The Buzz-es will come from VW Commercial Vehicles plant in Hannover.
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles and VW Passenger Cars today debuted the all-new ID.Buzz and ID.Buzz Cargo. The two electric vehicles mimic the design of the T1 Microbus of hippie fame.
In keeping with VW’s German-eccentric focus, the first versions will come to the European market during Q3 with an 82-kWh battery powering 201-hp electric motor with maximum torque of 229 lb.-ft.
The product aspects and specifications following apply to European models. Details for U.S. versions will be available closer to launch scheduled for 2024. The U.S. version will be based off the long-wheelbase passenger model. The standard wheelbase measures 2,988 mm (117.6 in), and both Buzz models are 4,712 mm (185.5 in) long and 1,985 mm (78.1 in) wide, excluding wing mirrors. The ID. Buzz is 1,937 mm (76.3 in) high, while the cargo version is 1,938 mm due to slight differences in the chassis. (see AutoInformed on: VW ID. Buzz Cargo Teases New Light Commercial Vehicles; VW Group Electric Shuffle – Emden, Hanover to build EVs)
As with other models of Volkswagen’s all-electric family, the new ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo are based on the Group’s Modular Electric Drive Kit (MEB). The MEB is a scalable large-production-run platform. It provides the basis across the brands for different models and segments. At present, 30% of the few electric vehicles in the Group are based on the MEB. By 2025, it’s planned to be more than 80%. For Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, the all-electric ID. Buzz is a building block to help reduce the carbon footprint of the whole product portfolio.
The standard 10-inch Digital Cockpit display is paired with a 10-inch infotainment system that is positioned centrally. A 12-inch display with navigation is optional. The first European versions of Buzz and Buzz Cargo will come with a high-voltage lithium-ion battery providing gross energy content of 82 kWh (77 kWh net). With its twelve modules, the battery system supplies a 201-horsepower electric motor, which drives the rear axle. Maximum torque of 229 lb.-ft. is instantly available and the top speed is electronically limited to 90 mph. More battery versions with various power output levels are expected to follow in 2023.
The charging power when using alternating current (AC) is 11 kW. Via a CCS plug connector at a DC fast-charging station (direct current), the charging power increases to as much as 170 kW. With DC-fast charging, the battery charge level rises from 5 to 80 percent in just 30 minutes. Using the latest software, the ID.Buzz model line will offer the Plug & Charge function in the future. For the moment, ac charging time is marked with a calendar, not a clock with minute hands.
For Europe, bi-directional charging will enable the new ID.Buzz and ID.Buzz Cargo to feed power that they don’t need into the domestic grid (vehicle-to-home VtHP ). In the future, this can also make the power available for stabilizing the grid. The power transfer and communication take place via an optional DC bi-directional wall box.
The Buzz -es are being produced by Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles at its main plant in Hannover. Production of the ID.Buzz here reaches, in parts, an automation level of up to 90 percent. In parallel with the transformation of the plant, the workforce is also taking a step into the future. Many job profiles are changing, and through retraining measures, the workers are acquiring the necessary knowledge for dealing with the new hardware and software of the ID. Buzz, VW claims.
The majority of the ID.Buzz electric drive system modules being supplied to the plant for this are also being made in Germany, by Volkswagen Group Components division. The modules – including the electric motor, the axles and the battery system – are being produced at the components factories in Kassel, Braunschweig, Salzgitter and Hannover. The ID. Buzz is the first model in Volkswagen’s family of all-electric vehicles for which Volkswagen Group Components is making the axles. This is being done in a hall specifically set up for the purpose at the Hannover-Barsinghausen site with 200 employees.
Long term, Hannover also plans to produce the battery system for the ID. Buzz. It is currently being made in Braunschweig, and the company is currently investing around 100 million euros in the construction of the battery system assembly.
Estimated Dates
- Start of European ID.Buzz Cargo production: first half of 2022
- Start of European ID.Buzz production: first half of 2022
- European launch (initial countries): third quarter of 2022
- Start of advance sales in Europe (initial countries): May 2022
- North American debut of long wheelbase: 2023
- North American sales launch: 2024
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
Volkswagen Debuts ID.Buzz and ID.Buzz Cargo
The Buzz-es will come from VW Commercial Vehicles plant in Hannover.
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles and VW Passenger Cars today debuted the all-new ID.Buzz and ID.Buzz Cargo. The two electric vehicles mimic the design of the T1 Microbus of hippie fame.
In keeping with VW’s German-eccentric focus, the first versions will come to the European market during Q3 with an 82-kWh battery powering 201-hp electric motor with maximum torque of 229 lb.-ft.
The product aspects and specifications following apply to European models. Details for U.S. versions will be available closer to launch scheduled for 2024. The U.S. version will be based off the long-wheelbase passenger model. The standard wheelbase measures 2,988 mm (117.6 in), and both Buzz models are 4,712 mm (185.5 in) long and 1,985 mm (78.1 in) wide, excluding wing mirrors. The ID. Buzz is 1,937 mm (76.3 in) high, while the cargo version is 1,938 mm due to slight differences in the chassis. (see AutoInformed on: VW ID. Buzz Cargo Teases New Light Commercial Vehicles; VW Group Electric Shuffle – Emden, Hanover to build EVs)
As with other models of Volkswagen’s all-electric family, the new ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo are based on the Group’s Modular Electric Drive Kit (MEB). The MEB is a scalable large-production-run platform. It provides the basis across the brands for different models and segments. At present, 30% of the few electric vehicles in the Group are based on the MEB. By 2025, it’s planned to be more than 80%. For Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, the all-electric ID. Buzz is a building block to help reduce the carbon footprint of the whole product portfolio.
The standard 10-inch Digital Cockpit display is paired with a 10-inch infotainment system that is positioned centrally. A 12-inch display with navigation is optional. The first European versions of Buzz and Buzz Cargo will come with a high-voltage lithium-ion battery providing gross energy content of 82 kWh (77 kWh net). With its twelve modules, the battery system supplies a 201-horsepower electric motor, which drives the rear axle. Maximum torque of 229 lb.-ft. is instantly available and the top speed is electronically limited to 90 mph. More battery versions with various power output levels are expected to follow in 2023.
The charging power when using alternating current (AC) is 11 kW. Via a CCS plug connector at a DC fast-charging station (direct current), the charging power increases to as much as 170 kW. With DC-fast charging, the battery charge level rises from 5 to 80 percent in just 30 minutes. Using the latest software, the ID.Buzz model line will offer the Plug & Charge function in the future. For the moment, ac charging time is marked with a calendar, not a clock with minute hands.
For Europe, bi-directional charging will enable the new ID.Buzz and ID.Buzz Cargo to feed power that they don’t need into the domestic grid (vehicle-to-home VtHP ). In the future, this can also make the power available for stabilizing the grid. The power transfer and communication take place via an optional DC bi-directional wall box.
The Buzz -es are being produced by Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles at its main plant in Hannover. Production of the ID.Buzz here reaches, in parts, an automation level of up to 90 percent. In parallel with the transformation of the plant, the workforce is also taking a step into the future. Many job profiles are changing, and through retraining measures, the workers are acquiring the necessary knowledge for dealing with the new hardware and software of the ID. Buzz, VW claims.
The majority of the ID.Buzz electric drive system modules being supplied to the plant for this are also being made in Germany, by Volkswagen Group Components division. The modules – including the electric motor, the axles and the battery system – are being produced at the components factories in Kassel, Braunschweig, Salzgitter and Hannover. The ID. Buzz is the first model in Volkswagen’s family of all-electric vehicles for which Volkswagen Group Components is making the axles. This is being done in a hall specifically set up for the purpose at the Hannover-Barsinghausen site with 200 employees.
Long term, Hannover also plans to produce the battery system for the ID. Buzz. It is currently being made in Braunschweig, and the company is currently investing around 100 million euros in the construction of the battery system assembly.
Estimated Dates
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.