Volkswagen

VW invited Electrek to their Chattanooga factory location to check out the new AWD ID.4, which ups the electric SUV from around 200 to 300 horsepower with a front-wheel-drive motor. Even better, next year, North American units of the ID.4 will be built locally at the huge VW factory in Chattanooga, Tennessee, which we got to see first hand…

Volkswagen has finally given us our first look at the sub-£20,000 ($24,000) compact electric car we’ve been eagerly awaiting, in the form of the adorable, stubby, VW ID. Life concept.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has confirmed the estimated mile range of two AWD versions of Volkswagen’s all-electric ID.4 SUV. The dual-motor trims of the ID.4 Pro and Pro S were announced over the summer, but we are just now seeing the EPA estimated range of each to compare the previous rear-wheel-drive versions.

With its official debut at the Chengdu Motor Show in China, Volkswagen’s ID.3 is now available for pre-order ahead of deliveries this October. The ID.3 will now join Volkswagen’s ID.4 and ID.6 EVs overseas as the German automaker looks to expand its presence in China.

Global automaker Volkswagen has shared plans to showcase a version of its upcoming ID.5 GTX crossover SUV coupé next month at the IAA Munich Motor Show. However, this international expo debut comes with a caveat, as Volkswagen’s ID.5 GTX will be showcased as a “near-production concept” wrapped in camouflage.

After unveiling the ID.6 in Shanghai this past spring, Volkswagen has officially begun delivering the all-electric mid-size SUV to Chinese customers. The first version of the SUV to see deliveries is the Volkswagen ID.6 CROZZ, a result of a joint venture with state-owned automotive manufacturer FAW Group.

Volkswagen is reportedly looking to sell a stake in Electrify America that would come with a $1 billion investment into its electric vehicle charging network.

What company, and especially automaker, do you think could be interested in such a deal?

Battery manufacturer Northvolt announced a new $2.75 billion round of investments to help add 60 GWh of production capacity. Volkswagen is contributing another $620 million in the round.

Volkswagen Group has announced it is significantly expanding its production of battery systems at its components plant in Braunschweig. The expansion will double the plant’s output and, when fully ramped up, will be able to produce 500,000 MEB battery systems per year. Additionally, the plant will also be able to produce an additional 100,000 battery systems for non-MEB platform models, including some hybrids.

Volkswagen will change the name of its US electric car unit to “Voltswagen,” according to an accidentally leaked press release as reported by CNBC, which verified its authenticity with “a person familiar with the company’s plans.” Before it was taken down, the press release was dated April 29.

[Update: As of March 29, the name change is now official per VW’s media page. The Wall Street Journal reported on March 30 that it’s an April Fools’ joke, despite that it’s not April 1 yet.]

VW’s MEB electric vehicle platform is getting a stamp of approval from UBS in their teardown of the VW ID.3 electric car.

The German automaker is seen catching up to Tesla in EV technology.

As the world enters 2021 with a cautious optimism, its global markets are still feeling many of the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic that have yet to be eradicated. Many people have pivoted toward remote work. This has increased smartphone and laptop demand, leading to shortages of essential components like semiconductors. One industry that is beginning to experience the impact of these shortages is automakers. If semiconductor manufacturers can’t catch up, it could spell more delays for several major automotive companies.

After a full 21 months since Fully Charged took the test-version vehicle out in sunny South Africa, Robert Llewellyn finally got to grips with the “First Edition” VW ID.3 in the not-so-sunny south of England.

It’s no secret that, having had a few of them, we are fans of Volkswagen‘s Golf. And surely with its similar proportions, the ID.3 is its logical, technological successor. But does the reality match that expectation?

VW is hyping the launch of the ID.4 electric SUV coming next week with new releases, and in a new interview with executives today, the automaker said that it plans to sell 500,000 ID.4 vehicles per year.

The Volkswagen ID.3 EV briefly became VW’s top-selling retail car in Germany last week when customers began placing orders at dealerships. The orders came more than a year after Volkswagen started taking deposits for its first purpose-built electric car. The company revealed who is buying the EV: mostly young “techie” men who had not previously purchased a VW.

The first undisguised images of the Volkswagen ID.4 electric crossover are spreading across the internet. The source is likely a Chinese car website. The photos of the production ID.4 reveal a compact crossover with clean lines that flow from the hood to the hatch.

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Following preliminary agreements from last year, Ford and Volkswagen this week signed a far-reaching agreement to co-develop electric and self-driving vehicles. The alliance is seen as a way to share costs with new technologies and to take on competitors such as Tesla and General Motors.

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Twitter, Facebook, and Shopify are among the companies that are allowing employees to work at home permanently. If the trend continues, there could be long-term reductions in oil use, congestion, and car pollution.

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Europe attracted €60 billion in investments for electric vehicles in 2019 — compared to China’s €17.1 billion the same year.

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Volkswagen dealerships will not be the primary means for selling the company’s ID family of electric cars. The parent company, Volkswagen AG, announced today that 100% of VW retail partners have agreed to their new role as an “agent” that facilitates the sale.

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Tesla has “galleries.” Polestar has “spaces” and Byton will set up “places.” An automaker can’t sell an EV apparently unless it has a hip, boutique retail environment to show it off. The latest is Volkswagen, which opened its first “ID store” in Dresden today.

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