SA Road Tests

Welcome

This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. We drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under South African conditions. It also just happens that most of the vehicles we drive are world cars as well, so what you read here probably applies to the models you can get at home.
*To read one of our road tests, just select from the menu on the left.
*Please remember too, that prices quoted were those ruling on the days I wrote the reports.


Techno test: 2012 Volkswagen Amarok 2,0 BiTDI 132 kW 4x2 double cab

Interior pic by author, others by Quickpic

Designed for work

Published in Weekend Witness Motoring on Saturday December 22, 2012

The intro: Volkswagen’s range of double cab pickups was rationalised this past July, so you now have a choice between three Trendline models with 118 kW petrol or 90 kW diesel engines and a pair of 132-kilowatt diesels with Highline trim. Our test unit was the 4x2 Highline.

The engine: The trusty EA827 2,0-litre, four cylinder, biturbo diesel puts out 132 kW at 4000 rpm and maximum torque of 400 Nm between 1500 and 2250 rpm. That means it carries on developing peak pulling force for 250 rpm longer than the lower powered versions do, making it easier to work with and nicer to drive. The six gear ratios were spread a little further apart during the same update, so it pulls harder in first and cruises more comfortably in sixth. On level surfaces, the lazy among us can even pull off in second if we feel like it. While they were at it, VW worked on the clutch action, making it not quite perfect but a lot less troublesome.

The body and the kit: The face remains the same, as does standard equipment. You will find height adjustment on both front chairs and a rear seatback that folds down and squabs that lift up, giving you a variety of indoor loading possibilities. This higher-spec model uses the six-speaker RCD 310 radio and CD player, but connectivity with portable devices requires an add-on option. Climatronic automatic air conditioning is standard, as are powered windows and mirrors, remote central locking, an onboard computer and cruise control.

Electronics include ABS brakes with EBD, ESP with braking assistance, hill holder and downhill crawl. There is also traction control, electronic differential locking in addition to the mechanical lock, engine drag torque control and something called HVV. This boosts rear wheel braking force under panic conditions to match what is happening in front. It results in more effective braking and shorter stopping distances. There is still the “off road” function that optimises ABS, ESP, electronic differential locking and anti-slip regulation for driving on dirt.

The experience: Perhaps we're just getting used to Amaroks, or this one had loosened up with use, or maybe it’s the gearing and the improved clutch, but we found it more satisfying to drive than previous experiences. We always felt that, despite putting out similar or greater numbers than its 2,5- and 3,0-litre Japanese counterparts, VW’s 2,0-litre diesel just didn’t drive as convincingly as they did. It felt lightweight; not an accurate description, we know, but more of an inner feeling. This one felt right. It had guts. Now we could live with one.

Front seat accommodations are spacious and comfortable, one sits up fairly high and the gearbox is typically commercial; sort of slow and deliberate, but the job gets done. Outward view is good, but because it’s rather long and large, the optional rear parking distance warning was a good idea. Steering is precise although the 12,95-metre turning circle is a bit cumbersome. The parking brake is offset to the left for LHD, making it a bit awkward to get at, but not too serious. Pedals are well spaced and the clutch foot has an easily accessible resting place.

Despite having makeup mirrors on both visors, Amarok is no girly plaything but a machine designed for work. It is developing an enthusiastic following and its 4x4 derivative may even become one of the top weapons of choice for overland adventurers someday.

The numbers:
Price: 384 500
Engine: See text
Zero to 100 km/h: 10,3 seconds
Maximum speed: 184 km/h
Real life fuel consumption: About 8,8 l/100 km
Tank: 80 litres
Emissions rating: Euro 3
Ground clearance under front axle: 192 mm
Approach/departure/breakover angles: 28/23,6/23 degrees
Wading depth: 500 mm
Warranty: 3 years/100 000 km
Service plan: 5 years/90 000 km, at 15 000 km intervals

For our review of the 4x4 automatic, click here



What We Do

This is a one-man show, which means that road test cars entrusted to me are driven only by me. Some reviewers hand test cars over to their partners to use as day-to-day transport and barely experience them for themselves.

What this means to you is that every car reviewed is given my own personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.
Every car goes through real world testing; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads as well.

My articles appear every Wednesday in the motoring pages of The Witness, South Africa's oldest continuously running newspaper, and occasionally on Saturdays in Weekend Witness as well. I drive eight to ten vehicles most months of the year (press cars are withdrawn over the festive season - wonder why?) so not everything gets published in the paper. Those that are, get a tagline but the rest is virgin, unpublished and unedited by the political-correctness police. Hope you like what you see, because there are no commercial interests at work here. As quite a few readers have found, I answer every serious enquiry from my home email address, with my phone numbers attached, so they can see I do actually exist.

I am based in Pietermaritzburg, KZN, South Africa. This is the central hub of the KZN Midlands farming community; the place farmers go to buy their supplies and equipment, truck their goods to market, send their kids to school and go to kick back and relax.
So occasionally a cow, a goat or a horse may add a little local colour by finding its way into the story or one of the pictures. It's all part of the ambience!

Comments?
Want to ask a question, comment or just tell me you thoroughly disagree with what I say? That's your privilege, because if everybody agreed on everything, the world would be a boring place. All I ask is that you remain calm, so please blow off a little steam before venting too vigorously.