Volkswagen sends three beefy Amarok pickups across Russia for Sochi Winter Olympics

By Trevor Dermody Published February 4, 2014

While athletics obviously dominate the Olympic Games, they inevitably need a way to get to the games, which is quite a problem considering the harsh winter climate of Sochi.

Volkswagen group has answered Old Man Winter with a beast of a truck: a beefed up version of its commonplace Volkswagen Amarok, dubbed the Polar Expedition Amarok, according to Gear Patrol.

In order to survive the brutal landscape, the truck has been equipped with tires that make Jeep owners drool and fenders you could build a small house under. The suspension, shocks, and general componentry underneath the bumpers have been improved in order to handle the unrelenting conditions.

With the journey, Volkswagen put its ever-famous 4motion four-wheel drive to the test and trusted the Amarok’s 2.0-liter BiTDI diesel engine, that puts out 175 horsepower and 309 pound-feet of torque, to propel the Amarok through the often road-less Russian tundra.

The vehicle has also been given a larger-than-life roll cage, enhanced lighting, and improved communication systems. In other words, the Polar Expedition Amarok is what off-road junkies everywhere dream about.

The special edition Amarok has already proven itself a fair master of the Russian winter. Three of the vehicles made a 16,000 mile trek from Moscow to Petropavlosk-Kamchatsky, an expedition that makes the Rubicon trail look like a daily commute.

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