VW launches ID.3 Neo, ends US ID.4 production
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- Thomas Schäfer said VW had lost its “special Volkswagen feel” in the current EV lineup, including the ID.3 and ID.4, at a Hamburg media event.
- Volkswagen will debut the refreshed ID.3 Neo next week, kicking off its next‑generation EV rollout that will use name‑based models such as ID. Polo, ID. Cross, and ID. Tiguan.
- Kai Grünitz and Schäfer used customer clinics to collect driver feedback and will bring back physical climate‑control buttons and exterior door handles.
- Andreas Mindt called the upcoming design language for the next‑generation EVs the “secret sauce,” first shown on the ID. 2all concept that will become the ID. Polo.
- Volkswagen will cease ID.4 production at its Chattanooga plant later this month, while the ID. Tiguan is planned to replace the ID.4 at the Emden plant by the end of 2026.
- VW’s EV sales in Q1 2026 totaled 25,000 units of ID.4/ID.5, 19,600 of ID.3, and 14,500 of ID.7, with a 12% rise in Europe but a 64% and 80% drop in China and the US respectively.
Why it matters: The rollout gives German buyers a refreshed VW experience while the company hopes to halt slipping EV sales, but ending ID.4 production in Chattanooga cuts US jobs and the brand’s reliance on the under‑performing Chinese market deepens its revenue gap.
