Volkswagen Taro
Encyclopedia
In January 1989, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles
introduced a 1 tonne pickup truck
, called the Volkswagen Taro, to complement the half tonne Caddy
pickup / panel van ranges, and the 1 tonne Transporter
van and chassis cab ranges.
The Taro though, was a project of badge engineering
. The Taro was a rebadged Toyota Hilux
- fully engineered and designed by Toyota.
The two companies came together to solve each others problems:
So in the late 1980s, Volkswagen Group and Toyota signed an agreement that Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles would manufacture the Toyota Hilux
at its VWCV factory in Hanover, Germany, and it would be sold under the Volkswagen Taro moniker.
The first Taros manufactured in Hanover
, Germany
, from 1989-1994 had a 2.4 litre diesel engine
with 61 kW, torque was 165 newton metres (122 ft·lbf) at 2,400 rpm, with loading space of 3.4 square metres (4.1 sq yd) and a 1125 kilograms (2,480 lb) payload
.
In September 1994 at the IAA Nutfahrzeuge (Commercial Vehicle Fair) in Hanover, Germany
, Volkswagen released the four-wheel drive
version of the Taro which had an extended cabin.
The 4x4 Extended Cab Taro was manufactured in Toyota's Tahara plant
in Japan
, but now the Taro had an updated 2.4 litre diesel engine which produced 58 kW at 4,000 rpm and torque of 163 newton metres (120 ft·lbf) at 2,400 rpm.
The 4x4 Taro had a 2.9 square metres (3 sq yd) loading space and 815 kilograms (1,797 lb) payload, but could tow 750 kilograms (1,653 lb) without brakes, and 2100 kilograms (4,630 lb) with brakes.
The joint venture
ended in 1996, due to sales failing to meet either car marques expectations.
, configuration
and rated motive
power
output
driveline: 4x2 = RWD, 4x4 = 4WD
loading area (m²): (4x2) 3.1m² (4x4) 2.9m²
track width - front: (4x2) 1355 millimetres (53.3 in), (4x4) 1430 millimetres (56.3 in)
track width - rear: (4x2) 1370 millimetres (53.9 in), (4x4) 1425 millimetres (56.1 in)
turning circle: (4x2) 12.6 metres (41.3 ft), (4x4) 14 metres (45.9 ft)
permissible total weight: (4x2) 2395 kilograms (5,280 lb), (4x4) 2515 kilograms (5,545 lb)
payload: (4x2) 995 kilograms (2,194 lb), (4x4) 815 kilograms (1,797 lb)
trailer weight braked: (4x2) 1800 kilograms (3,968 lb), (4x4) 2100 kilograms (4,630 lb)
trailer weight unbraked: 750 kilograms (1,653 lb)
maximum speed km/h: (4x2) 145 kilometres per hour (90.1 mph), (4x4) 130 kilometres per hour (80.8 mph)
acceleration - 0-80 kilometres per hour (49.7 mph): (4x2) 15.0 secs, (4x4) 17.0 secs
fuel consumption: (4x2) 9.6 l/100 km, (4x4) 10.2 l/100 km
Specifications Source
division sells the Volkswagen Amarok pick-up. It rivals the Nissan Navara and Toyota Hilux
.
It will have Single & Double Cab options as well as the option of 2WD or 4WD.
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles , , is a German manufacturer of commercial vehicles. Originally part of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars company, it is now a separate brand and marque of the Volkswagen Group....
introduced a 1 tonne pickup truck
Pickup truck
A pickup truck is a light motor vehicle with an open-top rear cargo area .-Definition:...
, called the Volkswagen Taro, to complement the half tonne Caddy
Volkswagen Caddy
Released in 1980, the first Volkswagen Caddy is a coupe utility, and van based on the Volkswagen Group A1 platform, shared with the small family car Volkswagen Golf Mk1.Volkswagen Typ is:*147 = LHD*148 = RHD-Caddy debuts internationally as a Rabbit:...
pickup / panel van ranges, and the 1 tonne Transporter
Volkswagen Eurovan
The Volkswagen Transporter T4 is a van produced by German automaker Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles between 1990 and 2003, succeeding the Volkswagen Type 2 and superseded by the Transporter T5....
van and chassis cab ranges.
The Taro though, was a project of badge engineering
Badge engineering
Badge engineering is an ironic term that describes the rebadging of one product as another...
. The Taro was a rebadged Toyota Hilux
Toyota Hilux
The Toyota Hilux is a series of compact pickup trucks produced and marketed by the Toyota Motor Corporation. Most countries used the Hilux name for the entire life of the series but in North America, the Hilux name was retired in 1976 in favor of Truck, Pickup Truck, or Compact Truck...
- fully engineered and designed by Toyota.
The two companies came together to solve each others problems:
- Volkswagen GroupVolkswagen GroupVolkswagen Group is a German multinational automobile manufacturing group. , Volkswagen was ranked as the world’s third largest motor vehicle manufacturer and Europe's largest....
at the time did not have a one-tonne pickup truck; - Toyota wanted European market share of EuropeEuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an 1 tonne utility market.
So in the late 1980s, Volkswagen Group and Toyota signed an agreement that Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles would manufacture the Toyota Hilux
Toyota Hilux
The Toyota Hilux is a series of compact pickup trucks produced and marketed by the Toyota Motor Corporation. Most countries used the Hilux name for the entire life of the series but in North America, the Hilux name was retired in 1976 in favor of Truck, Pickup Truck, or Compact Truck...
at its VWCV factory in Hanover, Germany, and it would be sold under the Volkswagen Taro moniker.
The first Taros manufactured in Hanover
Hanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, from 1989-1994 had a 2.4 litre diesel engine
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
with 61 kW, torque was 165 newton metres (122 ft·lbf) at 2,400 rpm, with loading space of 3.4 square metres (4.1 sq yd) and a 1125 kilograms (2,480 lb) payload
Cargo
Cargo is goods or produce transported, generally for commercial gain, by ship, aircraft, train, van or truck. In modern times, containers are used in most intermodal long-haul cargo transport.-Marine:...
.
In September 1994 at the IAA Nutfahrzeuge (Commercial Vehicle Fair) in Hanover, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Volkswagen released the four-wheel drive
Four-wheel drive
Four-wheel drive, 4WD, or 4×4 is a four-wheeled vehicle with a drivetrain that allows all four wheels to receive torque from the engine simultaneously...
version of the Taro which had an extended cabin.
The 4x4 Extended Cab Taro was manufactured in Toyota's Tahara plant
Tahara plant
Tahara plant is an automobile plant in Tahara, Aichi, Japan owned by Toyota Motor Corporation. It is a highly computerized and robotized plant and produces the Lexus brand of vehicles including the Lexus LS, Lexus LS Hybrid, Lexus GS, Lexus IS, Lexus GX, and Lexus LX models. Several Toyota...
in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, but now the Taro had an updated 2.4 litre diesel engine which produced 58 kW at 4,000 rpm and torque of 163 newton metres (120 ft·lbf) at 2,400 rpm.
The 4x4 Taro had a 2.9 square metres (3 sq yd) loading space and 815 kilograms (1,797 lb) payload, but could tow 750 kilograms (1,653 lb) without brakes, and 2100 kilograms (4,630 lb) with brakes.
The joint venture
Joint venture
A joint venture is a business agreement in which parties agree to develop, for a finite time, a new entity and new assets by contributing equity. They exercise control over the enterprise and consequently share revenues, expenses and assets...
ended in 1996, due to sales failing to meet either car marques expectations.
Specifications
engine ID code, displacementEngine displacement
Engine displacement is the volume swept by all the pistons inside the cylinders of an internal combustion engine in a single movement from top dead centre to bottom dead centre . It is commonly specified in cubic centimeters , litres , or cubic inches...
, configuration
Engine configuration
Engine configuration is an engineering term for the layout of the major components of a reciprocating piston internal combustion engine. These components are the cylinders and crankshafts in particular but also, sometimes, the camshaft....
and rated motive
Motive power
In thermodynamics, motive power is an agency, as water or steam, used to impart motion. Generally, motive power is defined as a natural agent, as water, steam, wind, electricity, etc., used to impart motion to machinery; a motor; a mover. The term may also define something, as a locomotive or a...
power
Power (physics)
In physics, power is the rate at which energy is transferred, used, or transformed. For example, the rate at which a light bulb transforms electrical energy into heat and light is measured in watts—the more wattage, the more power, or equivalently the more electrical energy is used per unit...
output
- 2Y: 1.8 litre inline four OHV petrol enginePetrol engineA petrol engine is an internal combustion engine with spark-ignition, designed to run on petrol and similar volatile fuels....
with carburettor, 61 kW at 4,000 rpmRevolutions per minuteRevolutions per minute is a measure of the frequency of a rotation. It annotates the number of full rotations completed in one minute around a fixed axis... - 4Y: 2.2 litre inline four OHV petrol engine with carburettor, 69 kW
- 2L: 2.4 litre inline four indirect injection SOHC diesel engineDiesel engineA diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
, 61 kW at 4,000 rpm - 22R: 2.4 litre inline four SOHC petrol engine with BoschRobert Bosch GmbHRobert Bosch GmbH is a multinational engineering and electronics company headquartered in Gerlingen, near Stuttgart, Germany. It is the world's largest supplier of automotive components...
L-Jetronic common railCommon railCommon rail direct fuel injection is a modern variant of direct fuel injection system for petrol and diesel engines.On diesel engines, it features a high-pressure fuel rail feeding individual solenoid valves, as opposed to low-pressure fuel pump feeding unit injectors...
multi-point indirectIndirect injectionIn an internal combustion engine, the term indirect injection refers to a fuel injection where fuel is not directly injected into the combustion chamber...
injectionFuel injectionFuel injection is a system for admitting fuel into an internal combustion engine. It has become the primary fuel delivery system used in automotive petrol engines, having almost completely replaced carburetors in the late 1980s....
, 82 kW
driveline: 4x2 = RWD, 4x4 = 4WD
Four-wheel drive
Four-wheel drive, 4WD, or 4×4 is a four-wheeled vehicle with a drivetrain that allows all four wheels to receive torque from the engine simultaneously...
loading area (m²): (4x2) 3.1m² (4x4) 2.9m²
track width - front: (4x2) 1355 millimetres (53.3 in), (4x4) 1430 millimetres (56.3 in)
track width - rear: (4x2) 1370 millimetres (53.9 in), (4x4) 1425 millimetres (56.1 in)
turning circle: (4x2) 12.6 metres (41.3 ft), (4x4) 14 metres (45.9 ft)
permissible total weight: (4x2) 2395 kilograms (5,280 lb), (4x4) 2515 kilograms (5,545 lb)
payload: (4x2) 995 kilograms (2,194 lb), (4x4) 815 kilograms (1,797 lb)
trailer weight braked: (4x2) 1800 kilograms (3,968 lb), (4x4) 2100 kilograms (4,630 lb)
trailer weight unbraked: 750 kilograms (1,653 lb)
maximum speed km/h: (4x2) 145 kilometres per hour (90.1 mph), (4x4) 130 kilometres per hour (80.8 mph)
acceleration - 0-80 kilometres per hour (49.7 mph): (4x2) 15.0 secs, (4x4) 17.0 secs
fuel consumption: (4x2) 9.6 l/100 km, (4x4) 10.2 l/100 km
Specifications Source
Future Pick-Up
Volkswagen Commercial VehiclesVolkswagen Commercial Vehicles
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles , , is a German manufacturer of commercial vehicles. Originally part of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars company, it is now a separate brand and marque of the Volkswagen Group....
division sells the Volkswagen Amarok pick-up. It rivals the Nissan Navara and Toyota Hilux
Toyota Hilux
The Toyota Hilux is a series of compact pickup trucks produced and marketed by the Toyota Motor Corporation. Most countries used the Hilux name for the entire life of the series but in North America, the Hilux name was retired in 1976 in favor of Truck, Pickup Truck, or Compact Truck...
.
It will have Single & Double Cab options as well as the option of 2WD or 4WD.
External links
- Volkswagen-Commercial-Vehicles.com - official international portal