Latest news with #ID2all
NZ Autocar
08-05-2025
- Automotive
- NZ Autocar
More Volkswagen ID Golf details are emerging
The Volkswagen Golf is gearing up for a bold transformation in its ninth generation due out in 2028. To be known as the ID Golf, the new model will signal a high-tech rebirth for VW's benchmark family hatch. It will blend classic Golf DNA with cutting-edge EV technology. This is Autocar UK's render of the Gen IX Golf, available with a host of powertrains. Unlike previous iterations, the ID Golf will be designed from the ground up as an electric vehicle. But petrol-electric plug-in hybrid variants will continue in parallel for a time. Before then, VW's electric revolution continues with its ID 2X compact SUV, and the production version of the ID 2all hatch. Both utilise the new MEB Entry platform, aiming for affordability. A sporty electric GTI version of the ID 2all is also coming. The GTI version of ID 2all. These new models pave the way for the more advanced ID Golf, which will ride on the all-new SSP platform. This flexible architecture merges elements of VW's MEB and PPE EV systems. Expect the ID Golf to feature styling that will appeal to Golf fans, without being too retro. VW design boss, Andreas Mindt, is aiming for a fresh but faithful take on the Golf's core traits. Expect a sleeker body that retains a clear lineage to past Golfs. Interior improvements will also mark a major shift from the current Mk8.5 version. VW is committing to the return of physical controls for core functions after its foray into haptic touch sliders and steering wheel buttons proved a turn off. This return to tactile usability is part of a broader push under CEO Thomas Schäfer to reinfuse the brand with emotion and trust. Golf IX will feature some of the ID 2all/GTI concept styling features. Rivian-co-developed software architecture is set to underpin the ID Golf. The system is designed for efficiency, adaptability, and over-the-air (OTA) updates. This so-called zonal software platform will reduce the number of processors while improving system integration and responsiveness. It will also enable real-time updates and enhancements even after the vehicle is sold. Even aspects like handling and braking are evidently modifiable over the air. The software's flexibility will also empower performance variants of the ID Golf. GTI and R versions are expected. The GTI will remain front-wheel drive, while the R variant will likely go dual-motor AWD. However, the R will prioritise agility and driving fun over brute force. This is a departure from the heavier GTX-badged ID models. The electric variants of Golf IX will be built where Golf always has for over 50 years. Production of the ID Golf will take place at Wolfsburg, the Golf's birthplace since 1974. To make room for this EV shift, ICE production will move to Mexico in 2027. The current Mk8.5 Golf will continue to be sold alongside the ID Golf, but in Europe and the UK it will be available only as a plug-in hybrid. It too will be phased out in 2035. The ID Golf is not intended to replace the ID 3. Each will target slightly different customer bases. Beyond the ID Golf, VW's EV overhaul will continue with a new SUV expected to succeed the ID 4. Think Tiguan in electric form. A render of the Golf ID earlier this year, also by Autocar UK. The ID Golf then will become a flagship of sorts for a new era, redefining it for a future shaped by electrification, advanced tech, and the rekindling of driver-focused design.
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
VW Bringing Back Physical Buttons in All Models
Volkswagen in recent years has been shifting in-vehicle controls to touchscreen and haptic feedback, which sounds very futuristic, but in reality can be annoying in the best-case scenario and a safety hazard in the worst. The automaker has obviously heard the complaints about turning its products into smartphones on wheels and it's doing something about it. Autocar recently spoke with Andreas Mindt, VW's design chief, and he said the company is bringing back physical buttons for the five most important functions in every vehicle it makes, starting with the ID 2all due out next year. Most Read on IEN: Today in Manufacturing Podcast: Boeing Closes Shadow Factory; Volvo's Counterfeit Part Problem; Micro-Factories Build Homes Boeing Closes First Shadow Factory Lawsuit Targets Ford's Odd Doors Toyota's Best-Selling Trucks Have a Mud Problem The functions at the center of the physical control renaissance are the volume, the heating on each side of the car, the fans and the hazard light. 'They will be in every car that we make from now on. We understood this,' he told the publication. 'We will never, ever make this mistake anymore. On the steering wheel, we will have physical buttons. No guessing anymore. There's feedback, it's real, and people love this. Honestly, it's a car. It's not a phone: it's a car.' That's likely for the best, at least until in-vehicle voice assistants reach the point where they can seamlessly understand and respond to drivers' commands. Whereas voice controls could help drivers stay focused on the road while futzing with their cars, touchscreens can be a real distraction. A 2019 AAA study suggested that infotainment systems can distract drivers for up to 40 seconds, time that would be better spent making sure your car doesn't speed through a red light or cross the median into oncoming traffic. Even though VW will decrease the reliance on touchscreen technology in its future vehicles, it doesn't mean the company is getting rid of the in-dash iPad all together. It will still be there, in part to deliver legally required features like the backup camera, and also allow users to navigate the deep functionality of the vehicle. But VW heard the gripes and it's bringing back the doodads and doohickeys. Complaining works! Click here to subscribe to our daily newsletter featuring breaking manufacturing industry news.
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Volkswagen to Bring Back Physical Buttons to All Vehicles
PCMag editors select and review products independently. If you buy through affiliate links, we may earn commissions, which help support our testing. Volkswagen is bringing back physical buttons to all its vehicles after pivoting to touch screens in recent years. In an interview with Autocar, Andreas Mindt, design chief at the German auto giant, called the decision to remove these buttons "a mistake." 'From the ID 2all onwards, we will have physical buttons for the five most important functions – the volume, the heating on each side of the car, the fans and the hazard light – below the screen,' he explained, adding: 'It's not a phone: it's a car.' This doesn't mean touch screens are set to disappear on new Volkswagens, just that drivers will now have the option of physical controls for their most used day-to-day tasks. The new controls are set to make their debut in the ID.2all, a small, budget EV set to debut in Europe. Last year, Hyundai promised to keep physical controls for its important functions, like volume adjustments and air conditioning, with its head of design highlighting the safety benefits of having an easy-to-use physical button. In 2022, a study by Swedish car magazine Vi Bilägare found that drivers were better able to perform simple tasks like tuning the radio to a specific channel or raising the car temperature using old-school buttons. Tesla is also pivoting back to real-world controls, at least partially. It reintroduced its turn signal stalk on the steering column in the recently refreshed Model Y, InsideEVs notes. European regulators are also cheering on the transition back to physical buttons. As of Jan. 1, 2026, new cars sold in the EU will need physical buttons or switches for their horn, windshield wipers, turn signals, hazard warning lights, and SOS features if they want to get the highest safety rating from the European New Car Assessment Programme (NCAP).
Yahoo
05-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Volkswagen ID Every1 previews £17k city car for 2027
ID Every1 uses new 94bhp motor, giving a claimed top speed of 81mph Volkswagen has vowed to realise its long-held goal of an 'affordable' £17,000 electric car in 2027 with the arrival of the production version of the new ID Every1 concept car. Described by Volkswagen as a model 'from Europe for Europe', the new car will serve as the spiritual successor to the Up as an A-segment city car and become the entry point to the German firm's range of bespoke electric ID models. Volkswagen boss Thomas Schäfer has described the model, which will be part of the firm's new Electric Urban Car Family, as 'the last piece of the puzzle' in its mass market line-up, adding: "this is the car the world has been waiting for." The production version of the ID Every1 will sit on a modified version of the new front-wheel-drive MEB Entry platform, which has been developed for the forthcoming ID 2, ID 2X, Cupra Raval and Skoda Epiq. Those models will all be built at the Seat factory in Martorell, Spain, with prices for the ID 2 starting from around £21,000 (€25,000). Volkswagen development chief Kai Grünitz said that the front end of the new machine from the font wheel to the A-pillar is largely the sam as the ID 2all concept, but it then uses a different, smaller battery and has a shorter wheelbase. It also features a new rear axle, which is based on that used in the current Polo. The ID Every1 features what is described as a newly developed electric motor that produces 94bhp and gives the car a claimed top speed of 81mph. Volkswagen has provided no details of the battery capacity or what chemistry it will use but claims the model will offer a range of 'at least' 155 miles. It will also be the first Volkswagen Group model to benefit from a new software architecture that has been developed through a new joint venture with American EV start-up Rivian. For comparison with the cheapest EVs currently on sale in the UK, the Dacia Spring is priced from £14,995 and offers 44bhp and a range of 140 miles, while the £15,940 Leapmotor T03 produces 94bhp and offers 165 miles. Meanwhile, Volkswagen has previously said the ID 2 will offer 223bhp and around 280 miles. The ID Every1 concept is likely to serve as a close preview of how the production car will look. It has chunky, upright proportions that evoke the Up. Volkswagen design chief Andreas Mindt said the goal was to create a car that offered 'character and an identity that people can relate to'. There are large LED headlights and a rounded front end that, Mindt said, is intended to make the car friendly and likeable through 'a slightly cheeky smile'. The front and rear badges are illuminated. The concept features sculpted wheel arches and 19in wheels while, as is typical for an EV, the axles have been pushed to the vehicle's extremities to maximise interior space. The relatively simple silhouette and side bodywork is intended to give the car a 'timeless' and 'classless' design, according to Mindt. As with the ID 2all, the ID Every1's design features a number of nods to VW's heritage. In particular, the rear C-pillar has been designed to evoke that of the first-generation Golf. Mindt has spoken of wanting every Volkswagen model he designs to offer a 'secret sauce' that helps imbue the vehicle with character. In the case of the ID Every1, Mindt cites the lowered middle section of the roof, a design concept he claimed is borrowed from sports cars. Other 'secret sauce' elements include the integrated third brake light in the roof recess and the new designs for the 19in alloy wheels. The ID Every1 is 3880mm long, which places it between the Up (3600mm) and Polo (4074mm). The ID2all concept that will sit above it in VW's future electric line-up measures 4050mm. Volkswagen describes the ID Every1 as a four-seater and says it also offers a 305-litre boot – a substantial increase on the 251 litres offered by the Up. The interior of the ID Every1 features a simple design with a prominent-looking dashboard. While the dash is dominated by a centrally mounted touchscreen, it is notable that there are physical buttons for the temperature, heating and volume controls below it. The steering wheel is a squared-off two-spoke affair. Meanwhile, the front passenger has access to a variable multi-purpose panel to which different items, such as a tablet or shelf, can be attached. A removable Bluetooth speaker is located between the driver and passenger. The centre console is similar to that offered in the ID Buzz and is mounted on a rail so that it can be slid from the front to the rear compartment. It also features pull-out shelving. Volkswagen development chief Grünitz said the production version of the ID Every1 will be a 'customer-defined vehicle' – a phrase evoking the 'software-defined vehicle' term that reflects the car industry's increasing push towards vehicles designed around their computing architecture. The ID 1 will be the first model in the Volkswagen Group to use a 'fundamentally new' zonal software architecture from the firm's new joint venture with American EV start-up Rivian. That new system is based on the existing software used in the Rivian R1T pick-up and R1S SUV, and is intended to be highly flexible, so it can be stripped back for the ID 1 with extra zones added for more premium models to make the software run faster and add extra features. "The main benefit is that it's highly flexible and updatable," said Grünitz. "We see that with Rivian models on the road today, which can be updated with new functions for customers on a regular basis without the need to touch them. It's really the next step." Grünitz did not rule out offering functions as paid-for extras that can be downloaded using software, but said that "we don't need that" to hit the ID 1's planned £17,000 target price, adding: "we are not shooting in that direction today." While it is unusual to debut an advanced new software architecture on an entry level vehicle, VW said that showcased how important the entry level ID 1 market was to the firm. It also allows VW to learn about the software platform before it is used on the next-generation ID Golf due in the coming years. Volkswagen has said that the production version of the ID Every1 will be built in Europe, but has yet to commit to a specific plant. The model could initially be produced alongside the ID 2 and its siblings in Spain, although given the group has already committed to producing four models from that location, it is most likely to be built elsewhere. The ID Every1 is the first concept to be launched since the firm agreed a new 'Future Volkswagen' plan with unions at the end of last year. That strategy includes binding targets for future projects, including a commitment to strengthening its competitiveness by expanding its existing model range, and becoming the 'technologically leading high-volume manufacturer'. Volkswagen will launch nine new models by 2027, including the production versions of both the ID 2all and ID Every1. The firm will reveal the next member of its Electric Urban Car Family, the ID 2 X crossover, in autumn this year, most likely at the Munich motor show. ]]>
