This is not the first time UK-based auto shop Darkside Developments surprises us with its creative approach to tuning, but taking a Volkswagen Amarok and stuffing it with a 12-cylinder, 500-horsepower diesel engine? That takes the prize for originality, in our book.
For starters, consider that this truck has traveled through half a world before the tuning, imported from Australia into Great Britain. Once there, it dropped its stock 2.0-liter engine in favor of a V12 borrowed from an Audi Q7. The mill has three times the displacement of the old one and has no issue delivering 507 PS (500 hp / 373 kW) along with 1,000 Nm (738 lb-ft) of torque to the wheels.
In order to fit it in the engine bay, the tuner had to resort to 3D scanning. Knowing the precise geometry of the unit and its dimensions helped keep the number of additional supports down to a minimum. The transmission has also been reworked, with a Borg warner six-speed manual coming to replace the stock six-speed auto box. According to Darkside, ‘marrying’ the torque-happy engine with a typical muscle car transmission was far from easy, but those challenges have been overcome.
The Amarok is still not drivable, though – the team has yet to implement a new drive system. The only thing we know at the moment is that it will reside on the rear axle alone. We will be keeping an eye out on the project, which should be complete in the coming weeks or months.