Back in the early 1970s, when soaring oil prices stifled consumer demand for gas-powered vehicles, Volkswagen took a bet on a battery system that would power its first-ever electric concept vehicle, the Elektro Bus.
Now that the German auto maker is facing a huge slump in sales in Europe and China, it’s again turning to affordable electric vehicles to save the day.
Volkswagen brand chief Thomas Schaefer told German media that the company plans to bring eight new affordable EVs to market by 2027.
“We have to produce our vehicles profitably and put them on the road at affordable prices,” he is quoted as saying.
One of the models will be the ID.2all hatchback, whose development is currently being expedited to 36 months from its previous 50-months schedule. Last year, VW unveiled the ID.2all concept, promising to give it a price tag of under 25,000 euros ($27,000) for its planned release in 2025.
VW CEO Larry Blume has also hinted at a sub-$22,000 EV to be released after 2025.
It’s unclear which models would reach U.S. shores. Last year, VW America only said it planned to release an under-$35,000 EV in the U.S. by 2027.
The price of batteries is one of the main hurdles to reduce EV’s production costs and lowering sale prices. VW is developing its own unified battery cell in several European plants as well as one plant in Ontario, Canada.
But in order for would-be U.S. buyers to obtain the Inflation Reduction Act’s $7,500 tax credit on the purchase of an EV, the vehicle and its components, including the battery, must be produced at least in part domestically.
VW already has a plant in Chattanooga, Tennesse, and is planning a new plant in South Carolina. But it’s unclear whether its new unified battery cells would be built or assembled there.
