Certainly one of Volkswagen’s newest idea vehicles teases what is going to ultimately be essentially the most inexpensive entry in its lineup of ID-branded electrical automobiles.
Revealed on the IAA Mobility convention in Munich, Germany over the weekend, the ID Life idea is a boxy little four-door compact automotive that’s truly extra paying homage to the overly cute Honda E than its extra streamlined ID siblings. It gained’t go on sale till 2025 (which means we’re seemingly at the very least two years away from seeing the ultimate manufacturing model), however when it does, VW says it should value round €20,000 (roughly $24,000).
That’s an extremely aggressive price ticket, and it’s considered one of two huge causes VW (and the bigger Volkswagen Group) has spent so many billions of {dollars} creating the modular “MEB” electrical automobile platform. With the ability to energy a number of vehicles at completely different value factors with the identical underlying know-how is permitting the automaker to ultimately cost far much less for what ought to nonetheless be a succesful EV with out taking a complete monetary tub on the challenge. (The opposite cause was Dieselgate.)
The ID Life idea will use a 57kWh capability model of the MEB battery pack, which VW says can final for round 400 kilometers (about 250 miles) on the European WLTP testing cycle. A potent 172kW motor (roughly 230 horsepower) will sit on the entrance axle — the ID Life would be the first MEB automotive with front-wheel drive — and might transfer the compact from 0 to 100 kilometers per hour in slightly below seven seconds.
Rather a lot can occur within the subsequent 4 years, however these specs are literally higher than the present base mannequin of the ID 3, VW’s present entry-level, Golf-style electrical automobile.
The within of the ID Life is sparse. There’s a yoke-style steering wheel with touch-sensitive buttons, and there’s no commonplace dashboard show — as a substitute, VW imagines house owners will drop their very own telephone or pill onto the wood sprint and let these gadgets run the infotainment system. (There’s additionally a wi-fi charging… sleeve, or pocket, within the material of the driving force’s facet door.) The rear bench seat is small, and the entrance trunk can also be tiny, because it seems the entrance passenger foot effectively takes up a lot of the house underneath the hood that isn’t occupied by the electrical motor.
In fact this wouldn’t be idea automotive with out at the very least one ridiculous thought, which VW conveniently provides within the type of an built-in projector and a projection display screen that extends up from the sprint — the thought being that you may fold the entrance seats down and watch a film or play video video games from the ID Life’s again bench seat. (VW even says there’s a online game console included, although it doesn’t truly title one.)
Lastly, VW is selling the thought of utilizing numerous pure and recycled supplies with the ID Life idea. There are wooden chips within the exterior paint for coloring. The roof and hood are made from recycled PET bottles. The tires are made from “[b]io-oil, pure rubber and rice husks.” These are very talked-about concepts in idea vehicles, however recyclable supplies are nonetheless solely slowly making their means into manufacturing automobiles, so it’s anybody’s guess how a lot of this makes it into the true ID Life that can hit the highway in 2025.
Really inexpensive electrical vehicles have been elusive thus far (exterior of China, at the very least). Tesla spent years promising a $35,000 Mannequin 3, however by no means completely delivered on that promise. (Its most cost-effective vehicles now value round $40,000.) The most recent electrical Mini begins at round $30,000, and another varsity EVs just like the Hyundai Kona and Chevy Bolt are inching close to that price tag — although these two have additionally handled large remembers concerning the LG batteries round which they’re constructed. Each main automaker has a brand new EV or two (or three) coming within the subsequent few years, however VW might be the perfect wager to make one thing as inexpensive and succesful because it’s promising with the ID Life.
