With the ID.Buzz, there should be an electric Bulli from 2022. Multivan and Transporter keep combustion engines. A Volkswagen icon will be electrified in 2022 – the Bulli. What began in 1950 with the first T generation is set to undergo its greatest transformation over 70 years later and change its drive concept. Despite all the changes, the new drive also brings back old virtues and proves one thing above all: the bus is incredibly important for VW. Although vans and Multivan models remain loyal to the combustion engine, for the time being, the lifestyle customers that are so important to VW receive a locally emission-free alternative with the fully electric bus.
Look ID.Buzz wants to be close to the original Bulli
In 2017, Volkswagen launched its ID.Buzz’s study shows what the electric van of the future should look like. The design is based heavily on the first generation of the bus, the T1. Its characteristic front shield with the V-shaped indentation is one of the most eye-catching design elements here and is also a theme in the new edition. The bus study can also wear the iconic two-tone paintwork. According to Erlkönig pictures, the production model is astonishingly close to the concept car. The overhangs are short, the window areas are large and the design language of the exhibition bus can also be recognized at the rear, despite the camouflage film. The mission is clear: the new electric bus should look as close as possible to the cult bus of the first generation.
Interior: ID.3 and ID.4 cockpit likely
The cockpit should be based strongly on ID.3 and ID.4 about prototypes that have already been spotted. The electric bus will also have a small digital cockpit directly on the steering column. The vehicle itself is controlled via the central monitor. There are almost no buttons anymore, so the Bulli, like its electronic siblings, would be controlled almost exclusively by touch. It is completely open, however, how the fund, which is so important for a VW Bulli, will be designed. The new T7 Multivan already follows a new interior philosophy for the generation change and comes in the future without a foldable rear seat bench. Individual seats and a sliding center console are the new spatial concept here; the production version of the ID.Buzz could also pursue this approach.
Name and versions: VW could also call the bus Samba
It is still unclear whether the first fully electric Bulli will be called ID.Buzz. Although the name would continue the nomenclature of the electric models at Volkswagen, the sibling models have always had numbers in their names. In addition, rumors are circulating that brings the historical name “Samba” back into play. According to this, the production version of the ID.Buzz could listen to the famous name of the legendary T1 with up to 23 windows, for which well over 100,000 euros are now being charged on the classic car market. There will only be clarity about this shortly before the premiere.
Even if the name is still unclear, there is more certainty about the versions. Just recently, VW showed a fully autonomous version of the ID.Buzz version, which is due to go into service for the ride pooling provider MOIA from 2025. In addition to the window bus with space for several people, a commercial version is also planned, which then does not have a window in the rear part. Multivan’s and vans are still offered with internal combustion engines, but for companies that are mainly on the move in the city, the cargo version of the ID.Buzz is intended to be a fully electric alternative with more focus on optics.
Technology: ID.Buzz flexibly scalable thanks to MEB
With the ID.Buzz, VW is also making its largest model to date on the new electrical construction kit (MEB). The floor pan, which also serves as a substructure for VW ID.3, Skoda Enyaq, and Audi Q4 e-Tron, thus has space for additional batteries in the underbody. Since VW arranges its power storage in a frame between the axles, an extended wheelbase also means more possible battery cells. Like all models on the MEB, the E-Bulli will also be operated with 400 volts and use a quick charger with a maximum charging capacity of 135 kW.
In the previous models, a range of around 550 km is possible, like ID.Buzz will look like the series version, will be shown. In the basic version, the ID.Buzz could only be equipped with rear-wheel drive, a common feature with the ancestor T1, which also relied on rear-engine and rear-wheel drive. All-wheel drive is optionally conceivable, which should not pose any major hurdles due to the modular structure of the platform. The performance of the e-machines is pure speculation, but the most powerful MEB model has an all-wheel drive of up to 306 hp. Volkswagen could introduce the electric bus at the beginning of 2022.
