Volkswagen is developing its smallest, most affordable ID 1 EV starting around $20K
Volkswagen is preparing to launch its smallest, most affordable EV yet, tipped to be called ID 1, starting at around $20K. The VW ID 1 is expected to launch in 2027 and will sit below the recently revealed ID 2all concept.
VW to introduce its most affordable EV yet, the ID 1
After introducing its lowest-priced electric vehicle to date on Wednesday, the ID 2all concept with a nearly 300-mile range, VW has another trick up its sleeve.
The ID 2all “shows where we want to take the brand,” according to the CEO of Volkswagen Passenger Cars, Thomas Shafer, taking inspiration from classics like the Beetle and Golf. It will be based on the automaker’s new MEB Entry Platform, starting at less than $27,000 (€25,000).
However, VW’s latest project, deemed the ID 1, will be even cheaper, starting at around $20,000 (€17,000).
According to Autocar, the ID 1 will be the smallest, most affordable VW brand EV yet, sitting below the ID 2all, slated to be one of the 10 EVs launched by the automaker over the next three years.
The ID 1 will be similar in size to its current gas-powered Polo and could even potentially carry its name into the EV era. Shafer said:
The Polo is very successful and one of our icons, and we’re going to use that vehicle concept in the future as well.
Meanwhile, the VW leader mentioned he wasn’t sure if it would use the same name or not, similar to the VW ID Golf/ ID 2 situation.
The low-priced EV will ride on a new, unknown platform developed by the Volkswagen Group, with Skoda leading the efforts. VW initially wanted the ID 2all to start below $21,000 (€20,000) but has since adjusted the target to $27,000 (€25,000).
How VW plans to bring an affordable EV to market
Although Shafer admits “it’s not an easy game” to sell a profitable EV at that price, he says Volkswagen has several teams working to bring costs down.
A major focus for the Volkswagen Group will be on economies of scale. Shafer added:
Now we can do a lot in terms of economies of scale. Within our volume brand group, we’re producing four vehicles along with Cupra and Skoda. That volume will help us to bring prices down to be competitive and also still make money.
As one of the world’s largest automakers, Volkswagen has a vast network of manufacturing plants and other facilities to manufacture and assemble vehicles at scale, which the company believes will be an advantage as it turns its focus on an electric-only future.
The report notes that the VW ID 1 (or ID Polo) affordable EV will likely share some components with the ID 2all concept, such as a 231bhp font-mounted motor and a choice between 38kWh or 58kWh batteries, but for the price, more than likely the smaller battery.
Shafer concluded it could be hard to produce an EV at that price in Europe and that it won’t be built alongside other MEB Entry models in Spain.
Electrek’s Take
Although it’s true, VW has one of the largest automobile manufacturing networks globally, and, as many legacy automakers have found, transitioning these plants can be costly.
I don’t doubt Volkswagen is targeting an affordable EV starting around $20,000, but so are many automakers at this point. As we stated with the VW ID 2all concept, the big question will be, can it be made profitably?
There’s no doubt in my mind a $20,000 Volkswagen-brand EV would sell, and if the company is working on the project “at full steam ahead,” perhaps they are on to something.
Shafer says it’s “part of our DNA,” and the brand is committed to bringing it to market. More details will be revealed in the next few months. Stay tuned for more info.
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If you’ve ever wondered what happens when you combine a fruit cart, a cargo bike, and a Piaggio Ape all in one vehicle, now you’ve got your answer. I submit, for your approval, this week’s feature for the Awesomely Weird Alibaba Electric Vehicle of the Week column – and it’s a beautiful doozie.
Feast your eyes on this salad slinging, coleslaw cruising, tuber taxiing produce chariot!
I think this electric vegetable trike might finally scratch the itch long felt by many of my readers. It seems every time I cover an electric trike, even the really cool ones, I always get commenters poo-poo-ing it for having two wheels in the rear instead of two wheels in the front. Well, here you go, folks!
Designed with two front wheels for maximum stability, this trike keeps your cucumbers in check through every corner. Because trust me, you don’t want to hit a pothole and suddenly be juggling peaches like you’re in Cirque du Soleil: Farmers Market Edition.
To avoid the extra cost of designing a linked steering system for a pair of front wheels, the engineers who brought this salad shuttle to life simply side-stepped that complexity altogether by steering the entire fixed front end. I’ve got articulating electric tractors that steer like this, and so if it works for a several-ton work machine, it should work for a couple hundred pounds of cargo bike.
Featuring a giant cargo bed up front with four cascading fruit baskets set up for roadside sales, this cargo bike is something of a blank slate. Sure, you could monetize grandma’s vegetable garden, or you could fill it with your own ideas and concoctions. Our exceedingly talented graphics wizard sees it as the perfect coffee and pastry e-bike for my new startup, The Handlebarista, and I’m not one to argue. Basically, the sky is the limit with a blank slate bike like this!
Sure, the quality doesn’t quite match something like a fancy Tern cargo bike. The rim brakes aren’t exactly confidence-inspiring, but at least there are three of them. And if they should all give out, or just not quite slow you down enough to avoid that quickly approaching brick wall, then at least you’ve got a couple hundred pounds of tomatoes as a tasty crumple zone.
The electrical system does seem a bit underpowered. With a 36V battery and a 250W motor, I don’t know if one-third of a horsepower is enough to haul a full load to the local farmer’s market. But I guess if the weight is a bit much for the little motor, you could always do some snacking along the way. On the other hand, all the pictures seem to show a non-electric version. So if this cart is presumably mobile on pedal power alone, then that extra motor assist, however small, is going to feel like a very welcome guest.
The $950 price is presumably for the electric version, since that’s what’s in the title of the listing, though I wouldn’t get too excited just yet. I’ve bought a LOT of stuff on Alibaba, including many electric vehicles, and the too-good-to-be-true price is always exactly that. In my experience, you can multiply the Alibaba price by 3-4x to get the actual landed price for things like these. Even so, $3,000-$4,000 wouldn’t be a terrible price, considering a lot of electric trikes stateside already cost that much and don’t even come with a quad-set of vegetable baskets on board!
I should also put my normal caveat in here about not actually buying one of these. Please, please don’t try to buy one of these awesome cargo e-trikes. This is a silly, tongue-in-cheek weekend column where I scour the ever-entertaining underbelly of China’s massive e-commerce site Alibaba in search of fun, quirky, and just plain awesomely weird electric vehicles. While I’ve successfully bought several fun things on the platform, I’ve also gotten scammed more than once, so this is not for the timid or the tight-budgeted among us.
That isn’t to say that some of my more stubborn readers haven’t followed in my footsteps before, ignoring my advice and setting out on their own wild journey. But please don’t be the one who risks it all and gets nothing in return. Don’t say I didn’t warn you; this is the warning.
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Environment
Podcast: Trump/GOP go after EV/solar, Tesla, Ford, GM EV sales, Electrek Formula Sun, and more
In the Electrek Podcast, we discuss the most popular news in the world of sustainable transport and energy. In this week’s episode, we discuss Trump’s Big Beautiful bill becoming law and going after EVs and solar, Tesla, Ford, and GM EV sales, Electrek Formula Sun, and more
Today’s episode is brought to you by Bosch Mobility Aftermarket—A global leader and trusted provider of automotive aftermarket parts. To celebrate Amazon Prime Day July 8th through 11th, Bosch Mobility is offering exclusive savings on must-have auto parts and tools. Learn more here.
The show is live every Friday at 4 p.m. ET on Electrek’s YouTube channel.
As a reminder, we’ll have an accompanying post, like this one, on the site with an embedded link to the live stream. Head to the YouTube channel to get your questions and comments in.
After the show ends at around 5 p.m. ET, the video will be archived on YouTube and the audio on all your favorite podcast apps:
We now have a Patreon if you want to help us avoid more ads and invest more in our content. We have some awesome gifts for our Patreons and more coming.
Here are a few of the articles that we will discuss during the podcast:
- Electrek FSGP 2025: New teams, new cars, same solar spirit
- Congress votes to send 2 million US jobs to China, increase deficit, energy costs
- Tesla (TSLA) confirms 384,000 deliveries in Q2 2025, right on expectations
- Tesla prototype sparks speculation: a Model Y, maybe slightly smaller
- Tesla launches Oasis Supercharger with solar farm and off-grid batteries
- Tesla unveils its LFP battery factory, claims it’s almost ready
- Here’s why Ford’s electric vehicle sales crashed by nearly a third in Q2
- The Chevy Equinox EV is GM’s breakout star, but that’s not the only surprise
- Xpeng launches G7, a new Tesla Model Y competitor for just $27,000
Here’s the live stream for today’s episode starting at 4:00 p.m. ET (or the video after 5 p.m. ET:
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