Upcoming Volkswagen ID.2 EV could be renamed as Golf, to spawn electric GTI



Volkswagen is dead set on pivoting to a fully electric car company within the next 12 years, but it seems that the iconic Golf name will still stick around despite the change – at least according to a new report by Autocar.

Following up with Volkswagen CEO Thomas Schäfer’s comments in November last year, an insider within the company told the publication that the upcoming compact ID.2 urban electric car could be renamed with the Golf nameplate, and could make its debut in concept form as soon as next month.

The small EV is due in showrooms in 2025, at a targeted base price of EUR22,500 (approx. RM105k) in today’s money, the report reads.

Not much information is available for the ID.2-based electric Golf just yet, but the source revealed that it will be the first Volkswagen model to be built on the MEB-Plus platform – an updated version of its MEB architecture widely used on many of VW Group’s current EV models that will feature new LFP (lithium iron phospate) prismatic batteries, and charging speeds of up to 200 kW.

The new compact five-seater hatchback will also feature a more conventional design, as opposed to what we’ve seen on the ID. Life concept. It was reported that the VW CEO hated the ID. Life’s design so much, he sacked their chief designer. The ID.2-based car will be a “comprehensive reset” – not only to the model itself, but also for Volkswagen’s overall electric car strategy under Schäfer.

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While initial suggestions were that the Golf name maybe reserved for an updated version of the ID.3, the Volkswagen insider denied this rumour, saying “the true value of the Volkswagen Golf lies in a car the size of the ID.2”.

The still-unnamed compact hatchback is expected to come in between the size of the existing Volkswagen Polo and Golf, with a length of “around 4,250 mm”. But despite its smaller overall size, the electric architecture allows for a bigger interior space, akin to those “typically one segment higher”.

The upcoming electric Volkswagen Golf and Golf GTI could take on styling cues from the Cupra UrbanRebel concept.

It’ll be offered at launch with a single motor, front-wheel drive set-up, although the platform will also support an all-wheel drive set-up with two motors, which could be used for the upcoming GTI variant that will also be returning on the new ID.2-based electric Golf.

“The GTX is dead,” said a senior source within the company. “A decision has already been made to replace it with the traditional GTI name and it is being considered for the ID.2”. We don’t have an indication on its powertrain yet, but according to insider sources, the model will still be “relatively lightweight by electric car standards, somewhere between 1,600 kg and 1,700 kg.”

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