Two Germans traveled more than 33,000km in Australia in one trip Volkswagen ID.4 GTXsetting a world record in the process – and now one of them is embarking on another record attempt in a Amarok.
“We will also prove it again [the Amarok is Australian]… We tasked the team with going, the Australian way, to 10 deserts – to all the major deserts in Australia – in one go,” said Karsten Seifert, managing director of Volkswagen Group Australia, speak Car expert.
While that date is yet to be determined, Mr Seifert stressed that road regulations will be adhered to – this will not be Australia’s Cannonball run.
The Rainer Zietlow will use the Amarok Style V6 engine with accessories from Volkswagen and sponsor ARB, riding on chunky Kumho Road Venture MT71 tires.
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Mr Zietlow had just spent 43 days driving around the country with co-driver and photographer Marius Biela in an “epic torture test” that saw the duo spell out ’70 Years of VeeDub’ in his personal vehicle, driving on the left.
This part of their journey accounted for 23,901km of the total journey of 33,548km, with the electric SUV circling the country to “frame” the message.
This earned them the Guinness World Record for the largest GPS draw made by an electric car.
The adventure is sponsored by Volkswagen Financial Services, the Sydney Swans AFL team and Kumho Tyres.
The duo suffered just one puncture, with Volkswagen praising the Kumho tires – and the ID.4 itself – for being able to tackle remote roads, beaches, and through snow and water.
The record attempt was also sponsored by Ampol, the company responsible for the AmpCharge electric vehicle (EV) charger network.
The duo said the journey included 132 charging points.
“Female [charging] better network as you can tell for the size of this country,” Mr. Zietlow said.
“You have fewer damaged or damaged chargers than we have in Europe.
“I was surprised how well the infrastructure was set up.”
He noted that in parts of Queensland, the duo had to turn to farmers and roadside houses for enough charging capacity.
Mr. Zietlow is a self-proclaimed lover of the Volkswagen brand and is no stranger to setting records – including the ID.4.
Together with Derek Collins, he set the Guinness World Record for the longest electric vehicle drive in one country in 2021, covering 58,000km in the US.
He and his team also set a record in 2022 by reaching the highest altitude above sea level in an electric vehicle at the Uturuncu volcano in Bolivia.
Other records include a 2005 trip in a Touareg where he reached an altitude of 6081m at Ojos del Salado in the Atacama Desert in Chile.
Click on the image to see the full gallery and head over Volkswagen Australia website for trip details.
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