We’ve known for a while that the new MEB platform was going to underpin the Volkswagen electric range for a long time. Now, Volkswagen has given us an in-depth look at the platform and its workings. Volkswagen has announced that the cars will be produced at their German plants in Zwickau, Braunschweig, Salzgitter and Kassel. The Zwickau facility has already received investments worth 1.2 billion Euros to make it the first pure MEB plant and largest competence centre for e-mobility in Europe. Another 1.3 billion will go to the remaining three plants.
Now, Volkswagen has said that the first ID Hatch set to go on sale in 2020 with pre-bookings starting in 2019, with the promise that it would cost less than the corresponding Volkswagen Golf diesel. Speaking on the new platform MEB, Volkswagen has said that it will come with three lithium-ion battery pack sizes. The entry-level ID hatchbacks are projected to have a range of 330 km on the WLTP cycle, with the next larger size of the battery taking the range to over 600 kms. The modular nature of the construct of lithium-ion batteries that are built up from individual cells into modules that can be scaled with more or fewer modules to create larger or smaller packs for the ID family. The largest spec battery’s range has been kept under wraps by Volkswagen, but we expect they’ve kept it considering that it might be a game changer. Alongside this Volkswagen is also preparing the Wall-box home charging system which will be capable of accepting fast [rapid] charging at 125kW taking an 80 per cent charge in 30 minutes. In the case of the ID Hatch, this would mean more than 200 kms of range.
The projections have been set high for the new electric range, as part of the companies electric for all campaign. The bar has been set at 1,50,000 electric cars including another 1,00,000 ID models made in Germany by 2020. The first product lifecycle has been set an astronomical 1 crore vehicles allowing the company to create an economy of scale. The target as of now is to sell 10 lakh Electric cars by 2025.
Speaking on the MEB and Volkswagens plans, head of the E-mobility production series, Christian Senger, said, “The ID will be a milestone in technological development. It will be the first fully electric car with the full everyday utility that millions of people will be able to afford.”
