Volkswagen · 1989–1997
Volkswagen Taro
The Volkswagen Taro was a compact pickup truck that was introduced in January 1989 by Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles It was a 1 tonne pickup truck to complement the half tonne Caddy pickup / panel van ranges, and the 1 tonne Transporter van and chassis cab ranges. The name "tarō" is a suffix used in Japanese to denote the oldest brother or son, or the first-born son of a family. The Taro was a project of badge engineering. The Taro was a rebadged fifth generation Toyota Hilux, which was fully engineered and designed by Toyota. The two companies came together in an effort to solve each other's problems: Volkswagen Group at the time did not have a one-tonne pickup truck. Toyota wanted a bigger European market share of the one-tonne utility market.
Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Successor: Volkswagen Amarok
All Volkswagen Taro data: UK builds, safety, recalls, model years →
Specifications
- name
- Volkswagen Taro, (Typ 7A)
- Manufacturer
- Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Toyota, Hino
- aka
- Toyota Hilux/Pickup
- Production
- February 1989–March 1997
- Assembly
- Japan: Tahara, Aichi, Germany: Hannover
- Class
- Light commercial vehicle
- Body style
- Pickup truck
- Layout
- Longitudinal front engine;, rear-wheel drive (4x2), or, four-wheel drive (4x4)
- Engine
- Petrol:, 1.8 L 2Y I4, 2.2 L 4Y I4, 2.4 L 22R-E I4, Diesel:, 2.4 L 2L I4
- Transmission
- 5-speed manual
- Wheelbase
- 4x2: 2850 mm, 4x4: 3095 mm
- Length
- 4x2: 4725 mm, 4x4: 4905 mm
- Width
- 4x2: 1650 mm, 4x4: 1690 mm
- Height
- 4x2: 1555 mm, 4x4: 1740 mm
- Predecessor
- Volkswagen Caddy
- Successor
- Volkswagen Amarok
- sp
- uk
Specification summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Check the linked sources for citations.
More photos
Sources
- Wikidata — https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1888382CC0 1.0 · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volkswagen_TaroCC BY-SA 4.0 · Text © Wikipedia contributors; revision 1335081584 · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:VWTaro1991.jpgCC BY-SA 3.0 · Photo: Stockhaus · retrieved 2026-10-01
- Car Model Index — https://models.autoculturesociety.com/Compiled record. Sources that do not permit reuse are not copied; this index is credited instead.