Slated for 2026, Volkswagen’s future electric city car, currently known as the ID.2, reveals new information. It could then take the ID Golf name and come in a sporty, GTI-badged version. Therefore, it is not ruled out that the original compact will disappear to make way for this newcomer.
While the European Union has once again voted in favor of banning thermal cars in Europe in 2035, manufacturers will have to develop their electric offer. At Volkswagen, which already has a complete range, with its ID.3, ID.4, ID.5 and ID. buzz. So much so that the Wolfsburg firm has become the group that has sold the most electric cars in Europe, then ahead of Tesla in 2022.
An electrical replacement?
But the manufacturer does not want to rest on its achievements. Thus, it plans to launch new versions of its ID. Buzz, including a sportier one and another with seven seats. An ID.3 SUV is also on the cards, as well as two city cars, called the ID.1 and ID.2 that play the entry-level role.
So little information has been revealed about them, now the brand is starting to get a bit more talkative. British site journalists car we were actually able to speak to sources inside the manufacturer, who wished to remain anonymous. These first confirm that the future ID.2 will be the brand’s first car based on the new MEB Plus platform, which will also equip the elevated ID 3.
Curious fact, since we were convinced that the future Volkswagen ID.7, which arrives in the European market in 2023, would be based on the MEB Plus platform (also called MEB Evo), just like the future redesigned ID.3. Information that remains rumors.
As a reminder, this development will offer a particular increase in autonomy, which can then reach 700 kilometers according to the WLTP cycle. The charging power would increase to 200 kW against 170 kW currently. But this is not the only thing we learn from this future arrival in the range. In fact, the site in English reveals thatfinally could not bear the name of ID.2.
Still according to sources who work for the manufacturer, several proposals have been made regarding its name. So, the city car can be called ID Golf. A proposal that the head of the brand, Thomas Schäfer, had already mentioned in a previous interview. He later explained that the surname Golf ” has enormous value ” and ” changing the name to something completely different doesn’t make senses”. Any kind of confirmation? Definitely…
A GTI version in the boxes
If the rumors evoked the choice of this name for the redesigned ID.3, an internal source states that ” the real value of the Volkswagen Golf is in a car the size of the ID 2“. But then, does that mean that the original pact could end up disappearing to leave its place for this electric newcomer ? For now, nothing has been said yet, but that cannot be ruled out.
In fact, the brand’s sales director, Klaus Zellmer, said in an interview with the Bavarian newspaper Münchner Merkur that Volkswagen will leave” the market for combustion engine vehicles between 2033 and 2035« . So the Golf will be logically concerned and should therefore say goodbye, but the manufacturer may not want to make this mythical name, born in 1974, disappear.
Thus, this future ID.2 or ID Golf would be between the Polo and the thermal compact, with a length of about 4.25 meters. On board, the presentation should be reworked, while we should discover a new infotainment system, while Volkswagen has promised to make it more practical and user-friendly. A statement that followed the mea-culpa regarding the touch buttons on the steering wheelthat the brand ultimately does not consider a good idea.
In addition, Autocar tells us thata GTI version will also be offered. This is not a mistake, because a source explains that the GTX badge, attached to the ID.4 and ID.5 names, should be dropped in favor of the historical acronym. If no technical information has been given about this version, it could be heavily inspired by the Cupra Urban Rebel concept presented last year, which shows 226 horsepower and accelerates from 0 to 100 km / h in 6.9 seconds. . This newcomer, which should be around 25,000 euros, could compete with the future Tesla Model 2, which should be announced on March 1 during Investor Day.
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