Volkswagen brand CEO Thomas Schafer stars in a new walkaround video (embedded above) where he examines what makes the ID.2all electric hatchback concept a “real” VW. To make his job a bit easier, he employs the help of Andreas Mindt, the brand’s head of design, who explains stable, likable, and secret sauce. But what is that secret sauce? We’ll get to that a bit later.
First, the stable part is represented by the early VW Scirocco from the 1970s, with its slim body and wide wheel arches, giving it a wide stance. Then, the C-pillar design that goes all the way back to the first-generation Golf has been embedded into the ID.2all concept.
Next, the likable part of VW’s design strategy is best represented by the smiley face of the original Beetle, with its round headlights and curved front bumper.
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And now, for the so-called “secret sauce,” which is actually labeled as the “exciting” part of VW’s new design principles. In the ID.2all, this is embodied by the high-quality materials of the interior, the admittedly German sense of humor which made its way onto the Play and Pause symbols on the two driving pedals, and the design of the rear lights, which have thick glass that supposedly gives a strong vibe.
In other words, these are things that are unexpected by prospective customers, although apart from the nicely put-together interior, the pedals and the taillights might be described as gimmicks.
What’s not a gimmick, however, is Volkswagen’s strategy to price the production version of the ID.2all small hatchback below €25,000, which is about $27,000, at least for the base version. To make this happen, the Volkswagen Group will invest a whopping €10 billion ($10.6 billion) in Spain, building a €3 billion ($3.2 billion) lithium-ion battery gigafactory in Sagunto near Valencia.
Furthermore, the Volkswagen ID.2 will be manufactured in Spain alongside its platform-sharing relatives from brands such as Seat and Skoda, minimizing costs as much as possible. Production is expected to begin in 2025 for the Cupra UrbanRebel, which will be followed by models from the other brands in VW’s portfolio within one and a half years.
