The Volkswagen ID.Buzz to launch
After five intensive years of development work since the concept ID.Buzz was first shown at the Detroit Motor Show, the all electric Buzz Cargo van will have its world premiere on 9 March, making it one of the much awaited van launches this year.
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles is currently going through the final phase of trials of the ID. Buzz prototypes and in cities such as Barcelona, Paris, London, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Hamburg and Hannover.
ID.Buzz design inspired by the iconic T1
The rear wheel drive ID. Buzz prototypes and eventual production models are inspired by the stylistic elements of the legendary T1, the original Bulli which includes key features such as extremely short vehicle body overhangs, maximum utilisation of space on a minimal footprint, the classic division of the vehicle body design into an upper and lower level, plus the unmistakable face with its V-shape.
Volkswagen electric MEB platform
The model line is based on the Volkswagen Group’s Modular Electric Drive Kit (MEB) and both versions ( car and van) will features a ‘high-voltage lithium-ion battery’ providing gross energy content of 82 kWh (net: 77 kWh). The battery supplies a 150 kW electric motor with 310Nm of torque and the top speed is electronically limited at 90mph and range has yet to be released.
ID.Buzz Specification
The will be a three and five seat version, obviously the three seater will be the main van platform, initiallt it will be available as a short wheelbase but later a longer wheelbase and a correspondingly broader range of possibilities for the interior will be announced .
The standard wheelbase (2,988 mm) launching this year will be 4,712 mm long, two millimetres different to that of the T6.1, which measures 4,904 mm in length. The ID. Buzz thus offers a similar internal length, but is able to use smaller parking spaces. The bus, which is generously fitted with glass all round, is 1,937 mm high; in the case of the van, it is 1,938 mm due to slight differences in the chassis (T6.1: 1,970 mm). The two ID. Buzz vehicles are 1,985 mm wide (excluding wing mirrors); the new model is thus 81 mm wider than the T6.1. With rims in the sizes 18 to 21 inches, the new model line runs on big wheels (750 mm diameter).
The five-seater ID. Buzz takes up to 1,121 litres of luggage even with all seats occupied and the van a load cargo area of 3.9 m3.
Bi-Directional Charging
The ID. software will allow for ‘Plug & Charge’ function in which the vehicle authenticates itself at many providers’ (DC) quick-charging stations via the charging connector, exchanging all necessary data with it in this way – a much more convenient arrangement. And there is going to be another new feature: bidirectional charging which opens up a whole new spectrum of possibilities. One example: It will from now on be possible to store excess power from a home’s own solar panels in the ID. Buzz and to feed it back into the home in the evening in order to be independent even without the sun.
Over-the-air updates and innovative assist systems
Over the air updates will be available and a spectrum of driver assist systems includes innovatively interconnected technologies such as the new ‘Trained Parking’ function (automatic manoeuvring into and out of parking spaces), ‘Car2X’ (warnings and hazard alerts in the local vicinity) and the latest version of ‘Travel Assist’ featuring utilisation of crowdsourced data; the system facilitates forward and lateral guidance on a partly automated basis across the full speed range.
Production of the ID. Buzz starts in the first half of this year, and the European launch follows just a short time later in the autumn. The ID. Buzz is also set to be marketed in the USA – it will be the comeback of the model line from New York to San Francisco, which has been eagerly awaited by many American fans.
