VW Unveils Pickup Concept Aimed at U.S. Market and Steals the Show in New York

Volkswagen first stole American hearts back in the early ’60s when the iconic “Bug,” which most of the rest of the world knew as “the Beetle,” found massive adoption among post-war, increasingly independent-minded baby boomers.

As their tapered pants loosened into bells at the ankles and their hair grew up, down, out and flowed freely around in the breeze, sales of the Beetle blossomed too, until the German automaker was selling 570,000 units in the U.S. alone in 1970.

Around the same time the niche but even groovier VW “Microbus” reached its rock-n-roll apex, with 65,000 units sold among the long-haired diaspora that jammed, communed and buzzed their way across America through the “soft focus” ’70s.

Ever since, VW has been trying to reissue that cool it once held so easy and free in the land of the brave. Attempts like the preppy Rabbit and the doltish Golf however failed to bring the carmaker back into the warm American embrace.

Well, ‘put on your hats’ and ‘move those sugar shakers’ because VW executives realize such lyrical tropes of modern Nashville country music represent the America we’ve become:

The German automaker showed a pickup truck Wednesday at the New York International Auto Show (NYIAS) that elicited multiple “Yeah. Oh, yeah… Oh … Yeah!” reactions among several male attendees that, annoying as they were, nonetheless highlighted the enthusiasm many expressed for the truck at the presser.

Called the Atlas Tanoak, the concept’s role is to elicit just this type of feedback. If reactions from media and consumers are positive enough, VW could release a production version of the pickup.

“Now we are talking, right?! Now we are talking,” Hinrich Woebcken, Volkswagen’s CEO of North America, enthused at the event.

Woebcken had wanted to don a cowboy hat to the Tanoak’s unveiling as a symbol of VW’s commitment to the rugged American ideal, but his PR team vetoed it.

Klaus Bischoff, VW’s head of design called the Tanoak: “The most American Volkswagen ever.

“A really fascinating deep dive into the heart of the American dream. The pickup truck stands for everything the land of opportunity is all about,” he said. “The Tanoak is our tribute to this American icon. It fulfills all requirements for an American pickup truck with great German precision. This car is heavy duty, and has the design detail of an upscale sedan.”

But if it’s released, will it make a heavy duty impact?

VW’s counting on an intellectual reasoning among the pickup buying set to spur demand that may not exist, a dynamic where a potential buyer carries his rugged American identity around with a strong appreciation of German engineering and design.

VW has a hard, high road to roll up regardless in this segment: Ford sold 896,764 units of its F-Series pickups in the U.S. last year at a rate of about one every 30 seconds, according to Autoweek. Nissan, the biggest selling foreign competitor, sold 74,360 of its Frontier model.

But one has to start somewhere.

And VW is smart to covet the market, although the company is a bit late to the game: Pickups are one of the most profitable segments for automakers.

The Tanoak is a dual cab, medium-sized unibody pickup based on VW’s shared MQB platform, which underpins about 25 models currently including the mid-sized Atlas SUV.

Light emanates from the concept’s signature headlights through the bars of the grill and the VW insignia, a “continuous light feature” replicated on the tailgate “to leave a remarkable and unforgettable impression,” Bischoff said.

The truck is 214 inches long, 80 inches wide and nearly 73 inches high. The wheelbase is 11 inches longer than the VW’s Atlas SUV, and it’s more than a foot longer overall. “It’s huge,” Woebcken insisted. The Tanoak’s double cab, he added, has seating for five and a bed large enough to accommodate ATVs or dirt bikes.

Specifically, the cargo bed is 64.1 inches long, 50.4 inches wide, 20.9 inches high; comparable to a short F-150. Ground clearance is 9.8 inches. The Tanoak is powered by the same engine as the Atlas SUV: A 3.6-liter V6 which supplies 276 horsepower and 266 pound-feet of torque.

Like all pickups, the Tanoak is meant to attract image-conscious, pressed jeans connoisseurs as well as real contractors and cowboys. As Woebcken said, it “draws from the strong heritage of pickups in the United States while being more of a lifestyle utility vehicle.”

Four actors, two with backpacks, one with a fishing vest, and another wearing a biking helmet, spilled out of the truck at the press event to illustrate the truck fits active families and friends.

Woebcken, seen above getting mobbed by the press at the Tanoak’s unveiling, also debuted an Atlas Cross Sport SUV concept at the show, which runs today through April 8 at the Javits Center in Manhattan.

Note: The Tanoak would not be Volkswagen’s first pickup truck. Our Slovenian friend clued us into the VW Rabbit pickup (pictured below), which was known internationally as the Caddy, and offered in North America from 1978 through 1984.