With Ford having revealed a plug-in hybrid Ranger, it’s looking increasingly likely the closely related Volkswagen Amarok will inherit this PHEV powertrain…

The recent reveal of the plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) version of the Ford Ranger bakkie has prompted a seemingly inevitable question: will the closely related Volkswagen Amarok also be offered with this electrified powertrain?

Well, though VW has yet to make any announcements on the matter, we certainly wouldn’t bet against the 2nd-generation Amarok – which was developed alongside the Ranger under a wide-ranging global alliance – eventually being offered with this plug-in hybrid powertrain, too.

Will the Ford Ranger plug-in hybrid lead to an Amarok PHEV?

Australian publication Carsales asked the Wolfsburg-based automaker whether a plug-in hybrid version of the Amarok was on the cards, though the firm would only say it was “committed to the electrification of a vast number of its models”, adding it looked forward “to any evolution of the model range in due course”.

For the record, the freshly revealed Ranger PHEV employs the Blue Oval brand’s familiar turbocharged 2.3-litre, 4-cylinder EcoBoost petrol engine, though here it’s paired with an electric motor and a battery pack. According to Ford, the double-cab derivative boasts an all-electric range of “more than 45 km”, while its “targeted” braked towing capacity is 3 500 kg.

A PHEV version of the Amarok would obviously not employ a V6 turbodiesel engine.

Production of the Ranger PHEV is scheduled to start in “late 2024”, with deliveries to customers – initially in Australia and Europe, with a launch in South Africa not yet confirmed – commencing in “early 2025”.

While Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa wouldn’t be drawn on whether the new PHEV derivative will be built at its Silverton facility in Gauteng, further reports from Australia (a country that sources its Ranger units from Thailand) speculate this will indeed be the case. After all, Europe is the main export market for locally built Ranger bakkies.

Dual ports, anyone?

In addition, in certain markets, the Amarok is already offered with the turbocharged 2.3-litre petrol motor, though obviously not (yet) in electrified form. If the new PHEV Ranger does end up being manufactured in South Africa, VW’s bakkie is even more likely to be offered with the electrified powertrain since Silverton is the only factory worldwide producing the 2nd-gen Amarok.

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