It’s called the ID. Life – likely to be badged ID.2 by the time it’s in production – and it’s VW’s star concept at the IAA Munich show this week. Unusually for a car still over three years away, VW is pledging its price – “It will cost approximately 20,000 euros” – but not yet its design, saying the concept you see here “gives an impression” of how this small urban crossover will finally appear.
How it looks now is… Tonka toy chunky, with a retro vibe reminiscent of the Honda e. “Timeless” is how VW describes it. We welcome it for striking a fresh look, quite distinct from the other ID. electric models, indeed different from anything else around.
Underneath it’s familiar though. It is based on a new short-wheelbase and front-drive version of the increasingly ubiquitous MEB electric architecture, used across the VW empire and claimed by VW to be the most scalable electrical architecture in the industry. In due course it is sure to underpin different looking Skoda and Seat versions, all coming from the group’s designated small electric-car plant in Barcelona.