Think New! Under this guiding principle, and with a visionary electric vehicle, Volkswagen is offering a fascinating outlook on the mobility of tomorrow at the Paris International Motor Show (1 –16 October). The world premiere of the I.D. is the focal point of the company's show appearance. The zero-emission I.D. will already be going into production in 2020, and it will kick off a new generation of innovative electric vehicles.

Dr Herbert Diess, Chairman of the Board of Management Volkswagen Brand explained: "In 2020 we will begin to introduce an entire family of electric vehicles on the market. All of them will be based on a new vehicle architecture which was specially and exclusively developed for all-electric vehicles. Not for combustion engine or plug-in hybrid vehicles. The I.D. stands for this new era of all-electric vehicles, for a new automotive era: electrical, connected and autonomously driving."

Volkswagen's show appearance in Paris unites all three phases which together show the way from the present to the future: the I.D. presents the world of "the day after tomorrow". The latest generation e-Golf – which celebrates its world premiere in November – presents the world of tomorrow. Equipped with gesture control and a zero-emission range of up to 300 kilometres, the new e-Golf will set standards. The world of today is embodied in highly advanced Volkswagens like the new Tiguan. It already guarantees customers a fascinating digital experience in the current generation model with such technologies as the Active Info Display and head-up display.

Volkswagen is giving a new direction with the I.D. It will be the first Volkswagen on the market to be based on the newly developed Modular Electric Drive Kit (MEB). The I.D. is positioned as a compact electric car with which Volkswagen aims to expand its range of high-volume models in parallel to best-sellers such as the Polo, Golf, Tiguan and Passat. The I.D. will be powered by a 125 kW / 170 PS electric motor. Offering a range of up to 600 kilometres and a price on the level of today's Golf with comparable power, the I.D. will make the "zero emissions" theme a natural aspect of everyday driving.

The I.D. shows a completely new Volkswagen design language for electric vehicles of the compact class. What is known as the Open Space Concept has been implemented for the first time in its interior. Somewhat shorter than a Golf, the I.D. offers the generous space of a Passat. This was made possible by the new drive concept architecture with an electric motor on the rear axle and a high-voltage battery in the vehicle floor, which enables more space and flexibility. At the same time, the I.D. already bridges over to the year 2025: the I.D. is the first Volkswagen concept car to be fully autonomous in the "I.D. Pilot" mode. The "I.D. Pilot" is activated by touching the VW logo on the steering wheel, which then disappears into the instrument panel and gives the driver an entirely new feeling of space.

The conventional car key has been retired in the I.D. Instead, a smartphone will be used as a "Digital Key" to open the car and enable the vehicle to start. The idea behind it: in the near future, individuals who drive a Volkswagen will get their own "Volkswagen ID". This ID is an individual profile that stores such information as personal seat and climate control settings, favourite radio stations and play lists, settings of the sound system, contact data for friends and business partners and the navigation system configuration. This profile is called up via the Volkswagen Automotive Cloud.

The I.D. is the ambassador of the new Volkswagen product strategy that is based on four fields of innovation:

• Smart Sustainability – Volkswagen is advancing the development of innovative high-volume electric car models;
• Automated Driving – Volkswagen will make cars even safer and more comfortable by means of automated driving;
• Intuitive Usability – Volkswagen focuses on vehicles that are intuitive to operate and feature new display and control concepts;
• Connected Community – In the future, Volkswagen will interconnect humans, cars and the environment via a Volkswagen user identity

VW is expected to launch an electric vehicle based on the I.D. concept, the VW Neo, next year. It is expected to be the Volkswagen Group’s first mass-market ‘affordable’ electric car.

The vehicle is expected to be offered in 3 different battery pack configurations based on the MEB platform and will start at around $30,000, according to a new report.

Before even unveiling the concept in 2016, VW announced that it would beat the Model 3 and Model X in electric range by misrepresenting the NEDC-rated range of the Model 3.

Last year, VW claimed that it will have a NEDC-rated range of “400 to 600 km” (~250 to 375 miles) depending on the battery pack configuration.

Now Christian Senger, VW’s Head of Product Line for E-Mobility, updated the numbers based on the more accurate WLTP range via Auto Express:

According to previous reports, that entry-level version is expected to start at around 25,000 euros (~$30,000 USD).

Senger added about the longer range version:

Following their conversation with Senger, Auto Express says that the vehicle will be slightly longer than the VW Golf.

It will be offered with 7.2 kW and 11 kW onboard chargers for level 2 charging and the DC fast-charging capability will support a charge rate up to 125 kW.

The timing of the release of the vehicle has always been murky. VW previously mentioned both 2019 and 2020, but now Auto Express says that it should be “revealed” in the last quarter of 2019.

As we reported earlier this month, VW is planning a capacity of 100,000 electric cars per year at its Zwickau plant, its first plant to go electric and to produce the company’s new MED-based electric vehicles.

The sleek Volkswagen ID. Space Vizzion station wagon (or shooting brake if you want to be fancy), is going into production. This is according to a LinkedIn post by VW's CEO Ralf Brandstδtter.

While the post doesn't specifically mention the Space Vizzion, which made its debut at the L.A. Auto Show last year, we know that's the car in question because of two things. The car is specifically described as a shooting brake, and the photos feature the concept.

Specifications will likely be similar to the Space Vizzion. Brandstδtter says it will have a 700-kilometer range. That comes out to 435 miles, but this is likely the generous European WLTP testing, so the 300-mile range listed for the concept would be more in line with EPA ratings. That would also be in the realm of possibility considering the ID.4 crossover, which will share the same MEB platform as the production Space Vizzion, can go 250 miles. The production Space Vizzion should be more aerodynamic and likely able to go farther than the ID.4. Motor options would probably mirror the ID.4 with a base 201-horsepower rear-drive model, and a potentially 302-horsepower all-wheel-drive version.

We're not exactly surprised VW is bringing this car to production. It seems that nearly every ID. concept car is getting a production variant. The original ID. became the ID.3, the ID. Crozz is becoming the ID.4, and the ID. Buzz is slated for production, too. The Space Vizzion makes loads of sense for Europe in particular because of the continent's ongoing desire for wagons. We're curious if it will be offered in the U.S., since it made its debut at one of the biggest American auto shows. There's still time for VW to make a final decision, since production doesn't start until 2023.

Volkswagen’s fifth ID electric car, a production version of the ID Vizzion concept, will offer a range of up to 435 miles when it’s launched in the UK during the final quarter of 2023, according to the German car maker’s head of research and development, Frank Welsch.

Known to Volkswagen insiders under the name Aero-B, the future rival to the BMW i4 and Mercedes-Benz EQE is set to be called the ID 6 and will be offered in both saloon and estate forms, with similar exterior dimensions to the current Passat but interior room comparable to the larger, now-discontinued Phaeton.
Built on the Volkswagen Group’s EV-specific MEB platform, the new model will follow the ID 3 hatchback, the recently revealed ID 4 SUV, the ID 5 coupι-SUV that’s due to be revealed next year and a production version of the ID Buzz MPV that’s due in 2022.

While the ID 6 title isn’t official yet, the number six has connotations of wellbeing in China, Volkswagen’s biggest market, and the large saloon is expected to be particularly popular with Chinese buyers.

The ID 6 will be offered with one motor for rear-wheel drive or two motors for four-wheel drive. The latter layout will also underpin a GTX performance model that Welsch said will be capable of 0-62mph in around 5.6sec. By comparison, the single-motor model will have a 0-62mph time of about 8.5sec.



As with other ID models, the ID 6 is set to be sold with a choice of battery sizes. While it’s still in the early stages of development, Welsch claimed the largest battery, an 84kWh pack mounted within the flat floor of the MEB platform, will provide the car with a range of around 700km, or 431 miles – some 89 miles more than that quoted for the ID 3 Pro S, which has a 77kWh battery.

Welsch pinpointed improved lithium battery cell efficiency, a reduction in rolling resistance and new aerodynamic developments as being central to the longer range of the ID 6.

Additionally, the model is planned to support charging at a rate of up to 200kW, allowing around 143 miles of range to be added in just 10 minutes from a DC rapid charger.

Production of the ID 6 is set to take place at Volkswagen’s Emden plant in Germany from 2023. The current home to Passat and Arteon production is currently undergoing a heavy upgrade that Volkswagen claims will provide it with annual capacity for up to 300,000 EVs by 2023.

One look at this big electric SUV and you'd think you're staring at a new EV for the US, but alas, this is the Volkswagen ID 6 that's only confirmed for China at the moment. The photos of the ID 6, based on the ID Roomzz concept, made their way to Reddit from the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. Although it's based on the ID Roomzz, it doesn't exactly look like the concept car.
The front face looks far more conventional than the sleek fascia designer fitted to the ID Roomzz concept. I dare say the ID 6 looks a tad frumpy with the front clip sort of drooping before a widened front bumper catches it below. It's not bad looking, but it doesn't spark joy like the ID 3 does.

Final production specs haven't been announced, but the ID Roomzz concept featured an 82 kilowatt-hour battery that VW said would do 280 miles on the lenient WLTP test cycle. As for power, an electric motor for each axle combined for a total of 302 horsepower. None of the specs sound unobtainable for the production ID 6, but we simply don't know yet.

VW's open to bringing the ID 6 here eventually, but it seems like the brand plans to test the waters with the ID 4 first before it makes a final decision. We're in for other electric VWs even if we don't get the big ID 6. Most notably, we're looking forward to the production ID Buzz, which will revive the famed Microbus in a modern fashion.

Spy photos of the upcoming VW ID.Buzz electric minivan have, so far, been test mules with modified Transporter bodies. But now a couple photos shared on Twitter by user Cole Marzen give us our first look at a Buzz with what seems to be the body it will sport on dealerships. It certainly is similar to the concept, though there are a few noteworthy changes.

The 2023/24 Volkswagen I.D. Buzz has been spied with its production body for the very first time. In addition, the van will ride on top of the company’s scalable MEB architecture and it will be offered with over 250 miles of electric range.


At the front of the ID.Buzz, the hood panel looks broader than on the concept. The badge is a bit smaller and sits higher up where it intersects a chrome strip between the headlights. This is likely to provide more of a family connection to the rest of the ID. line. Lower down, we can see some air curtain inlets, and what look like fog lights and a fairly large grille. But it's possible those are just stickers to help disguise the van. It's hard to say for sure with the low resolution of the images.

Moving to the side, the headlights still wrap around into the sharp crease that will be perfect for offering two-tone paint jobs. In fact, that crease is even more pronounced than on the concept. The greenhouse looks pretty similar to the concept, too, though the rear pillar is significantly thinner.

The rear looks surprisingly conventional with more squared-off corners and an aerodynamic spoiler over the hatch. The concept, in contrast, had a more rounded and bubbly backside. But the crease continues its way around, and the license plate is mounted low down to preserve some of the classic van look.

The production ID.Buzz will be revealed next year, with sales starting in 2023 as a 2024 model. We expect it will borrow its powertrains from the ID.4, offering either rear-wheel drive with a single motor or all-wheel drive with dual motors.

The Volkswagen ID.Life could be dismissed as just another concept thrown together for an auto show, but the presenter at the car’s IAA debut, when asked if it was going into production, said, “There’s always a chance, and it is the same size as something we have planned for production.”

So there’s that.

“The ID.Life is our vision of next-generation fully electric urban mobility,” said Ralf Brandstδtter, CEO of the Volkswagen brand. “The concept car provides a preview of an ID. model in the small car segment that we will be launching in 2025, priced at around €20,000. This means we are making electric mobility accessible to even more people. In creating the ID.Life, we have consistently focused on the needs of younger customers. We believe that, even more so than today, the car of the future will be about lifestyle and personal expression. The customer of tomorrow won’t simply want to get from A to B; they will be much more interested in the experiences that a car can offer. The ID.Life is our answer to this.”

Those experiences that a customer wants include “digital experiences of various kinds,” Volkswagen said. For example, the car can be converted into a cinema or gaming lounge in no time at all. As a concept, it can be loaded up with whatever the designers want to put in it. The show vehicle had a video game console and projector, as well as a projection screen that extends from the dash panel when required. Other devices can be connected to the car’s 230-volt/16-amp power supply.

It has a yoke! The seating design, too, is extremely flexible, in keeping with the idea of the car as a companion for all situations and lifestyles, VW said. The front seat bench can be completely folded down, as can the rear seat bench making a bed. VW said that fold-down setup “enables a range of different possibilities.” The bed measures more than six feet in length, but the interior can also be set up for the above-mentioned cinema, or to maximize luggage space.

The rest of the car is more or less typical ID electric, based as they all are on VW’s new MEB electric car platform architecture. This particular take on the modular electric drive was developed specifically for the small car segment. Its single electric motor makes a healthy 231 hp and accelerates to 62 mph in 6.9 seconds. The 57-kWh battery is good for a range of almost 250 miles using the wildly optimistic European WLTP standard.


Like all those BMW concepts shown two halls over at IAA, the ID.Life is made with a lot of recycled materials. The roof and hood are made from 100% recycled PET bottles. The interior, including the dashboard and rear seat surrounds, are made out of wood. The seat surfaces are ArtVelours Eco. Even the paint coloring includes wood chips as a natural coloring agent, along with a bio-based hardener. The tires include natural rubber and rice husks in their composition.

Volkswagen says the car will accelerate VW’s EV spread into the electric car segment. Prices start at €20,000 euros, or $23,731 in the US.

“By 2030, Volkswagen aims to increase the share of all-electric models in total vehicle sales in Europe to at least 70 percent and in North America and China to at least 50 percent,” VW said. Nice to know that affordable EVs will be part of the plan.