IT'S BACK- THE MICROBUS IS NOW ELECTRIC.

VOLKSWAGEN TAKES BOLD DECISION TO PUT I.D. BUZZ ELECTRIC CONCEPT CAR INTO PRODUCTION

Aug 19, 2017

Volkswagen management announces production plans for the 21^st century Microbus at the
home of the Pebble Beach Concours D’Elegance

 

Pebble Beach, California – At the Detroit Show in early 2017, Volkswagen showed the I.D. BUZZ concept car, a fully electric vehicle that taps in to the spirit and vibe that made the VW Microbus such an iconic vehicle — whether with Hippies and families in the Sixties or Surfer Dudes and Van Lifers today.

The NAIAS in Detroit excited our team as to the revival of the VW Microbus.

VW received an overwhelming number of letters and emails asking them to produce the I.D. Buzz. The F I.D. line will start with a more conventional four-door passenger car model based on the first I.D. concept before the end of the decade. The I.D. Buzz, it said today, “will arrive at dealerships in 2022,” and it “is mainly targeting markets in North America, Europe and China.”

“For me, the I.D. Buzz concept is the most beautiful and most exciting electric car in the world,” said Dr. Herbert Diess, Chairman of the Board of Management for the Volkswagen brand, in Pebble Beach, Calif.

“Our goal is clear: we want to make the fully electric, fully connected car a bestseller around the world. The iconic car of the electric age must be a Volkswagen.”

The I.D. Buzz is the second EV concept that VW has revealed for production, along with the original I.D. concept slated to enter production around 2019 as a 2020 model, while the I.D. Crozz concept has shown how an electric VW SUV could look. All three use VW’s Modular Electric Drive kit (or MEB, for its German acronym), a group of components and chassis parts engineered to maximize the potential of electric drive and future technology. “These cars will offer everything – and even more – than you have seen from other electric carmakers,” says Diess. “And they will be much more affordable.”

The first VW Bus sold in the United States in 1950 had all of 30 hp. The I.D. Buzz concept sports 369 hp from electric motors on each axle that also provide all wheel drive and the 111 kWh battery pack in the floor of the MEB chassis provide nearly 300 miles of estimated range. Using a VW fast-charge system, the it can recharge about 80 percent of its energy capacity in 30 minutes at 150 kW.

Last week and according to our staff a lot of Beetles and original Microbuses cruised Detroit’s Woodward Cruse  day and night.  The young people will buy the new I.D. Buzz electric.

Now, Volkswagen has taken the bold decision to put the Volkswagen I.D. BUZZ concept car into production and Volkswagen’s CEO of the North American Region, Hinrich J. Woebcken is happy to welcome the car to North America.  The Chairmen of the Boards of Management of the Volkswagen and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles brands, Dr Herbert Diess and Dr Eckhard Scholz, announced the decision today at one of the most prestigious automotive events in the world — the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in California. 

Within the framework of further development, Volkswagen has also set a launch date for the I.D. BUZZ. The vehicle will arrive at dealerships in 2022, after the compact four-door I.D. makes its debut. With the I.D. BUZZ, Volkswagen is mainly targeting markets in North America, Europe and China.

You can  be sure VW and after market suppliers will create a camper version.

The I.D. Buzz Concept picked up on many of the classic microvan’s design cues, starting with the relatively blunt nose and flat roof. But instead of the rear-mounted engine of the classic Microbus, the I.D. Buzz will rely on a pure battery-electric drivetrain.

"After the presentations at the global motor shows in Detroit and Geneva, we received a large number of letters and emails from customers who said, 'please build this car’,” Volkswagen CEO Dr Herbert Diess said in Pebble Beach. The Board of Management chose Pebble Beach as the location to make its announcement because, as Diess explained: "The Microbus has long been part of the California lifestyle. Now we're bringing it back by reinventing it as an electric vehicle."

Just like the concept car that was shown in Detroit, the production model will also have its batteries mounted in the vehicle floor. Because the electric drive components — electric motor, power electronics, and such —don't take up much space, the vehicle has a long wheelbase with short overhangs, allowing for a massively spacious interior and great proportions. "The vehicle looks like a compact commercial van on the outside, even though it offers the generous interior space of a large SUV," Diess explained.

As with the passenger car – indeed, just like virtually all new electric vehicles coming to market now – the I.D. Microbus will adopt a skateboard-like platform pioneered by Tesla and General Motors. That means the batteries and key drivetrain components will be under the load floor. That serves several purposes:

• It helps lower the center of gravity, improving vehicle dynamics despite the large mass of batteries;
• It offers more room for the batteries needed for extended range;
• At the same time, it frees up space above for passengers and cargo.

That will be doubly beneficial, as the German automaker says it plans to offer both passenger and cargo versions of the I.D. Buzz.

CEO of the North American Region, Volkswagen, Hinrich J. Woebcken added: “We are delighted that our parent company has taken the decision to produce the I.D. BUZZ. This vehicle is the perfect balance between emotion, usability and sustainability, while also showcasing our technological leadership. The high seating position, cargo capacity, overall versatility and all-wheel drive option packaged into such an appealing design is just what our customers want from us. And it’s the perfect fit for the zero-emissions American lifestyle.”

The I.D. BUZZ won’t just be a passenger vehicle. Just like the classic T2, the I.D. BUZZ will both haul people and haul freight. "Along with a minibus version, we'll also be offering an I.D. BUZZ CARGO variant for zero-emissions delivery of goods,” said Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles CEO Dr Eckhard Scholz. "With Level 3 autonomous capability, this is an ideal concept for an electric van, particularly for delivering packages and goods to the inner cities."

“The vehicle looks like a compact commercial van on the outside, even though it offers the generous interior space of a large SUV,” Diess explained.

Although Volkswagen's oldest and newest Microbuses will be separated by more than seven decades when the new model is launched, the I.D. BUZZ undoubtedly has the original's genes, as it offers maximum utilization of space on the footprint of a mid-size passenger car. Based on the new all-electric architecture, the production version of the I.D. BUZZ will incorporate many design ideas from the concept car, including multi-variable seating, interactive connectivity and highly automated driving.

The I.D. Buzz concept also offers a preview of the type of autonomous technology that VW will develop for future models – namely its fully automated “I.D. Pilot” mode that could go into production by 2025. From the fold-away steering wheel and pop-up laser scanners in the roof to a heads-up display that integrates augmented reality, the I.D. Buzz does not lack for innovation.

The  I.D.BUZZ will allow a motorist to shift to self-driving mode, though someone will need to remain behind the wheel ready to take over in an emergency.

“With Level 3 autonomous capability, this is an ideal concept for an electric van, particularly for delivering packages and goods to the inner cities,” said commercial vehicles division CEO Eckhard Scholz.

VW has been rapidly plugging into electric propulsion. It now has a variety of hybrids, plug-ins and even pure battery models, such as the e-Golf. But it is also working up an entirely new sub-brand, Volkswagen I.D., specifically for electrified offerings. All told, Diess has said there will be at least such models in the line-up a decade from now.

“The I.D. Buzz stands for the new Volkswagen,” says Diess. “We are fully committed to the future of mobility, and we want to reignite America’s love for VW.”

REVIEWED BY OUR TEAM

BRUCE HUBBARD

BRADLEY HUBBARD

BONNIE LYNCH

HISTORY OF THE ELECTRIC MICROBUS

#TBT: Volkswagen’s first electric bus

 

Volkswagen has a long heritage with electric propulsion. Ferdinand Porsche, the engineer who designed  the Volkswagen Beetle, made a name for himself with his first electric car in 1900 (one later adopted to become the world’s first hybrid.) But it would be some 70 years before a production electric vehicle would carry the Volkswagen brand – and it’s likely not one you’ve ever heard of.

The global oil crisis of the early 1970s set many automakers to work looking for alternatives to gasoline power. One of VW’s answers was to take the still-popular Type 2 Microbus and transform it into an all-electric vehicle. Known as both Eleckro-Bus and Elektro-Transporter, VW would eventually build and sell about 70 of these EVs for use in Germany between 1972 and 1976.

Volkswagen's Elektro-Bus

The limitations of electric power in that era made the Elektro-Bus a machine useful for only certain roles. The battery pack of 72 lead-acid cells was reliable but not that powerful; top speed was only 43 miles per hour, and reaching it would take a good 30 seconds. As with modern electric cars, the pack was located on the vehicle floor in the center of the chassis, necessary given its size and 1,847-lb. weight; unlike today, the range was all of 25 miles. And while the Bus was rechargeable over several hours, it also included a built-in rail and stand that allowed owners to swap out battery packs.

Even 40 years ago, the VW engineers who built the Elektro-Bus were exploring how much better it could be with a more advanced battery (a nickel-cobalt pack the same weight as the one in the pack would have doubled the range). As this year’s I.D. BUZZ concept shows, the next generation of electric-powered vehicles with lithium-ion packs could have speed and range similar to what’s already on the road – and style to spare, as VW buses always do.