THE Volkswagen Amarok V6 Highline ute has become 4WD Victoria’s new flagship vehicle.

The president of Victoria’s peak off-road organisation, Wayne Hevey, received the keys of the turbo-diesel-powered variant from Volkswagen Group Australia’s managing director, Michael Bartsch.

The handover took place during the annual Spirit of Amarok event, which was held at the Melbourne 4×4 Training and Proving Ground near Werribee.

“[The] Amarok V6 has raised the expectations of ute buyers and fundamentally changed the market,” Mr Bartsch said. “As even our four-cylinder Amarok Core manuals have shown here on this challenging course – one from which we had to haul out a rival brand ute this week – Volkswagen vehicles are part of this nation’s automotive landscape.”

Volkswagen Group Australia is also an ongoing sponsor of 4WD Victoria. “[The organisation provides] thousands of owners with best practice, safe and sustainable off-roading experiences,” Mr Bartsch said.

The Spirit of Amarok event pits 126 competitors from all over Australia against each other for a challenging off-road trial. The three winning teams – comprised of two members – will represent Australia at the international Spirit of Amarok event to be held in South Africa in August.