VW ID.1 entry-level electric car officially announced for 2025 launch

It’s a big day for those who are fans of electric Volkswagen models as aside from releasing a teaser for the 2026 Project Trinity sedan, the peeps from Wolfsburg have other EV news to share. Chief of which is confirmation of a sub-ID.3 model to serve as the brand’s entry-level fully electric car, which has been fast-tracked for a 2025 launch. That’s two years earlier than originally planned.

VW isn’t using the “ID.1” moniker just yet, but multiple reports have stated this will the name of the company’s base EV. It will ride on a new MEB-Lite platform adapted for zero-emissions vehicles with smaller battery packs and is going to serve as a direct successor of the e-up! electric city car. Chances are it will also be the foundation for a badge-engineered model from Skoda, presumably to replace the Citigo-e iV. SEAT could get its own version of the ID.1 as well to succeed the Mii Electric while premium brand Audi is expected to launch a pint-sized EV, too.

While the ID.1 is rumored to take the shape of a supermini, there are allegedly also plans for an ID.2 as a larger compact hatchback. A battery capacity of up to 45 kWh has been mooted, but nothing is official at this point. It’s too early to talk about pricing, although Volkswagen CEO Ralf Brandstätter told Autocar the company is targeting a starting price in the United Kingdom of about £17,000, which works out to just under €20,000 and $23,500 at current exchange rates.

Meanwhile, VW has a lot on its EV plate. The all-wheel-drive ID.4 GTX will be launched in the first half of this year and will be followed later in 2021 by the ID.5. Over in China, an ID.6 X / Crozz electric SUV with seven seats will go on sale this fall. In addition, the MEB architecture will be continuously updated in the coming years and a new platform tailored exclusively to EVs is already in the works and will debut in the aforementioned Trinity sedan due in 2026.

Source: Volkswagen