An icon reloaded: The new ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo

• World premiere: The ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo represent Europe’s first all-electric MPV and van range
• Iconic design: The ID. Buzz is the new face of an intelligent, future-oriented, sustainable form of mobility
• Taking a new direction: Volkswagen is replacing leather in the ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo with non-animal material
• Connected and convenient: Via ‘Plug & Charge’ it will be even easier to charge the ID. Buzz when out and about
• Space for every situation in life: The ID. Buzz provides ample space for family and luggage – and as the Cargo for two euro pallets
• Market launch: still to start in Europe in 2022. North American debut with long wheelbase follows in 2023, sales from 2024

Hannover/Wolfsburg, March 2022 – Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles and Volkswagen Passenger Cars are presenting with the new ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo one of the most advanced and sustainable vehicle concepts of the present day. The two zero-emission vehicles transfer the design of one of the greatest automobile icons – the T1 – to the era of electric mobility. The ID. Buzz is made and shipped with a carbon-neutral footprint – a first for an MPV and van range. A high percentage of recycled materials and no use of real leather in the interior complete the sustainability strategy of Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles and Volkswagen Passenger Cars realised with the ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo.

The ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo will come onto the market in the first few European countries this autumn. Advance sales are due to start in May. The European versions will come to market with a 77 kWh battery (gross energy content: 82 kWh). It provides current to a 150 kW electric motor, which drives the rear axle. The charging power when using alternating current (AC) is 11 kW. Via a CCS plug connector at a DC quick-charging station (direct current) the charging power increases to as much as 170 kW. When charged in this way, the battery charge level rises from 5 to 80% in about 30 minutes. As is the case for all models of Volkswagen’s ID. family, the new ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo are based technically on the Group’s Modular Electric Drive Kit (MEB).

Paying homage to the T1 – high-tech trendsetter with a great history

The key automotive trends of our time fuse together in the ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo to create an MPV and van range that is just as progressive as it is versatile: the electric mobility, the intelligent interlinking of the driver assist and information systems, over-the-air updates of the software, and the compatibility with completely new mobility concepts. The visual frame around all these parameters is formed by the iconic exterior design. “The ID. Buzz brings a lot of endearing charm and affinity with people back onto the road”, says Jozef Kabaň, Head of the Volkswagen Design, outlining the concept. And it is the proportions that make the ID. Buzz so unique. The designer has created a direct link with the original classic vehicle: “In the T1 you are practically sitting on top of the front axle – there’s no front overhang. While providing everything of relevance to safety and technology, the ID. Buzz has wonderfully short overhangs.” In terms of pure numbers, this is underlined by the fact that the compact overall length of 4,712 mm is accompanied by what in comparison is a very long wheelbase (2,988 mm). Design already followed function in the case of the T1, the first Bulli. Form follows function – this central tenet of automotive construction – applies to the design of the ID. Buzz too. The iconically clear forms are accompanied here by outstanding aerodynamics: the ID. Buzz has a drag coefficient of 0.285, the ID. Buzz Cargo of 0.29. That reduces energy consumption and increases range.

For a life on the move – open space with lots of room

ID. Buzz drivers and passengers experience the new Bulli feeling in an interior conceived as an open space. Jozef Kabaň: “What we have is a vehicle layout with a very logical and intuitive interior concept, plus multifaceted and variable utilisation of space.” Both ID. Buzz vehicles do indeed offer an exceptionally large amount of space on, as mentioned above, their compact vehicle footprint: in the lounge-like, friendly ambience of the MPV version five people have ample room for travelling and lots of space for their luggage (up to 1,121 litres of capacity). If the second row of seats is folded down, the load capacity increases to up to 2,205 litres. In the medium term, a six- and seven-seat configuration and an extended wheelbase will also follow. Three seats up front (alternatively two) and a fixed partition separating off the 3.9 m³ cargo space are, meanwhile, distinctive features of the configuration of the ID. Buzz Cargo. The zero-emission van can carry two euro pallets in the back.

Eternally young Bulli – Economic Miracle, Woodstock and electric mobility

Both ID. Buzz models have not only been intricately thought through, but also conceived with a great love for detail. One small example of this is, among others, the stylised silhouette of the ID. Buzz embossed into the five-seater's side and seat panels. It is an element reminiscent both of the T1 and the microbus concept vehicle – the Volkswagen show car legend unveiled in 2000 in Detroit. Reflected in the iconic exterior and interior design of the ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo is thus the history of one of the most successful van ranges, which extends from the German Economic Miracle, via the American Woodstock festival all the way to the present day. At the same time, however, Europe's first MPV and van of this class developed on a purely electric platform is advancing with its unique DNA to become the new face of an intelligent, future-oriented and sustainable form of mobility.

The Group’s electric transformation – MEB is the key technology

With the ID. Buzz the Volkswagen Group is further accelerating its transformation into one of the leading suppliers of purely electric vehicles. A key technology in this is the Modular Electric Drive Kit (MEB). The world's first scalable large production run platform for all-electric cars provides the basis across the brands for all sorts of different models and segments. At present 30 per cent of all electric vehicles in the Group are already based on the MEB. By 2025, it’s planned to be more than 80 per cent. For Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles the all-electric ID. Buzz is an important building block in order to continually reduce the carbon footprint of the whole product portfolio.

Made in Germany – high quality and safeguarding of jobs

The new ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo models are being produced by Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles at its main plant in Hannover. Since 2022, the plant has been one of the Group's high-tech locations for the production of all-electric vehicles. Production of the ID. Buzz here reaches in parts an automation level of up to 90 per cent. In parallel with the transformation of the plant the workforce is also taking a big step into the future, as many job profiles are changing: through retraining measures the workers are acquiring the necessary know-how for dealing with the new hardware and software of the ID. Buzz and of the Multivan with plug-in hybrid drive system also being made in Hannover.

The majority of the ID. Buzz electric drive system modules being supplied to the plant for this are also being made in Germany to the highest quality standards – in this case by the Group’s own Volkswagen Group Components division. The modules are being produced at the components factories in Kassel, Braunschweig, Salzgitter and Hannover. They include the electric motor, the battery system and the axles. It is thus the case that the ID. Buzz is the first model of the ID. family for which Volkswagen Group Components is making the axles as well. And this is in fact being done in an assembly hall specifically set up for the purpose at the Hannover-Barsinghausen site. There alone are 200 people employed. Long term, Hannover will also produce the battery system for the ID. Buzz. At present it is being made in Braunschweig. Today, Volkswagen Group Components is already contributing around 40 percent of the total value creation for the ID. Buzz – around 10 per cent more than for conventional models.

The initial spark – first forerunner of the ID. Buzz made its debut 50 years ago

The ID. Buzz is incidentally not the first Bulli with an electric drive system. Fifty years ago at the Hannover Trade Fair, Volkswagen was already showing a T2 powered by a rear-mounted electric motor. The maximum range of 85 kilometres showed, however, that the battery technology of this short-run project was still far from being suitable for practical use.
​But even back then in 1972, the dream was born: the dream of an all-electric Bulli. Now it is becoming reality.
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THE MODEL LINE IN OVERVIEW – THE BULLI FOR A NEW ERA

Maximally used vehicle footprint – long wheelbase, compact body

One feature of the ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo is a long wheelbase of 2,988 mm, roughly the same as that of the current T6.1. Both ID. Buzz models are 4,712 mm long. To put that in context: with the same wheelbase, a T6.1 is in all 192 mm longer. Including roof aerial, the two versions of ID. Buzz are, dependent on specification, 1,937 mm or 1,938 mm high (T6.1: 1,985 mm). The two ID. Buzz vehicles are 1,985 mm wide (excluding exterior mirrors). The new model is thus 81 mm wider than a T6.1. In the medium term, the MPV version of the ID. Buzz will come onto the market with an extended wheelbase too. It will be with the longer wheelbase that the North American version of the ID. Buzz will make its journey in 2024 from the Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles main plant in Hannover to customers across the Atlantic. There are no plans to sell the ID. Buzz Cargo in North America.

ID. Buzz as MPV – the five-seater

As an MPV, the highly flexible ID. Buzz is just as perfectly tailored to leisure time as it is to business use. The standard length ID. Buzz will launch as standard with five seats (in a 2/3 arrangement). Driver and front-seat passenger sit on individual seats equipped as standard on the inside with adjustable armrests. Used in the back is a three-person bench seat, which can be folded down completely or split 40:60. The rear bench seat can also be moved backwards or forwards. The MPV is fitted as standard with two side sliding doors. What becomes accessible behind the upward-opening rear hatch is – with five people on board – 1,121 litres of luggage space (loaded up to the top edge of the backrests of the second row of seats). If the second row of seats is fully folded down, the load capacity increases to up to 2,205 litres.

ID. Buzz Cargo – the van

With the ID. Buzz Cargo, an ultra-modern zero-emission van is being launched. It will launch as standard with three seats in the cab: driver’s seat plus double bench seat. Optionally, the ID. Buzz Cargo will also be available with an individual seat for the front-seat passenger. Behind the seats comes a fixed partition, separating off the cargo space. This partition will be optionally available with a window and/or an opening through which items can be loaded. The cargo space measures 3.9 m³ and provides room for two euro pallets. The gross vehicle weight of the ID. Buzz Cargo is 3,000 kg. and the maximum load 650 kg. Loads can be secured via lashing rings in the floor and lashing rails on the side walls. The new ID. Buzz Cargo is fitted with a wide-opening tailgate and a sliding door on the passenger side. As a custom version it will be possible to configure the van with a second sliding door.

ID. Buzz as a range – the third Bulli in the line

The Bulli always used to be based on one unique platform. However, the start of a new era of mobility called for a paradigm change: ‘One Bulli fits all’ now becomes ‘The right Bulli for each customer’. In 2021, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles therefore brought out for the first time alongside the T6.1 – as Transporter, Caravelle, California and Multivan 4MOTION – a model based on the Modular Transverse Matrix (MQB): the new Multivan (internally: T7). A leisure MPV being offered as the first Bulli with the option of a plug-in hybrid drive system. With the new ID. Buzz these currently two Bulli pillars are now being enriched by the addition of a third. The ID. Buzz is based – like all models of the ID. family – on the Modular Electric Drive Kit (MEB). There are thus for the first time three Bulli model lines in parallel alongside each other in order to be able to offer a tailor-made solution for all mobility scenarios. Each of these pillars is of fundamental importance. As Transporter and Caravelle, the T6.1 remains the specialist for commercial use, and as California the camper van icon. The new Multivan has taken over the job of the highly talented all-rounder. And with the ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo two all-electric Bulli models will now be conquering new segments. All three model lines – the T6.1, the new Multivan and the new ID. Buzz – are being made in parallel by Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles at the high-technology Hannover site.
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SUSTAINABILITY – IN HARMONY WITH THE ENVIRONMENT

Pioneering – carbon-neutral footprint, non-animal materials

The new ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo are supplied on a carbon-neutral basis. What is meant by that is compensation of emissions from production in the German Hannover plant, the manufacture of all modules in factories of Volkswagen Group Components, and transportation up to the point of handover to customers all over Europe. Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles has set itself the objective in Europe of reducing the carbon footprint of all vehicles across their entire life cycle by 40 per cent of 2018 levels by 2030. The new ID. Buzz plays a key role in this. In essence, the electric drive system of the ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo works emission-free on the road. The carbon footprint is especially small if the battery is charged using renewable and thus environmentally friendly energy such as ‘Volkswagen Naturstrom’ from the Group’s own supplier Elli¹. In addition, Volkswagen is utilising a package of extremely innovative technologies and processes that make both versions of the ID. Buzz one of the world’s most sustainable model lines. The array of such measures starts with no use at all of leather or any other materials of animal origin. Two examples:

• The steering wheel rim is made of a synthetic material that looks just as high in quality as leather and provides a similar feel.
• The materials used for some seat covers, floor coverings and for the roof liner of the ID. Buzz include materials created from recycled products. There will, for example, be a fabric made of so-called SEAQUAL® yarn, the fibres of which consist of 10 per cent of collected ocean plastics and about 90 per cent of PES (recycled PET bottles). Even the ‘ECO’ ArtVelours being used as a Group-wide first in the ID. Buzz consists 71 per cent of recycled matter.

Over and above this, organically based vehicle paint and the use of renewable raw materials optimise the environmental characteristics of the two new ID. Buzz models. Part of being sustainable also includes the company’s promise to take back the high-voltage batteries at the end of their automotive life cycle and to prepare them for a second use – for example, as energy storage for a building’s solar panel system. It is also the case across the board that Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles gives a guarantee of eight years or 160,000 kilometres on the ID. Buzz battery.

Clever charging at home and on the road – easier than ever

Volkswagen is offering its own range of different wall boxes for vehicle charging. More and more owners of electric vehicles are using regenerative energy sources for this. In this context the optimal prerequisites for intelligent and sustainable charging of an ID. Buzz or ID. Buzz Cargo at home or at a business is an energy management system (EMS). It knows all the users’ requirements, thus enabling it to scale and manage their power supply intelligently. That makes it easier above all to charge vehicles with power generated via your own solar panel system. Furthermore, it is already possible even today using clever electricity tariffs and algorithms to charge the vehicle at precisely those times when a large amount of renewable energy is available. In this way, for instance, wind turbines do not need to be turned off because there are no consumers around. In 2019 alone, 6,500 gigawatt hours of renewable energy remained unused in Germany – 2.7 million electric cars could have been run on that for a whole year.

The potential, however, becomes even greater in combination with bi-directional charging – a pioneering technology that is due to be launched soon at Volkswagen: it enables electric cars to feed power that they don’t need into the domestic mains (vehicle-to-home) and thus in future also to make the power available for stabilising the grid. The new ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo will be coming onto the market with this technology already on board. Furthermore, it is the case that it will be possible in future to charge all other models of the ID. family with a 77-kWh battery bi-directionally. For vehicles that have already been delivered this technology will be available in a phased process via an over-the-air update. The power transfer and communication take place, where available, via a special DC bi-directional wall box.

Another smart solution simplifies charging while on the road: using the latest ID. software, the model line will in future offer the ‘Plug & Charge’ function as well. Using this function, the ID. Buzz authenticates itself at plug & charge compatible (DC) quick-charging stations via the charging connector, exchanging all necessary data with it in this way – a much more convenient arrangement. It works in detail as follows: as soon as the charging cable is plugged in, encrypted, secure communication based on what is known as the ISO-15118 standard begins between the ID. Buzz and the charging station. This authentication takes just a few seconds. Then the charging process begins – a charging card for payment is no longer necessary here. Billing is by ‘We Charge’ contract with Volkswagen. ‘Plug & Charge’ will be in use on the networks of Ionity, Aral, bp, Enel, EON, Iberdrola and Eviny. Discussion are also already taking place with other major suppliers.

EXTERIOR – TRANSFERRING THE T1 CONCEPT TO THE FUTURE

The body – it all began with a concept car in Detroit

“The T1 – an icon of the 1950s – enabled people to gain mobility and freedom. With the ID. Buzz we are transferring the T1 DNA to the present day and thus into the era of electric mobility and sustainability”, says Jozef Kabaň, Head of Volkswagen Design. The visual concept of the ID. Buzz concept car shown as a world premiere in Detroit in 2017 has been systematically pursued for the full production version. Jozef Kabaň: “The ID. Buzz is timeless, sustainable and yet also extremely functional – that makes it unique.” Kabaň adds: “At the same time, it shows that it is successfully transferring the genes and stylistic elements of that iconic vehicle into the digital era.” That includes extremely short bodywork overhangs, maximum utilisation of space on a minimal vehicle footprint, splitting the bodywork design into an upper and lower level, and the iconic front with its V-shaped bonnet between the charismatic headlights.

Outstanding aerodynamics – MPV with the drag coefficient of a car

Design already followed function in the case of the T1, the first Bulli. Form follows function – this central tenet of automotive construction – applies to the design of the ID. Buzz too. The iconically clear forms are accompanied here by outstanding aerodynamics: the ID. Buzz has a drag coefficient of 0.285, the ID. Buzz Cargo of 0.29. Never before was a Bulli so aerodynamic. That reduces energy consumption and increases range.

LED technology – intelligent light is more than the new chrome

Like the new Multivan, the ID. Buzz makes full use of LEDs. At the front it’s the charismatically styled LED headlights, which turn night into day on the top version under the name ‘IQ.Light – LED matrix headlights’. The slim lateral bar between the headlights is also finished as an LED strip. Integrated in the centre of the bar as a mark of homage to the T1 is the VW logo in larger format than on all other current Volkswagens. At the back the ID. Buzz differentiates itself from the T6.1 by the horizontally rather than vertically arranged LED tail lights, and through this detail shows a clear closeness to the new Multivan. Unlike in that case, however, the LED tail lights of the ID. Buzz are connected to one another for the first time on a Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles model by an end-to-end light strip.

The welcome and farewell scenario of the optional matrix headlights (Coming- & Leaving-Home) is interactive: when someone with the vehicle’s key approaches the ID. Buzz the ‘IQ.Light – LED matrix headlights’ and LED tail lights glow briefly to welcome them, and a projection of light shows the way to the vehicle. As soon as any door gets opened, the ID. Buzz appears to say ‘Hello’ with a discreet sound and the lighting up of the interactive ‘ID. Light’ in front of the windscreen. When you leave the Volkswagen, the same happens as a ‘goodbye’. In this case too a projection of light also illuminates the surrounding area. The lighting scenarios can be individually enabled and disabled in the basic vehicle function settings.

The ‘IQ.Light – LED matrix headlights’ and the ‘ID. Light’ symbolically show that, despite all its links to the great history of the model line, the in all respects avant-garde ID. Buzz is visually pointing the way to the future. What has been created is a car without rival, because the ID. Buzz is not based on the compromise of a multi-traction platform, but is an electric Bulli from the ground up. Its short body overhangs are, for example, possible only because the zero-emission vehicle’s electric drive system is built in a very space-saving way. And that has not only visual, but also very practical advantages: these include – with maximum space utilisation – more compact outer dimensions than for a comparable model with a conventional drive system and an unusually small turning circle for this vehicle class of just 11.1 metres.

Showing its colours – the ID. Buzz gets classic two-tone paintwork

Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles will be offering the ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo – as is the tradition for the Bulli – both in the base colours and, as an alternative, also in various two-tone paintwork finishes for the vehicle body. The spectrum consists of a total of eleven colour variants: one single-colour paintwork finish (‘Candy White’), five metallic finishes (‘Mono Silver’, ‘Lime Yellow’, ‘Starlight Blue’, ‘Energetic Orange’ and ‘Bay Leaf Green’), one pearl effect finish (‘Deep Black’) and four two-tone paintwork finishes. Whenever the zero-emission Bulli is ordered in one of the two-tone paintwork finishes, the upper section including roof and V-shaped bonnet will always be in ‘Candy White’. The areas below the character line running around the vehicle are in this case then in one of a choice of four metallic shades: ‘Lime Yellow’, ‘Starlight Blue’, ‘Energetic Orange’ or ‘Bay Leaf Green’.

INTERIOR – SPACE FOR LIFE ON THE MOVE

Interior trims – the two-colour styling mirrors the exterior

Through opening the doors what is made accessible in the ID. Buzz is not only a very big and typically Bulli-like interior with high seat positions, comfortable armrests, lots of space and countless storage trays, but also a high-tech interior and an enthrallingly mixed interplay of colours and materials. In combination with the optional ‘Style’ interior packages, the colours here correspond systematically with the exterior paintwork finishes. Four of the designs deliberately reflect the respective exterior colour in the seat inner panels, the central area of the instrument panel and the door inserts. The interior colour ‘X-Blue’ goes particularly well with the exterior colour ‘Starlight Blue’, ‘Saffron Orange’ with ‘Energetic Orange’, ‘Jade Green’ with ‘Bay Leaf Green’ and ‘Lime Yellow’ with the identically named exterior paintwork finish. The effect corresponding with the exterior is reinforced by the fact that the contrasting colour of the paintwork - "Candy White" - is also reflected in the interior. The matching interior colour is called "Electric White" and is used for the steering wheel, the instrument panel, the door panels around the inserts and the outer and back surfaces of the seats, among other things.

Digitalised and online – redesigned and yet a typical Bulli

Matching the elevated seat position of the driver and front-seat passenger, the instrument panel in the ID. Buzz also sits very high up. And that is typical of the Bulli. All indicators are digital and are on an ergonomically ideal line of sight. The ‘Digital Cockpit’ in front of the driver consists of a large display (5.3 inches across diagonally). Positioned centrally in the middle of the dashboard is the infotainment system with a large touchscreen. The ‘Ready 2 Discover’ system that is fitted as standard has a 10-inch screen, while the optional ‘Discover Pro’ navigation system has a 12-inch one. Already included in the base version of the infotainment system of the five-seater MPV are the services of ‘We Connect’ and ‘We Connect Plus’, ‘App-Connect’ including ‘App-Connect Wireless’) for smartphone integration and DAB+ (digital radio reception). For the ID. Buzz Cargo ‘App Connect’ and DAB+ will be available as options. Both the ‘Digital Cockpit’ and infotainment system are connected with the instrument panel only at the bottom. As a result the infotainment system's display has the optical feel of a tablet in landscape format floating freely in the air.

Beneath the infotainment system, ergonomically very accessible, is a control bar with digital buttons and touch sliders. The touch sliders are used to regulate the interior temperature and the volume of the infotainment sound. The buttons, meanwhile, provide direct access to menus for the settings of the air conditioning, the assist systems, the driving profiles and the parking functions. The operation of the automatic transmission is via a steering column switch: turn it forwards from the neutral position ‘N’ to ‘D’ and the vehicle moves forwards, turn it back from ‘N’ to ‘R’ and it moves backwards. To the left of the multifunction steering wheel and its touch controls there is an island of digital controls for activating the light functions, the windscreen and rear window heating, and maximum ventilation of the windscreen. The MPV version is fitted out with up to eight USB-C ports: to the right of the steering wheel are two USB-C ports and a tray for a smartphone with an inductive charging function. There is a further USB-C port in the front seat passenger door and, dependent on specification, in the rear-view mirror mount. In the back of the ID. Buzz there are USB-C ports in the two sliding doors and on the left and right of the load space. The ID. Buzz Cargo has up to five USB-C ports: one on the left on the instrument panel, two above the smartphone tray, one in the front passenger door and another in combination with the rain sensor in the rear-view mirror mount. In the area under the infotainment system both vehicle variants also have a flip-lid compartment with two cup holders. In the ID. Buzz Cargo, as in the T6.1 Transporter and the large Crafter, there are two further cup holders placed in front of the A-pillars.

Interactive ‘ID. Light’ – intuitive cognition provides for safety

As is the case for all models of the ID. family, the new ID. Buzz as an MPV also comes with the interactive ‘ID. Light’. The narrow illuminated strip stretches across in front of the windscreen in the driver's field of vision above the instrument panel. By means of ‘ID. Light’ the driver receives intuitively understandable information. This intuitive recognition and evaluation of the information is made easier by the position and colour of the signal. Two examples: A signal in the right-hand area of the strip advises, depending on colour, of obstructions in this area or corresponds with the navigation instruction to change lane. The ‘ID. Light’ lighting up completely in red, meanwhile, signals: Beware! Brake!

Ambient light – 10 colours as standard, 30 optional

The ID. Buzz in the MPV version is fitted as standard with 10-colour ambient lighting. As an option, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles will also be offering a 30-colour version. The areas lit up in the individually selected shade of the 30-colour variant are a light strip in the instrument panel, the decorative strips in the four doors, and the storage bins in the doors. The footwell is bathed in white light. The ‘Digital Cockpit’ and the infotainment system also take on the chosen base shade. In addition to the individual colours – two can be combined in each case for the different zones – it is possible via a ‘Mood Menu’ to activate preconfigured lighting profiles with just one touch via the infotainment system.

Seating – comfortable, safe and practical

In the MPV, driver and front-seat passenger sit on comfortable individual seats. As you get into the vehicle, you can already sense that the seats have an elevated position and that a typical Bulli feeling is thus created. Even the base version of the front seats has an armrest on the inside. In the higher specification versions the front seats have armrests on the outside too. Integrated into the backrests of the front seats is in each case a side airbag (thorax airbag), which thus adapts itself automatically to the respective seat position. In the driver's seat there is also a centre airbag, which in the event of a crash protects the driver and front-seat passenger from hitting each other. The top versions of the seats will be completely electrically adjustable and have both a memory function and massage function. The front seats can be adjusted by up to 245 mm lengthways and 61.5 mm in height. Used on the second row is a comfortable three-person bench seat with a 1/3 to 2/3 split. It can be moved lengthways a total of 150 mm. A love for detail is reflected in the stylised vehicle silhouette that is embossed in the lower side seat trim. Wholly practical, by contrast, is the fact that the two backrests of the rear bench seat can have their tilt separately adjusted and be separately folded down. Thanks to the optional height-adjustable luggage room floor this creates a level load space surface.

‘Buzz Box’ – the versatile multi-function tool

As a special feature for the new model line, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles has developed the removable ‘Buzz Box’. In its top part it provides a large storage compartment. Integrated in there, always close at hand, are an ice scraper and a bottle opener. At the front, meanwhile, there is flip-open compartment with a capacity of 1.4 litres (e.g., for a water bottle), and at the back a 5-litre drawer for implements of every kind. Another example of the attention to detail in the new ID. Buzz is seen when the drawer is pulled out: embossed on its sides is a map of the world. The van’s ‘Buzz Box’, meanwhile, is specifically tailored to use at work. In its top section in provides a large compartment for a laptop or clipboard, and a further cup holder. On the front it also has a 1.4-litre flip-open compartment. In the two-seat Cargo and five-seat MPV the box is latched in place between the driver’s seat and front passenger seat. It can also be easily and quickly taken out and fitted back in.

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ELECTRIC DRIVE SYSTEM – EMISSION-FREE ON THE ROAD

Energised – 150 kW of electric power to the rear axle

On the engineering side the new model line is based on the Volkswagen Group’s Modular Electric Drive Kit (MEB). Both ID. Buzz versions are launching this year with a high-voltage lithium-ion battery providing a net energy content of 77 kWh (gross 82 kWh). With its twelve modules, the battery system supplies a 150 kW electric motor, which is integrated in the rear axle, which it also drives.

In the current configuration of both ID. Buzz models the top speed is electronically limited to 145 km/h. The fact is that the new ID. Buzz is a very agile vehicle. For the one part, the electric motor builds up its maximum torque of 310 Nm from a standing start. And for the other, these dynamic components are joined by the vehicle body having a very low centre of gravity, as the battery is located well down in the sandwich floor. At DC quick-charging stations both versions of the ID. Buzz take on energy at power levels of up to 170 kW; the battery can thus be charged up from 5 to 80 per cent in about 30 minutes.

ASSIST SYSTEMS – ON THE WAY TO AUTOMATED DRIVING

‘Travel Assist with swarm data’, ‘Park Assist Plus with Memory Function’

The spectrum of assist systems in the ID. Buzz includes innovatively interconnected technologies such as the ‘Memory Function’ for automated parking on a previously saved route, ‘Car2X’ (warnings and hazard alerts in the local vicinity) and the latest version of ‘Travel Assist’ featuring utilisation of swarm data. Within system limits, ‘Travel Assist with swarm data’ facilitates forward and lateral guidance on a partly automated basis across the full speed range and, for the first time, assisted lane changing on motorways (at 90 km/h and above). If swarm data is available, the ‘Travel Assist with swarm data’ function needs only one identified carriageway boundary in order to keep the vehicle in its lane – for example, on country roads with no centre markings. At the highest specification level the ID. Buzz will have more than 30 assist systems on board. Going forward, it will be possible to keep up to 35 controllers in the ID. Buzz running the latest software version via over-the-air updates.

Data sheet – the ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo

Models

• ID. Buzz (five-seater)
• ID. Buzz Cargo (van, two- or three-seater)

Important dates

• Start of ID. Buzz Cargo production: first half of 2022
• Start of ID. Buzz production: first half of 2022
• European launch (initial countries): autumn 2022
• Start of advance sales in Europe (initial countries): May 2022

Technical platform

• Modular Electric Drive Kit (MEB)

External dimensions

• Width excluding exterior mirrors: 1,985 mm
• Height: 1,937 mm (Cargo: 1,938 mm)
• Length: 4,712 mm
• Wheelbase: 2,988 mm
• Load sill: 632 mm

Load capacity and payload

• Luggage capacity of the ID. Buzz with five occupants:
  ​up to 1,121 litres
• Luggage capacity of the ID. Buzz with second seating row folded down: up to 2,205 litres
• ID. Buzz Cargo load space capacity: 3.9 m³(as per SAE V6), room for two euro pallets
• ID. Buzz Cargo gross vehicle weight (GVW): 3,000 kg
• ID. Buzz Cargo maximum payload: 650 kg

Drive system

• Type: all-electric rear-wheel drive
• Max. power: 150 kW
• Max. torque: 310 Nm
• Battery capacity: 82 kWh gross, 77 kWh net
• AC charging power (alternating current): 11 kW
• DC charging power (direct current) at quick-charging stations: up to 170 kW

Driving performance and turning circle

• Top speed: 145 km/h, electronically limited
• Driving range: to follow at a later date
• Turning circle: 11.1 metres

Sustainability

• Production and delivery in Europe with a carbon-neutral footprint
• Zero-emission electric drive system
• Leather replaced by synthetic material
• Use of materials made from recycled products

Production site

• Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles’ main plant in Hannover, Germany

Colours

• Single colour finish: ‘Candy White’
• Metallic finishes: ‘Mono Silver’, ‘Lime Yellow’, ‘Starlight Blue’, ‘Energetic Orange’ and ‘Bay Leaf Green’
• Pearl-effect finish: ‘Deep Black’
• Two-tone finishes: ‘Candy White’ in combination with ‘Lime Yellow’, ‘Starlight Blue’, ‘Energetic Orange’ or ‘Bay Leaf Green’

1.) www.elli.eco.

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