Hot off the back of a modified Amarok 4x4 ute setting a new Guinness World Record for crossing Australia’s 10 deserts in record time, Volkswagen Australia announced a limited edition off-road focused variant, dubbed the Amarok 10 Deserts Edition.

The new model is designed to celebrate the achievements of the three adventurers who set a new Guinness World record for the fastest crossing of all 10 Australian deserts in November 2024.

Driving a modified Amarok V6 they managed the feat in a remarkable six days, 17 hours and 15 minutes.

The resulting Amarok 10 Deserts Edition is designed to commemorate that achievement but is not nearly as highly modified as the record-breaking vehicle.

It does provide consumers with the most off-road capable Amarok yet, however, and gives Volkswagen a dog in the fight with a growing number of similarly enhanced dual-cab 4x4 utes.

That list of rivals includes the Ford Ranger Tremor, HiLux Rogue, Isuzu D-Max Blade, and Nissan Navara PRO-4X Warrior.

How much does the VW Amarok 10 Deserts Edition cost?

With the new variant not due on sale until Q2 2025, Volkswagen Australia was happy to allow journalists a limited test drive of the new model but won’t release pricing until closer to the on-sale date.

A Volkswagen spokesperson said the 10 Deserts Edition would be strategically positioned between what he called ‘sticker pack’ models like the Ford Ranger Black Edition which costs about $60,000, and rival off-road special editions such as the Ford Ranger Tremor, which costs $69,690 (MRLP).

Additional price guidance places the Amarok 10 Deserts Edition between the Amarok Life TDI500 which costs $59,490 (MRLP), and the Amarok Style TDI500, at $69,740 (MRLP).

Split the difference there and we can hazard a guess that the new variant will cost about $64,500 when it lands next year.

What’s the VW Amarok 10 Deserts Edition exterior design like?

Unlike the more heavily modified record-setting ute, which was based on a V6-powered Amarok Style, the 10 Deserts edition starts life as a bi-turbo diesel-powered Amarok Life TDI500.

The Amarok Life sits two grades from the bottom of the Amarok Range and is positioned more as a value-focused model than highly specified variants such as the Style TDI1500, which costs an extra $10,000.

Despite this, the Amarok Life TDI500 is no stripper model and comes with front bumper, exterior mirrors and handles in body colour, LED headlights and fog lamps, auto lights/wipers, heated electric mirrors, side steps, front tow hooks, a tow bar and a power tailgate lock.

To this mid-grade model, Volkswagen has added unique black ‘10 Deserts’ badging, a standard black tonneau cover, black sports bar, contrast white-only paint, and 17-inch black alloy wheels wrapped in off-road focused 255/70R17 Continental CrossContact ATR tyres.

Other exterior differences include the 10 Deserts Edition sitting up higher than the model it’s based on, thanks to a 40mm front and rear suspension lift.

What’s the VW Amarok 10 Deserts Edition like inside?

The interior of the 10 Deserts Edition is pretty much as you’d find things in an Amarok Life TDI500, meaning a clean, classy but durable-looking design with quality plastics and finishes, but few frills.

It’s impressively roomy, with good head and legroom front and rear and large windows providing a good view of what’s happening outside.

The rear windows boast privacy glass and there’s a fold-down centre armrest in the rear seat.

Let us do the work finding your next new car

There’s also plenty of practical storage with large door map pockets, twin cup holders and two gloveboxes ahead of the front-seat passenger.

The embossed seats are clad in an attractive microfleece fabric, with eight-way manual adjustment for driver and front passenger.

Air-con is single zone only, but there are carpeted floors and floor mats, an electronic handbrake and leather cladding on the gear shifter and the multifunction steering wheel. Other notable inclusions are power-folding exterior mirrors, digital radio and a six-speaker audio system.

What sort of technology does the VW Amarok 10 Deserts Edition have?

Once again, the technology package basically mirrors what you’ll find in an Amarok Life TDI500. That means LED headlights and fog lamps, keyless entry, front and rear parking sensors, and electric foldable heated wing mirrors with puddle lamps.

Inside, there’s a vertically oriented 10.1-inch touch colour display with Apple Carplay and Android Auto connectivity, a wireless phone charger and an 8.0-inch digital instrument cluster. Both screens are smaller than what’s offered in more expensive variants but still perfectly acceptable.

Other tech inclusions are an auto-dimming interior mirror, tyre pressure monitoring, E-call (emergency call), rain/light sensor, front and rear park distance control, USB-A, USB-C and 12V outlets, and a rear camera.

Is the VW Amarok 10 Deserts Edition good to drive?

Unsurprisingly, the 10 Deserts Edition drives much like the Amarok Life TDI500 on which it’s based.

There are no engine enhancements meaning the two are identical from a powertrain perspective, with a pleasingly responsive 154kW/500Nm bi-turbo four-cylinder turbodiesel engine driving via a smooth-shifting 10-speed automatic.

The more powerful 184kW/600Nm 3.0-litre V6 turbo-diesel isn’t available in the Life TDI500, and hence also not available for the 10 Deserts Edition.

Despite this, the bi-turbo four-cylinder and 10-speed auto combination is one of the best powertrains of its type, so the Amarok never feels lacking for urge.

Where the 10 Deserts Edition departs from its stablemate is its ride and handling, which is obviously subtly different thanks to the raised ride height and different tyres.

We didn’t have the opportunity to drive a standard Amarok Life TDI500 back-to-back with the new model, so can’t accurately quantify the difference the modifications make to on-road ride and handling. But suffice to say that the changes do not appear to have had any adverse impact on the Amarok’s class-leading ride, handling or interior noise levels.

Search and compare new cars

Across the range, the Amarok is one of the best riding and handling utes on the market and the new 10 Deserts Edition does this reputation no harm.
Terse ride quality is a fact of life with utes designed to haul high payloads, but the extra sidewall plushness of the 10 Deserts’ 17-inch wheels and its generally well-judged suspension setup helps resist the buckboard characteristics of some too-firmly sprung rivals, adding a layer of absorbency to deliver more pleasant ride quality than most.

The polish carries through to its cornering ability, with the Amarok feeling sure-footed and confident through bends, despite the higher-riding body.

No doubt there’s a tad more body lean than with a standard model but it’s impressively well controlled and the steering is also pleasingly well weighted.

The upgraded 17-inch Continental Cross Contact tyres aren’t overly aggressive, which helps in terms of keeping tyre noise down, while braking performance is consistently good, thanks to standard all-wheel discs.

What’s the VW Amarok 10 Deserts Edition like off-road?

As you might expect, given that enhanced off-road performance is the primary focus of this new variant’s modifications, the 10 Deserts Edition is impressively capable off-road.

Central to its appeal is the fact it rolls out of the showroom ready to head bush with increased ground clearance, extra underbody protection and more off-road-focused tyres than its stablemates.

Volkswagen goes so far as to claim the new model’s 40mm ride height lift, delivering a total 275mm of ground clearance, is class-leading among the various off-road ‘specials’ it’s designed to compete against.

The lift is augmented by genuine Volkswagen underbody protection, comprising composite panelling, and the Amarok’s standard off-road kit which includes Hill Descent Control, a dual-range transfer case with Hi and Lo range, multi-mode drive selector, and a mechanical rear differential lock.

While some buyers might have preferred the more powerful V6-powered Amarok as a base, Volkswagen points out that the 10 Deserts Edition has been designed to be more attainable than its upmarket stablemates, and that the bi-turbo diesel engine is 80kg lighter on the nose than the V6, which aids steering feel and manoeuvrability.

It also leaves the door open for Volkswagen to create a more powerful Ranger Raptor-style rival in the future, although that’s mere speculation at this stage.

We spent several hours putting the new variant through its paces on a range of challenging 4x4 tracks and it handled everything with ease.

Admittedly, the conditions were dry and dusty, and wet conditions may have more severely tested the Continental tyres, which aren’t the most aggressive looking, but if the goal was to give the Amarok an additional window of capability over its showroom stablemates, it’s mission accomplished.

What safety features does the VW Amarok 10 Deserts Edition have?

The Amarok was awarded a five-star ANCAP safety rating in 2022, with its standard safety features including nine airbags consisting of knee, centre, front, rear, and side/curtain.

Other elements of its comprehensive safety suite include adaptive cruise control with stop-go and speed sign recognition, autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist monitoring, lane assist, traffic sign recognition, intelligent speed limiter, blind-spot monitoring, rear traffic alert, multi-collision brake and a 360-degree camera.

How does the VW Amarok 10 Deserts Edition compare to rivals?

The Amarok 10 Deserts Edition arrives soon after rival Isuzu has released its own off-road enhanced version of the D-Max dual cab 4x4 ute, the Blade, which features similar enhancements but is based on the better-equipped LS-U+ grade.

The D-Max LS-U + grade has a list price of $65,500 (MRLP), which rises to $76,990 driveaway once the D-Max Blade accessories are added. Ford, meanwhile, will sell you a Ranger Tremor for $69,690 (MRLP), and the HiLux Rogue costs $71,530 (MRLP).

Based on this, and without knowing Volkswagen’s final pricing, if the new model does land at the projected $64,500 (MRLP), it will offer a compelling alternative to these models. Within the Amarok family it also serves to bridge the current $10,000 price gap between the TDI1500 Life and the TDI1500 Style.

Should I buy a VW Amarok 10 Deserts Edition?

Provided you like white, which is the only body colour available, and have intentions of going off road in a more serious fashion than the already capable Amarok 4x4 range can deliver, then absolutely.

However, if you’re considering buying the Amarok 10 Deserts as a show pony, then best look elsewhere, as it’s not the most overtly modified or aggressive vehicle of this type on the market.

What it does offer, over and above its enhanced off-road capability, is an easier path to accessing a mildly modified 4x4 vehicle. Not every buyer is interested in dragging their new vehicle around to various aftermarket suppliers to have bits fitted, and the fact Volkswagen makes this easy for you and provides a full factory warranty will certainly have some appeal.

In terms of value for money, being based as it is on the Amarok Life TDI500 which is priced at $59,490 (MRLP), if the 10 Deserts Edition lands at or around the projected $64,500 price it will be a decent buy, given the extras added over the base car for an approximately $5,000 increase.

The new model will be available from Q2 2025 in a limited production run of 300 units.

Key stats

• Price (MRLP): $64,500 (estimate)
• Powertrain: 2.0-litre biturbo four-cylinder turbodiesel, (154kW/500Nm), 10-speed automatic transmission
• ANCAP crash rating: Five stars (2023)
• Fuel consumption (combined cycle): 7.2L/100km (189gCO2/km)
• Warranty: Five years/unlimited kilometre
• For: Unique looks, good on-road manners, enhanced off-road performance, quiet and comfortable by category standards.
• Against: Based on a lower-grade model so misses some creature comforts, limited 300-unit production run, available in a single colour only, exterior design add-ons not as eye-catching as some rivals.