VW ID.3 Best of Best Award

Here’s why the VW ID.3 does not have the ‘frunk’ feature

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Dutch media outlet Ad.nl has conducted an interaction with Klaus Bischoff, the head of Volkswagen design, and he’s provided several interesting facts about the ID.3 –

  • The ID.3 is about the same length as the new Golf, but offers an interior similar to that of a Passat.
  • There is no ‘frunk’ (referring to luggage space where the engine usually is) on the ID.3 as the nose is quite short and the available space had to be used for the 12-volt battery (which runs the lights, wipers fans, etc), the cooling system and fluid reservoirs. The projector module for the Head-Up Display, which is significantly larger than in other models due to the presence of Augmented Reality takes up a lot of the front space.
  • The ID.3 does not carry the illuminated logo of the concept car partly due to cost reasons but also that VW introducing its new logo on the ID.3.
  • The ID.3’s glass roof cannot be opened because an electric roof would make the ID.3 significantly heavier and that is detrimental to the driving range. Secondly it has to do with the cost.
  • VW aimed for a more high-tech and a modern look for the interior on the ID.3. Controls such as the steering wheel and the center console are available in the ‘Electric White’ option. The inspiration for this is from mobile devices and earphones, and that creates a completely different atmosphere than you find in existing Volkswagens.

You can read the full interview over at Ad.nl.

May 28, 2020 –

VW ID.3 awarded ‘Best of Best’ in the Automotive Brand Contest 2020

The Volkswagen ID.3 has bagged the top honours at the the Automotive Brand Contest 2020 and was awarded “Best of Best” in Exterior Volume Brand and Interior Volume Brand categories.

The judging panel was impressed by the ID.3’s expressive design with its coherent exterior and interior and stated that the ID.3 is an impressive modern interpretation of Volkswagen’s design. The Automotive Brand Contest was established in 2011 by the German Design Council and honours the best product and communication design in the auto industry. The panel members consist of various personnel from media, design, industrial companies, education institutions and architecture sectors.

May 7, 2020 –

Volkswagen ID.3 is open for orders from June 17 [Update]

It looks like VW ID.3 will start reaching the customers soon. Those who have pre-booked the ID.3 can order the electric hatch from June 17th 2020.

This has been confirmed by Jürgen Stackmann, Member of the Board of Management of the Volkswagen Passenger Cars, who thanked the customers for their patience. Mr Stackmann has said that orders for ID.3 in right-hand-drive markets will also begin four weeks later from the aforementioned date. The VW ID.3 had its own share of delays in production because of software issues and there was a question mark on availability of the car. Volkswagen would be producing 30,000 examples of the ID.3 First Edition before moving on to the regular models, with deliveries promised this Summer.

Volkswagen resumed output at its Zwickau plant in Germany in late April after the coronavirus breakout suspended operations. The plant restarted production with reduced capacity and slower cycle times and in the first phase, it makes 50 ID.3 units per shift. There are plans to produce 100,000 units of vehicles based on MEB platform at this plant and next year the number is expected to increase to 300,000 units. The plant will be completely converted to make only electric cars.

YouTube channel nextmove got an exclusive peek into the Zwickau factory where the VW ID.3 is being made. The host goes on to show the production line and confirms that six new models will be put into production, all of them fully-electric. Talking about the software issues, the channel reports that they have seen many new ID.3 units at the plant and displays look completely fine with the entertainment system and air-conditioning functioning. The software development has been happening parallel to the production of the car. The video also shows that the ID.3 is being produced carbon neutral with renewable energy used for production both at the supplier’s park and at the plant. Here’s the video:

April 23, 2020 –

Jürgen Stackmann, Member of the Board of Management Volkswagen Brand for Sales, Marketing & After Sales, hopped on to Twitter to provide a quick update on the VW ID.3’s progression to its launch:

He said:

Happy that the production keeps running (post the COVID-19 shutdown, the Zwickau factory resumes operations today), the car itself is getting ready for customers. The expected question is what about the software, as experts you have been questioning the software status. The reality is that all functions are available in the car, it is just the finishing touches that now need to get refined in a way Volkswagen wants to hand over the cars to you, because the first experience in the ID.3 you are getting should be a fantastic experience, and getting better with each software update during the lifecycle of the car. But the first throw we do with our customers obviously needs to be to the standard of Volkswagen and not a startup brand. So it will take a few weeks for our teams to get these finishing touches into the software. The (driving) experience is already great, fun to drive, fun to look at, a car that will actually make you really happy in the second half of this year.

“My feedback is that the car is lovely to drive, it has a high seating position, it has a fantastic turning circle like an Up!,” he said, after having used the car for a whole week. On the range, Stackmann said, “I haven’t charged the car in one week.”

March 30, 2020 –

VW ID.3’s software situation an “absolute disaster,” says German report

Volkswagen will be handing the first few production units of its ID.3 electric car at the Zwickau plant with the updated software to its own staff for quality assurance, but the problem appears to be far from over.

In a report by Süddeutsche Zeitung, it has been stated that the production units will be given to the staff with slimmed down functions and the car is expected to launch with a “basic version” of the operating system, if that passes the quality tests. The ID.3 units that were produced so far from the German plant are stored under dust sheets in private parking areas in Saxony desperately waiting for the software. Volkswagen had earlier quashed rumours that there were more delays to be had and stated that 30,000 customers will take deliveries of ID.3 in the summer of 2020. With the software issues unsorted, it is expected to launch the car with fewer features and is likely to be offering the left-out features at service centres or through OTA (if that functionality is indeed available in the first batch of cars) at a later date once they are ready.

Süddeutsche Zeitung additionally reported that Volkswagen is really struggling to find the necessary software expertise and that a private meeting was held with Daimler to co-develop an operating system. Martin Hofmann, VW’s chief information officer since 2011, will be leaving the company at the end of the month. The newspaper is reporting that VW has failed to excite young software experts to join the company and sometimes important managers like Hofmann are lost as well.

The newspaper opines that if the Germans car companies remain without a competitive software, they will dwindle into simple suppliers, and that would be a “horror scenario” for the German car industry as they would be “sheet metal benders in the world of new mobility,” relying on Operating Systems from large American corporations like Google or Apple.

The ID.3 will be made available in three battery capacities – 45 kWh, 58 kWh and 77 kWh with a range of 320 km, 420 km and 550 km respectively. Initially, VW will be introducing the ID.3 1st Edition with the 58 kWh/420 km range battery. It comes with a 150 kW motor placed at the rear axle and produces a peak torque of 310 Nm, enabling it to achieve a top speed of 160 km/h.

ID.3 will be the first fully-electric vehicle from Volkswagen under the ID brand followed by the ID.4 SUV later in the year which is based on the ID.Crozz concept and will enter production in three countries – USA, Germany and China. Like the ID.3, the ID.4 is built on the MEB platform and is expected to be priced around $40,000 to $50,000. The ID series will lead the charge at the Volkswagen Group which is looking to launch almost 70 battery-electric models by 2028.

[Source: sueddeutsche.de]

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