The Volkswagen’s new SUV the Atlas is on top of all headlines lately, but apparently, its designers inside the company have been critical of the exterior look of Atlas since day one. We found out that one of the members responsible for its design even stated that it looks “boring” and that it might as well be a “2012 Ford whatever.” Thanks to this we see that the VW apparently needs a very urgent design revolution, and it could be brought by a concept in the form of VW Varok.
This concept is brought to us by French students Valentin Fuchs (responsible for exterior design) and Pierre Joveneaux (that was in charge of 3D modeling) during their interning over at Volkswagen. They conceived this as a ute-type vehicle that can transform from pickup to wagon and back again. Thanks to this it is going to be (if it sees production) an ultimate everyday utility vehicle like none introduced so far.
Valentin stated that “The goal of this project was to imagine how Volkswagen could enter the Australian market with a ute vehicle (low and powerful pickup).” He also added that the inspiration for Varok was drawn from cars like the Vauxhall Maloo and Volvo V90, and thanks to them he combined their signature features into one single incredible vehicle. As we mentioned Varok has a sort of two mods, when in the Volvo-esque rear mode it can hold up to five passengers and a few suitcases in all the comfort and convenience you can imagine. The other mod is a disassembled stern which offers a utilitarian truck bed which now reduces the number of people it can take (three in the cabin) but allows something like a small dirt bike and a surfboard or two to be transported on the Varok’s bed.
The design is more than futuristic and, although it looks slightly wacky, maybe this is just what VW needs to enter the Aussie market and own it for years to come. German car maker is at the moment continuing to restructure its lineup with vehicles such as Atlas SUV or cars like the Arteon, but a bit of excitement and fresh ideas brought by Varok concept is something they needed and something that has a chance to bring back all those lost customers that went for other more interesting options. Enjoy the images, we definitely have.
