Volkswagen today is teasing some images of a new version of its electric minibus platform that it will reveal at the N. American Car Show in Detroit next month (if not sooner at CES). I know these are just a renderings of a preproduction model, but I have to say this gets me way more excited than last year’s EV Bus concept, the BUDD-E, which is apparently going to get built in 2020.
In the images above and 2 more below, you’ll see some iconic VW bus lines and logo mixed with some of those gaudy BUDD-E accents.
More importantly here, VW is talking about building a platform for other sized EVs called the Modular Electric Drive Kit (MEB) which could add a bunch of different vehicles to the same platform. At different times in the past, Volkswagen has advertised:
- 101 kWh battery
- 373 miles of range
- electrically retractable steering wheel which disappears into the dashboard
- dual motor, all wheel drive
- “laser scanners, ultrasonic and radar sensors and cameras monitor other road users and the surroundings”
More images and press release below
ICON OF THE NEW ERA OF ELECTRIC DRIVE: VOLKSWAGEN PRESENTS ANOTHER I.D. FAMILY MODEL IN DETROIT
Dec 22, 2016
- Show car has two electric motors and all-wheel drive
- Design icon features multi-functional, flexible interior
Wolfsburg, 22 December 2016, 8AM –At the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS, 8 to 22 January) in Detroit, Volkswagen will present a new I.D. family model – a multi-functional vehicle for a new era. The concept vehicle forges links between the legendary origins of the Volkswagen brand and its electrifying future. Like the I.D., this concept is also based on the Modular Electric Drive Kit (MEB), and so it shows the potential and bandwidth of the MEB.
Since the presentation of the I.D. at the Paris International Motor Show in September of this year, these initials have stood for a new generation of fully connected, all-electric vehicles from Volkswagen. The I.D. also stands for purity in design language, form, and character as well as typical Volkswagen attention to detail and ideal use of interior space.
This I.D. concept vehicle will also be able to drive fully autonomously in the future. Press lightly on the Volkswagen logo, and the electrically retractable steering wheel disappears into the dashboard. While the driver relaxes, laser scanners, ultrasonic and radar sensors and cameras monitor other road users and the surroundings.
The I.D. concept vehicle in Detroit forges links between the legendary origins of the Volkswagen brand and its electrifying future. Its overall concept is revolutionary. It combines ample space for travel with a long electric driving range, to usher a new feeling of freedom – with zero emissions – and a new era of mobility.
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