Passenger, light commercial will follow Amarok which is due in October.

Volkswagen of South Africa (VWSA) stands poised to challenge Toyota's long-standing dominance in the combined passenger and light commercial-vehicle market, as it looks set to enter the minibus taxi and half-ton pick-up market over the next one to five years.

This will add to the company's first-time entry into the one-ton pick-up market in October, when the South American-made Amarok reaches local shores.

The ambitions of VWSA's parent company to be the number one vehicle manufacturer in the world - by sales - by 2018 are already well publicised, a feat for which it will have to topple Toyota from the podium.

In South Africa, VWSA hopes to reach the pole position somewhere next year, says VWSA Volkswagen brand public relations manager Andile Dlamini.

"We are already the number-one selling passenger vehicle brand."

VWSA's new Polo Vivo, the entry-level replacement of the CitiGolf, is currently the country's top-selling car, recording sales of 1 933 units in May, with Toyota's Corolla coming second, with 1 171 units.

Dlamini says VWSA is working towards entering the minibus taxi market in the next 12 months, with the Crafter model.

Toyota's Quantum, a popular choice among taxi operators, is currently the country's best-selling minibus, with 1 055 units moving off showroom floors in May.

"There is a long-term plan to bring a half-tonner [pick-up] to South Africa in the next three to five years," adds Dlamini.

Here, VWSA will take on the dominance of General Motors South Africa's Chevrolet Utility.

Volkswagen currently sells a half-ton pick-up in South America, under the name Saveiro.

The South American market is then also the source for the Amarok, which will hit the local market in October.

In this segment of the market VWSA will take on the mighty Toyota Hilux, selling 2 777 units in May - outgunning even Vivo numbers in the passenger car market.

However, Toyota is unlikely to take any challenges to its decades of market share rule laying down.

Toyota South Africa spokesperson Leo Kok indicates that the local arm of the Japanese manufacturer "has strong plans to become a serious contender" in the entry-level segment "in the short term, but no announcements can be made on the product or products we plan to introduce yet".

Toyota shelved its popular, affordable Tazz model some years ago, with the Yaris unable to compete in terms of price.