Volkswagen has introduced a manual version of its Amarok pick-up reducing the entry price by £650 to £25,600.

Until now, the Amarok has been available with an eight-speed automatic gearbox and permanent 4MOTION four-wheel drive.

The new 3.0-litre V6 manual model, available in Trendline trim, combines a six-speed manual gearbox with selectable all-wheel drive, a system that features standard rear-wheel drive and, when required, the ability to engage the front axle.

Thanks to the manual gearbox, an additional off-road gear reduction function permits extreme crawling pace. This can be useful when navigating complicated passages off-road and scaling particularly steep inclines.

The manual model has emissions of 229g/km of CO2 and is capable of 32.5mpg. This compares with CO2 emissions of 203g/km and 36.2mpg on the automatic version.

Weight-wise, the manual 204 PS Amarok has a GVW of 3,200kg, braked trailer weight of 3,000kg, and a payload of 1,050kg.

In addition to the new manual, a 161hp manual Amarok is due to join the range early next year too.