Skoda Australia wants VW Amarok-based ute

Now that Volkswagen’s new-generation Amarok ute has been revealed, could we soon see a Skoda ute based on the same vehicle as its VW cousin? Skoda’s Aussie boss tells us he’d be up for it.

It’s no secret that Skoda models share a lot of engineering, technology and parts with their corresponding Volkswagen cousins. Skoda has the Fabia, Volkswagen has the Polo. Skoda has the Kodiaq and Volkswagen has the Tiguan, and so on… 

So, what’s stopping an Amarok-based Skoda ute being built? Surely it would sell well given Australia’s obsession with utilities. Not only is the best-selling car month-in and month-out in Australia actually a ute (the Toyota HiLux) but light-commercial vehicle sales account for nearly a quarter of all new vehicles sold here each year. 

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The Amarok has been a sales success for Volkswagen, too, with more than 830,000 sold globally and close to 85,000 finding homes in Australia since it was introduced here in 2011. 

Given Skoda’s penchant for practicality and quirkiness, a ute would seem to be a perfect match for the brand and its buyers. They could call it the Kute. There. Done.

Skoda Australia’s brand director Michael Irmer also sees the merits of a ute in the brand’s local range, and while he’d like to see it happen he admits there are currently no plans for a utility in the global line-up. 

“There’s nothing planned at the moment, but if the factory was to make one we’d definitely put our hand up for it - for sure,” he said.

It comes down to the fact that Skoda Australia sources its range straight from Skoda Europe’s best-seller’s list.

“How many utes did you see the last time you were in Europe? You can see them but they’re unicorns,” Mr Irmer said.

So as much as Mr Irmer would like to see a Skoda ute, it’s not going to happen, not unless there’s an enormous demand for it in Western Europe. 

While that might seem highly unlikely, the emergence of electric utes such as the Rivian RT1, Ford F-150 Lightning and the will-it-ever-happen Tesla Cyber Truck could ignite European interest. 

Electric Skoda ute anybody?