Autoblog

Click above for high-res gallery of 2010 VW Robust spy shots

Until now, spy shots of Volkswagen's upcoming pickup showed only a mule wearing the body of a Toyota Hilux pickup. These are the first shots that we've seen of the truck, internally called the Robust, wearing its own skin. This version is a quad-cab with a short bed, though we know from a prior rendering that a two-door standard cab with a regular-sized bed will also be offered, as well as two- and four-wheel-drive versions. The truck will be built at factories in both Argentina and Hannover, Germany for markets around the world, though VW has not said if it will ever see a dealer lot in the U.S. The Robust looks to be about the size of a Ford Ranger, which makes us hope that VW does decide to sell it in the U.S where the market for a small, efficient pickup is ripe for the taking. Check out more high-res spy shots of the 2010 Volkswagen Robust in the gallery below.


[Source: Brenda Priddy & Co.]

We've seen the spy shots and we've heard the rumors, and now Pickuptruck.com has sketched up its own interpretation of the 2010 Volkswagen "Robust" pickup truck. While the name is still unconfirmed, the pickup's front fascia is kind of a no-brainer. Expect VW to port over its corporate mug, complete with gaping maw, shallow air dam and headlamps that add a bit more sport to the Touareg's sedate lenses.

When the Robust goes on sale in 2010 it's likely to be available in both two- and four-door versions, powered by a slew of new common-rail diesel engines and possibly a gasoline-powered V6. Two-wheel-drive and four-wheel-drive variants are a distinct possibility, but some version of the Robust coming Stateside is unlikely.

[Source: Pickuptruck.com]

See that drawing in the right corner of the pic? That's an official VW render of the company's new pickup, internally called the Robust. It's hanging at an event called ExpoAgro in Argentina, where the truck will be built. The banner on the left says "The VW pickup for the field." VW isn't playing around with the model, either, having invested a billion pesos into its Pacheco factory to get ready for the vehicle's 2009 or 2010 launch.

The render presents a neat profile that looks low to the ground -- more ute than pickup really, much like the VW Rabbit pickup from almost three decades ago. We do find the rear sloping roof a bit odd, seeing that it would eat into quite a bit of bed space if the line continued into the bed. But it's just a render, so we don't want to read too much into it. With carmakers putting fake interiors in test mules nowadays, for all we know, the Robust render could also be a hat, or a brooch, or a pterodactyl.

[Source: Argentina Auto Blog]