Volkswagen Needs To Make This Concept Midsize Pickup Truck for Real

The Atlas Tanoak concept debuted today at the New York Auto Show.

The revival of smaller pickup trucks in America is alive and well. And if we’re lucky, there might be a new entrant soon.

Volkswagen’s reveal for the 2018 New York Auto Show included this concept truck called the Atlas Tanoak. It’s built upon the platform of Volkswagen’s Atlas SUV and includes the VR6 engine, which makes 276 horsepower and 266 lb.-ft. of torque. The truck bed measures about 67 inches long by 57 inches wide.

For now, those specs are just for fun. This is a concept car and VW insists it has no official plans to make the thing, it’s simply showing off the idea to gauge public reaction. It looks like fun, though, and people familiar with VW’s small trucks elsewhere in the world have been asking the automaker for a truck.

If the Atlas Tanoak becomes a real truck, it’ll be just in time. The Ford Ranger, discontinued in 2011, is back with a badass new version that competes with the likes of the Chevy Colorado. Bring on the midsize pickups

Source: https://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/trucks/a19620887/volkswagen-atlas-tanoak-pickup-truck-concept/