Paris show: Volkswagen shows its ID

VOLKSWAGEN has revealed its vision for the first in a new fleet of electric cars that it says will hit the road from 2020, charged with the task of achieving a million sales in the first five years.

Coming out on the eve of the Paris motor show, the Golf-sized VW ID concept is said to be capable of a driving range of 400 to 600 kilometres on a full battery charge, putting it right up their with the best of the new breed of EVs.

A single electric motor generating 125kW of power is the driving force behind the vehicle, although VW did not say where it was positioned or what transmission would be applied.

While details of the technology under the skin are being held back, VW confirmed that the ID will not only be all electric but capable of full autonomous driving from 2025. Apparently, the steering wheel recedes into the dash when the driver switches on the auto pilot system.

The ID will be the first vehicle built on VW’s Modular Electric Drive Kit (MEB) platform that will underpin other EVs in the pipeline from Wolfsburg.

Four seats can been seen in the ID’s cabin that is said to be extra spacious compared with a conventional car, thanks to the compact driveline. VW has said that the MEB architecture can liberate an extra 240mm of cabin space.

VW described the ID as the “ambassador” for this new range of battery powered “highly innovative electric vehicles” for a new era.

Styling wise, the smooth new design language of the ID will be shared by other VW EVs to set them apart from regular models such as the Golf, which Volkswagen confirmed will run in parallel with the ID and similar models.

Clearly, VW is hedging its bets for the next decade or so, offering conventional internal combustion engine cars while phasing in EVs with the latest technology and performance.

Volkswagen has been a late starter in the EV game, watching on while rivals such as Renault and BMW stole the march.

However, since the dieselgate scandal, VW has played up its electric credentials, looking to electric drive systems as a way of phasing out diesel in the long term in Europe when the fuel is on the nose.