Volkswagen is just not letting its iconic Golf model trip off into the sundown because the auto business trades in its gas-powered vehicles for upgraded zero-emission EVs. As a substitute, the Golf model will reside on because the VW ID 2 city EV with the corporate’s next-gen MEB-Plus platform.
After ending manufacturing of the e-golf electrical automobile in December 2020 to give attention to a brand new era of EVs, VW introduced in 2021 it was planning to wind down Golf gross sales in North America, main many to query if the automaker would depart the model up to now.
VW CEO of passenger vehicles, Thomas Shafer, was fast to shoot this down, claiming this previous November in a separate interview with Autocar there was no approach “we might let go of the Golf identify.”
Shafer defined on the LA Auto Present:
We’ve iconic model names, Golf and GTI. It might be loopy to allow them to die and slip away. We are going to keep on with the ID logic, however iconic fashions will carry a reputation.
As Volkswagen seems to make its “ID” model synonymous with electrical automobiles and sustainability, Shafer says EV fashions don’t essentially want a quantity just like the ID 3 and standard ID 4 fashions, hinting “we’d have an ID Golf” within the works.
Though earlier indications pointed to the ID 3 changing the VW Golf model, Shafer reiterated that was not the case, saying the ID 3 wasn’t meant to switch the Golf. It’s extra of a “Golf Plus.”
With VW’s eighth-generation Golf mannequin set to retire in 2027 or 2028, an electrical mannequin is broadly anticipated to switch it.
VW Golf to be restored as ID 2 EV
In accordance with insider sources talking with Autocar, Volkswagen has utterly redesigned the ID 2, its smallest electrical automobile, from the within out with the proposed ID Golf naming.
Though nothing is official, the sources say a number of naming combos, together with the ID Golf, have been proposed just lately.
As a substitute of earlier comparisons to the ID 3, the sources declare “the true worth of the Volkswagen Golf lies in a automobile the scale of the ID 2.”
The Volkswagen model just lately introduced again former Bentley and Audi designer Andreas Mindt to guide the automaker’s EV efforts, together with a extra standard hatchback form for the proposed ID Golf mannequin.
These conversant in the early proposals say it’s about in the course of the VW Polo and Golf ICE automobiles when it comes to exterior dimensions.
As well as, the ID 2 (or ID Golf, if you’ll) will probably be light-weight (1600 to 1700kg) and is about to be provided with a single motor (FWD), whereas the MEB Plus platform would help a twin motor (4-wheel drive) mannequin.
Shafer giving the okay for the GTI badge return might additionally pave the best way for a VW Golf GTI sooner or later.
Electrek’s Take
I’ve stated it earlier than, and I’ll say it once more, VW letting the Golf model die can be a mistake. It’s one of many automaker’s most recognizable manufacturers.
Different automakers like Ford and GM are carrying legacy favorites into the electrical period, with manufacturers like F-150, Mustang, Blazer, and Silverado making a comeback.
It’s to not say that VW can’t do it with out the Golf model, but when the scale and efficiency are comparable, why not? Underneath Shafer, the upgrades to the ID 2 are a part of a “complete reset” for the Volkswagen model. We’ll see the way it performs out.
FTC: We use revenue incomes auto affiliate hyperlinks. Extra.