Volkswagen is expected to unveil its urban electric vehicle concept, the ID. 2 next week on March 15, according to Coach. This concept will offer a glimpse of a future production compact model that is expected to go on sale in 2025 and could adopt the Golf name, Volkswagen insiders have said.
The future production version of the ID.2 is expected to start from 22,500 euros (RM107,681) when it goes on sale in around two years, and it will be Volkswagen’s first to be based on its MEB-Plus architecture.
The MEB-Plus platform is an updated version of the MEB electric vehicle platform that will use new prismatic lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery cells and support up to 200 kW, according to Coach sources.
While it’s possible the new EV sedan will adopt the Golf name, there are also a number of naming combinations that could be used for the production version that have come up internally in recent months, including the moniker ” ID Golf” that Volkswagen CEO Thomas Schäfer alluded to in an earlier interview, according to Coach.
“The name Golf has enormous value. The recognition he receives in client clinics, people fully understand what we are talking about. So changing the name to something completely different doesn’t make sense,” Schäfer said. Earlier suggestions implied that the name Golf would be applied to the facelift ID.3however “the true value of the volkswagen golf is in a car the size of an ID.2,” the magazine’s sources said.
The production version of the ID.2 was to be previewed by IDENTIFIER. concept of lifehowever, the ID.2 will be heavily revised into a more conventional hatchback shape which is being developed by a design team led by new Volkswagen design chief Andreas Mindt, reported Coach.
This follows what has been described as a “less than lukewarm reception” to the original concept developed by Josef Kaban by Schäfer and the brand’s new management team, and Kaban was asked to step down following a internal debate over the original design of the model.
Sources with knowledge of early ID.2 proposals say Coach that the upcoming model is somewhere between the sizes of the existing Golf and Poloand it will have an overall length of “approximately 4,250mm”, the sources said.
With a relatively short hood and flat floor, the upcoming concept is said to offer “the kind of interior space typically found in models a segment taller,” the magazine’s source said.
Initial information indicates that the ID.2 will be single-motor front-wheel drive, although Volkswagen sources have said Coach that the MEB-Plus platform for this model will support both dual-motor and all-wheel-drive configurations, therefore driveline configuration remains a possibility.
The ID.2 will be “relatively light by electric car standards, somewhere between 1,600kg and 1,700kg,” the magazine said, and the GTI badge will return to signify a more capable variant for the fully-featured model. electric, thus replacing the GTX badge as introduced on the ID.4 SUV.
“The GTX [designation] is dead. A decision has already been made to replace it with the traditional GTI name and it is being considered for the ID.2,” a source said. Coach.
Further, the MIB infotainment system will have a rotary controller for a heavily revised center console, as will the development that will appear in the third-generation Tiguan expected later this year. The rotary controller will complement the touchscreen controls found on current Volkswagen models, which have come to criticism in terms of lack of ease of use.
These important changes for the development of the ID.2 are part of a “complete reset” for Volkswagen and its EV strategy led by Schäfer, according to Coach.
