rumours of its arrival emerged last year, the petrol Amarok, known unofficially by 222 kW power output, will only go on-sale in November and only in PanAmericana spec instead of the previously reported Aventura.
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Unveiled in European-spec with left-hand-drive at the festival, the Amarok’s list of features will include 18-inch alloy wheels wrapped in all-terrain tyres, an electric roller shutter, matte grey mirror caps, a powder coated sports bar and the Matrix I.Q. LED headlights.
Inside, it will be equipped with brown-and-black Cricket leather upholstery, the 10.1-inch infotainment system, heated and electric front seats, Adaptive Cruise Control, Blind Spot Monitoring, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, Lane Change Assist, Trailer Assist and a 360-degree camera system.
Well known by now, power will come from Ford’s 2.3 EcoBoost engine used in the North American-market Ranger, but retuned outputs of 222kW/452Nm instead of 200kW/400Nm.
The sole transmission is again the Ford and General Motors co-developed 10-speed automatic, with drive going to all four wheels.
Set to become only the second mainstream petrol bakkie in South Africa after the Toyota Hilux 2.7, excluding off-road-focused offerings such as the Ranger Raptor, Jeep Gladiator and Toyota Land Cruiser 79, pricing for the 222 kW Amarok is speculated to be around the R1-million mark.
Transporter
Confirmed at Wolfsburg’s product Indaba in February, the all-new Transporter debuts as the second joint venture model with Ford after the Amarok, albeit this time based on the underpinnings of the Tourneo Custom.
While announced at the Indaba as being offered in panel van and from 2026 double cab bodystyles, its reveal at the festival only involved the passenger versions split into three derivatives: the short and long wheelbase Crew Bus, short wheelbase Kombi and the reduced length Kombi Style.
A line-up that will, eventually, be topped by the Caravelle next year, the Transporter will exclusively be powered by the single turbo version of the 2.0-litre Panther diesel engine powering the Tourneo Custom, but in three states of tune.
For the Crew Bus, all three outputs will be offered: 81 kW, 110 kW and 125 kW, with transmissions comprising a six-speed manual and an eight-speed automatic – the latter an option on the middle variant and standard on the latter.
In addition, the 125 kW engine will be paired solely to the 4Motion all-wheel drive system compared to the former pair being front-wheel drive only.
The only variants to be priced, the Kombi and Kombi Style all seat eight as standard, but omit the manual gearbox as all are powered by the most powerful engine.
This also means the standard inclusion of the automatic gearbox, however, only the Kombi Style will have the 4Motion system as a standard fitting.
A unique addition is the simply titled Edition positioned below the Style.
Essentially an appearance package shown at the event, the Edition’s unique aesthetic comprises gloss black 17-inch Le Mans alloy wheels, the I.Q. LED headlights, a black roof, chrome accents between the headlights and black detailing on the B-pillar, tailgate, bumpers and mirror caps.
Black Edition branded decals on the doors round the exterior off, along with gloss black inserts and Edition branded illuminated treadplates inside.
Price
As mentioned, Volkswagen only confirmed pricing for the Kombi, with the full range expected to be stickered before the end of the year.
- Kombi 2.0 TDI 125 kW Commerce AT – R1 055 200
- Kombi 2.0 TDI 125 kW Life AT – R1 116 845
- Kombi 2.0 TDI 125 kW Edition AT – R1 167 400
- Kombi 2.0 TDI 125 kW Style 4Motion AT – R1 301 400
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