Volkswagen Australia has confirmed the ID.3, ID.4 and ID.5 EVs for Australia, but the production version of the large ID. Aero concept isn’t on the cards.
“We’re not in the project at the moment. We have looked at it a few times, but currently it’s not on our list of ones that we’re trying really hard to bring in,” said Michelle Rowney, head of product for Volkswagen Passenger Vehicles in Australia.
That’s despite Volkswagen globally saying it planned to offer the vehicle “worldwide in the future in the premium mid-size segment”.
It’s unclear what Volkswagen has planned for the upper reaches of its lineup in Australia, though it plans to introduce the mid-life update of the Touareg. The ID. Buzz will also serve as an EV flagship of sorts when it arrives, likely in 2024.
The German-built Passat sedan is dead globally, leaving only the wagon. The brand has also spoken about potentially bringing a plug-in hybrid Passat wagon to Australia.
It says it’ll continue to sell the Passat and Arteon lines “for the foreseeable future”, but Ms Rowney said more news about the product lifecycle for those will likely be released in the first quarter of next year.
The ID. Aero concept revealed earlier this year appears larger than the Passat and Arteon, with Volkswagen saying it’s “almost five metres long”. The Passat sedan is 4775mm long, while the Arteon in liftback guise measures 4866mm long.
The production version will go on sale in the second half of 2023 in China, while Volkswagen will also produce it at its Emden, Germany plant starting next year.
Emden has long been the home of Passat production, but the next-gen mid-sizer will be produced at a different plant.
There are the short overhangs, long wheelbase and slippery body expected of an electric Volkswagen, with a drag coefficient of just 0.23.
Underneath the cabin sits a 77kWh lithium-ion battery, and Volkswagen says the ID. Aero will have up to 620km of range on the stricter WLTP cycle, making it the longest-range Volkswagen-branded EV yet.
As with models like the ID.4, it rides the dedicated MEB electric vehicle architecture.
It follows the same design language as its platform-mates, with curvaceous bodywork and full-width lighting elements. The concept features matrix LED headlights.
It also features prominent shoulders, while there’s a distinctive honeycomb pattern to the lower air intake and the tail lights.
Volkswagen had previously previewed an electric sedan with its even larger 2018 ID. Vizzion concept, and then a wagon version with the 2019 ID. Space Vizzion.
The ID. Vizzion measured 5164mm long and had a 111kWh battery and a 225kW dual-motor all-wheel drive powertrain, with up to 640km of range.
While a concept hasn’t been revealed yet, Volkswagen has teased its upcoming Project Trinity vehicle – a sleek fastback on the new SSP architecture – as the “crown jewel” of technology in the line-up with Level 4 autonomous driving technology.
It was set to enter production in 2026 but this launch has reportedly been delayed to 2030 as Volkswagen experiences stumbles with the rollout of new software.
Well-publicised issues with Volkswagen’s software division Cariad have also been blamed for the delays of the Audi Q6 e-tron and Porsche Macan EV.
