Image: Volkswagen
Volkswagen on Monday unveiled a concept for its first all-electric limousine, the ID. AERO, in China. The car will be the German automaker’s first global, fully-electric sedan and the sixth member of the ID. family after the ID.3, ID.4, ID.5, ID.6, and ID. Buzz.
Image: Volkswagen
“With the ID. AERO show car, we are revealing a preview of the next member of the ID. family. A car with an emotional and at the same time extremely aerodynamic design, a range of over 600 kilometres, an extraordinary amount of space and a premium interior,” said Ralf Brandstätter, CEO of Volkswagen Passenger Cars.
“With our ACCELERATE strategy, we are intensively driving forward the electrification of our model range. Following the ID.4, this model will be our next global car for Europe, China and the US.”
The ID. AERO is built on Volkswagen’s modular electric drive matrix (MEB) platform, which can be adapted for vehicles of different shapes and sizes. It features a design optimized for aerodynamics with an impressive drag coefficient of 0.23, 22-inch wheels, and illuminated touch surfaces for door handles.
Image: Volkswagen
The all-electric limo also sports a wrap-around aesthetic light strip that starts at the front, curves along the left and right sides, and continues to the rear end with a few interruptions.
For juice, the ID. AERO comes equipped with a 77 kWh battery and offers a range of up to 620 km (385 miles), but that’s based on the Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicles Test Procedure (WLTP).
Volkswagen described the new electric vehicle as a “close-to-production” concept car. The veteran carmaker intends to start shipping the ID. AERO in China sometime in the first half of 2023. A production model for the rest of the world, including the North American and European regions, will also be unveiled the same year.
Volkswagen plans to eventually overtake Tesla to become the world’s foremost electric car brand. However, the automaker has the tallest of tasks ahead of it. Earlier this month, Volkswagen Group CEO Herbert Diess said that Tesla works “twice as fast as the rest of the industry.”
