Think New! Under this guiding principle, and with a visionary electric vehicle, Volkswagen is offering a fascinating outlook on the mobility of tomorrow at the Paris International Motor Show (1 –16 October). The world premiere of the I.D. is the focal point of the company’s show appearance. The zero-emission I.D. will go into production in 2020, and it will kick off a new generation of innovative electric vehicles.
Dr Herbert Diess, Chairman of the Board of Management Volkswagen Brand explained: “In 2020 we will begin to introduce an entire family of electric vehicles on the market. All of them will be based on a new vehicle architecture which was specially and exclusively developed for all-electric vehicles. Not for combustion engine or plug-inhybrid vehicles. The I.D. stands for this new era of all-electric vehicles, for a new automotive era: electrical, connected and autonomously driving.”
Volkswagen’s show appearance in Paris unites all three phases which together show the way from the present to the future: the I.D. presents the world of “the day after tomorrow”. The latest generation e-Golf – which celebrates its world premiere in November –presents the world of tomorrow. Equipped with gesture control and a zero-emission range of up to 300 kilometres, the new e-Golf will set standards. The world of today is embodied in highly advanced Volkswagens like the new Tiguan. It already guarantees customers a fascinating digital experience in the current generation model with such technologies as the ActiveInfo Display and head-up display.
Volkswagen is giving a new direction with the I.D. It will be the first Volkswagen on the market to be based on the newly developed Modular Electric Drive Kit (MEB). The I.D. is positioned as a compact electric car with which Volkswagen aims to expand its range of high-volume models in parallel to best-sellers such as the Polo, Golf, Tiguan and Passat. The I.D. will be powered by a 125kW / 170 PS electric motor. Offering a range of up to 600 kilometresand a price on the level of today’s Golf with comparable power, the I.D. will make the “zero emissions” theme a natural aspect of everyday driving.
The I.D. shows a completely new Volkswagen design language for electric vehicles of the compact class. What is known as the Open Space Concept has been implemented for the first time in its interior. Somewhat shorter than a Golf, the I.D. offers the generous space of a Passat.This was made possible by the new drive concept architecture with an electric motor on the rear axle and a high-voltage battery in the vehicle floor, which enables more space and flexibility. At the same time, the I.D. already bridges over to the year 2025: the I.D. is the first Volkswagen concept car to be fully autonomous in the “I.D. Pilot” mode. The“I.D. Pilot”is activatedby touching the VW logo on the steering wheel, which then disappears into the instrument panel and gives the driver an entirely new feeling of space.
The conventional car key has been retired in the I.D. Instead, a smartphone will be used as a “Digital Key” to open the car and enable the vehicle to start. The idea behind it: in the near future, individuals who drive a Volkswagen will get their own “Volkswagen ID”. This ID is an individual profile that stores such information as personal seat and climate control settings, favourite radio stations and play lists, settings of the sound system, contact data for friends and business partners and the navigation system configuration. This profile is called up via the Volkswagen Automotive Cloud.
The I.D. is the ambassador of the new Volkswagen product strategy that is based on four fields of innovation:
- Smart Sustainability – Volkswagenis advancing the development of innovative high-volume electric car models;
- Automated Driving – Volkswagen will make cars even safer and more comfortable by means of automated driving;
- Intuitive Usability – Volkswagen focuses on vehicles that are intuitive to operateand feature new display and control concepts;
- Connected Community – In the future,Volkswagen will interconnect humans, cars and the environment via a Volkswagen user identity.
