The head of Volkswagen specified further plans of the brand in the field of electrification. Emphasis will be placed primarily on cars from the SUV segment, but we should also look forward to smaller city electric cars.
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Ralf Brandstätter, head of the Volkswagen brand, recently discussed with colleagues from the British Autocar about the upcoming electric crossover ID.4, which is scheduled to premiere early next week. In addition to talk, he also got other electric cars in preparation, including smaller ones.
It has been talked for a long time that Volkswagen is working on the development of an even cheaper electric car than the current ID.3 hatchback. This was de facto confirmed by Brandstätter, but according to him, only concepts are being worked on so far. The carmaker expects that the segment of small electric cars will see a significant growth in popularity in the near future.
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Until recently, the concern in this segment offered, for example, the Škoda Citigo city electric car from Mladá Boleslave iV, however, whose sales were stopped relatively recently. His electric siblings in the form of Volkswagen Up and Satt Mii are soon expected to do the same.
However, stopping sales of these city tricks does not surprise anyone too much, as it is generally known that car manufacturers made large sums of money on them. The direct successor has not been mentioned anywhere yet, but Brandstätter revealed that concepts for smaller segments are already being worked on. “We will discuss this soon. But cars in smaller segments are still interesting and important for us.“
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Unlike Satt, Volkswagen does not want to go the way of various urban mobility solutions yet, such as the Seat Minimó ATV introduced last year. It should start selling next year, but it is not yet certain whether it will be produced under other group brands.
Of course, Volkswagen also has its own concepts dealing with similar urban mobility and transport in the last kilometers, but so far no decision has been made whether to go on the market with them. For now, we can only say with certainty that the carmaker will try to make the most of its modular electrical platform MEB.
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For the time being, it has become the basis of the electric hatchback ID.3, the Škoda Enyaq and its sibling VW ID.4, which will premiere on 23 September. In the future, however, the sedan ID.5, SUV ID.6 should certainly grow on this platform, and of course there will be a retro-inspired ID.Buzz. However, as part of the cooperation between VW and Ford, the platform will also feature models that have not yet been specified with a blue oval in the emblem.
In addition, the carmaker has committed to producing around 26 million electric cars by 2029 – regardless of the current pandemic situation. At the same time, it has already invested around 33 billion euros in its ambitious plans, which is certainly not a small amount.
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In addition to the above-mentioned electric cars, a compact electric sports car could also appear in the offer, which could compete with the second generation Tesla Roadster. However, SUVs remain the most important segment for Volkswagen. Volkswagen launched its SUV offensive in 2015 and the new ID.4 will be the next step in transforming the carmaker’s plans into e-mobility, added VW e-mobility chief Thomas Ulbrich.
„ID.4 represents carbon neutral mobility and mobilizes millions of people because it will be a truly global car. It will soon become a top model, not just a marginal one, as this market segment becomes increasingly important,“Quotes Ulbrich Autocar.
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In order for the ID.4 to be rewarded all over the world (sales will take place on three continents), it will be manufactured in five different plants. For each market, ID.4 should receive specific modifications to the interior, exterior and technological functions. Still, all ID.4s will have something in common. “Basically, the customer always wants to get the same great technology: sufficient range, fast charging and, in short, a dynamic electric car,Concludes Ulbrich.
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