VW ID Buzz Fully Charged

There's a reason why VW have brought us to Santa Monica. To have a quick drive of their ID Buzz concept over there. The retro type 2 micro bus remake. And that's because this is where the original air cooled split screen van and the bay window van became kind of accepted as kind of hippie cool really. This is probably their biggest market for this car. Oh look, it's a Tesla. One of dozens. Come over with me, quick. This is probably illegal in the States, walking across the road. I don't know. I don't really care. This is a street that's not shut amazingly. There is security and the police are sort of chaperoning the car when it gets driven. But this is the only ID Buzz in existence. There's not any more than one. So the one you've seen all the pictures of at motor shows, it's that car. And I'm going to get to drive it. Can't overstate the importance of this car. Because when the original VW micro bus came out, it was the first people carrier. It was the first mass produced people carrier. And then it's just gained this huge cult status because of that friendly V-shaped front. Of course it hasn't got a split windscreen anymore. It's got a huge glass house. Beautifully spacious and airy. VW's bosses said by 2025 they reckon they'll be selling a million electric vehicles. That's not that far away. Put normal mirrors on it. And a couple of the other bits. And it's as close as production as it's hopefully going to get. Hopefully they won't dilute it, which is always the danger. Got the police chaperone here, look. It's gorgeous. I absolutely love it. I mean I've been waiting for a retro remake of the VW Type 2 for 15 years, something like that. I just hope they actually bring an electric Beetle out as well, that's the next step. Though it is on the street in the wild. Touchscreen door handle. Concept on the street. This doesn't happen very often. I just put it in D. This is special. This is a very special episode of Fully Charged. We're on the street in Santa Monica, just near LA. And I am driving the Volkswagen ID.Buzz. Probably the coolest electric... Stop, stop, stop. Where? God, this is stressful. Driving a one-off car. U-turn? This is a big car actually. As I'm doing a U-turn, you realise it's about the size of the current Volkswagen Transporter, the T6. Which is the evolution of what was a nice, air-cooled commercial vehicle. You can see it's an oblong steering wheel, in a very concept car-y way. And it's got the transmission on here. The dash has got nothing on it. It's just all smooth, very minimal. You've got a garden gnome in a Buddha position here. And I think that's a little take on the original Beetles and Vans, where they had a little bud vase and you could put a flower on the dash. That's maybe a little hat tip to that. You've got an iPad here mounted on little plinths, which comes out of here. These look like the business class aeroplane centre consoles, where the tray folds out in a neat way. You've got USB connectivity and stuff. Parcel tray underneath. The floor is totally flat and wood veneer covered. Concept cars don't normally drive very well. This particular one has the front and back axle based upon an e-Golf. So it's four-wheel drive. And it has the batteries out of an e-Golf. The batteries on the ID.Buzz live under the floor at the back here. Big, flat, open floor. Because remember, this was always based on a commercial vehicle. That was the whole point of the Type 2, as it was called. The split-screen van, bay window, whatever you want to call it. Originally born in 1949, after some preliminary sketches in 1947, from a Dutch Beetle importer called Ben Pon, who said, well, why don't we take the Beetle floor pan and turn it into a commercial vehicle? With the engine at the back, the drivetrain at the back, nice flat floor for carrying goods. And that's what became this cult vehicle. But really it was America, in the west coast of America here, where it made this utilitarian van quite kind of hippy cool. Fast forward 60 years, and people still love it. I'm glad now that they haven't brought one out until now, because the retro remake is such a sacred thing for the Type 2. And having electric propulsion is possibly the most appropriate, because it has all this flat floor, no transmission tunnel. It can make short overhangs. You see, the VW Transporters, the diesel-powered ones that we've got now, have a bonnet. This doesn't have a bonnet. It has a really, really snub-nosed, with the wheels pushed right out to the corners. And that was really what the silhouette of the air-cooled Type 2 was like. I think this policeman presumes I've been doing this all day. He's getting shirty with me, because I'm not doing a U-turn. They've had to momentarily close some of these roads, so that Volkswagen let us drive this. And the rear view mirror doesn't move, because it's a concept car. It's all quite unfinished. And you can hear it's creaking. When this comes to production, it should have a range of up to 372 miles, 0-60 in 5 seconds, and up to 374 horsepower propulsion. I quite like the transmission, the Auto Trans, being on the steering wheel. There's a police motorbike behind me. I don't want to... In terms of price, these concept cars, it's hard to price them, because they're potentially worth millions. In years to come, I will look back at this fondly. I'm pulling in now outside a hipster coffee shop, of course, where there's a fixed-wheel bike, and more men with beards. I don't want to curb it, because not just concept wheels, but also concept cars have special tyres. I'm going to put it in park. Now, this can also autonomously drive. We won't be doing that today. When it goes into autonomous driving mode, this oblong, radical steering wheel disappears into the dash, so it just ends up looking like a lounge. And that's the thing about the ID.Buzz. It's a spacious lounge environment. Amazing. Brief, but special. I hope that gives you half an idea of what this is going to be like. So much better looking than a diesel T6 with animal and surf stickers, don't you think? The ID.Buzz bus has pulled up over there next to a classic split screen, the one that we just saw. So you can have a good look at the old right next to the new. This is one of those Luke, I am your father moments, isn't it? Look at that. So you can see the size difference immediately, but the DNA is there, which it hasn't been, I don't think, on a lot of VW's previous production versions. Okay, so this is interesting, because these VW ID concepts have been here all week doing select drives and select videos for people like us, for different media around the world. And the ID and the ID.Cross, we've just caught them in this little, well, it's normally a car wash in Santa Monica, and they're just checking them, charging them, and making sure that they're all right before they go back out to the rest of the media. So obviously that's the ID. Think of that as the sort of electric replacement for the Golf, or the replacement for the e-Golf actually from 2020. So much like the Beetle and the Golf, the original Golf, and the original Beetle back in the 70s, they tried to end the production of the Beetle and to start the Golf, but the Beetle was still really popular. So they continued the Beetle and the Golf production along one another, and of course the Golf back then was really fresh and really radical. I see this in the same way. The Golf will continue, but the ID is Golf proportioned, kind of, it is Golf-sized in many ways. This will start production in 2020. And then over here is the ID.Cross, and that's a crossover, as the name lends itself to. So this here is a four-seater crossover SUV. Car-sized, sliding back doors, conventional front doors. Venice Beach, home for many years to the surfers, the skaters, the stoners, and now also the segwayers, if that's the thing. But we're here because the ID.BuzzConcept has moved to sit next to the beach, and it's next to its grandfather. Have a look. It's not until you put the ID.Buzz nose-to-nose with the original split-screen Type 2 that you see they've got the silhouette really similar. Bearing in mind they'd never be able to create this shape exactly the same because of modern safety standards and all the rest of it, and the luxury that we all want these days. I don't want my knees to be the crumple zone, which is what these old ones were, because the seat was on top of the front wheels. Hopefully VW will start selling this in 2022 as all three flavours. A commercial van, a people carrier, then a camper. The reason why it's so popular, I think, is because it symbolises freedom. It's a very simple design, it's colourful, it's characterful, but it symbolises freedom. You can go anywhere, you can modify it how you like, and that's why I think this car always became much more than a car. The irony is now surfers can't afford them because they're too expensive. I've had a few of these. I actually sold mine when the prices started to go nuts because I needed to buy a house, I needed to be sensible. I miss the look of these, I don't miss driving them particularly, because as standard they drive quite badly. This is the face, isn't it? This is the face that everyone knows. So they made this shape, the split screen as we know and love. It went on sale in 1950 and finished in 66, 67. And then it went into the bay window, which means the window was one piece, not two pieces, and then it went into the Type 25. But finally now we've got one that's electric, and I think this lends itself to the retro face much more, and the reason for that is because it doesn't have to have a bonnet, because there isn't an engine under there, that's a luggage compartment, there's an air conditioning radiator hidden behind there, there is an electric motor because it's four wheel drive, so there's an electric motor axle at the front, electric motor axle at the back, and of course inside is almost a blank canvas. It can be a van, it can be a people carrier with five seats, six seats, seven seats, or it can be a camper with all of the cupboards and the cooking facilities and the sleeping facilities. That's what's so great about these. Oh, very cosy. Right, there we go. I'm fortunate enough to share the space inside the ID Buzz, the living space, with the designer of it, Mr. Einar Castillo. Exactly. Is that how you say it? Einar Castillo. Nice to meet you. This is great because we've seen a few concepts from VW over the years. Yeah. This is the most faithful to the original because of the way you can package it around electricity. Exactly. So for you as a designer, was it quite liberating? Yeah, absolutely. You don't have to package a diesel engine at the front and have a big bonnet. Exactly, yeah. With this new platform, we put the wheels close to the corners, long wheelbase, we have a huge cabin, and then we achieve, as I say, this monolithic shape that actually makes the bully the bully. Yeah. How did you become the guy that made the final version? We had several sketches, and one of my ideas was to do the exterior. What an opportunity. It's insane. It's amazing. Because it's one of the most sacred designs of all cars. Yeah, it's just fantastic to be part of the history of this car. Yeah. To be connected with such an icon, not only of VW, but the whole industry. Well, and also where it's part now. I mean, this is where it was sort of born for. Exactly. On Venice Beach with skaters, surfers. This kind of lifestyle made the legend of the T1 grow. Yeah. This lifestyle of enjoying to be outside, to make trips, to do camping, to be with friends, to enjoy life. Yeah. Because it feels so amazingly spacious in here with the two glass roofs. Our main target was to generate a kind of a lounge space. You can push the emblem in the steering wheel, for example, and then we'll dive into the dash. It's amazing. And you can just relax, enjoy the drive with friends. And the two front seats can turn into the captain's chairs, I think they call them. And then in here we've got the rails along this veneer floor. And this is so that you can fit an additional set of seats here like a caravel. Yeah. So then it would be like a people carrier. It's about flexibility. It's about configuration. You can play as you wish with the interior space. Tell me what your favorite part of the design is. The face. I'm really happy that we achieved such an icon again without being retro. Yes. And this was very important for us. Let's go out. And if I'd like you to show me around the car in your own words. Because I don't know if we can close it up or we'll just leave it. I don't mind. I know these concept cars, they're working ornaments almost, aren't they? They're not real cars. Exactly. Look at the front section. It's just one line. It's fantastic. Yeah. So although this is more raked than the original, and it probably has to be for safety. Exactly. Because remember in this car you were sitting on top of the exhaust. Yeah. Oh, yeah. You were sitting actually here on top of the exhaust. Your legs, your knees were here. But now for safety reasons it's not possible anymore. Yeah. Well, thank goodness. Yeah. But this is nice and thin. There's quite a wraparound screen. I've noticed the peak, the classic peak from the original. And you know what? Plant shape was as well very important for us. Yeah. We couldn't go hard corners in the front. We wanted to go really, really soft around. And then the hard edge on the rear. Yeah. So aerodynamically it's probably pretty good. Yeah, yeah. Exactly. As well as being a good piece of design. Yeah. The lights are built into the bonnet. Yeah. The concept was to have only one skin, you know. Okay. And no steps, no different levels. This is actually where it breaks up the two-tone paint. This is a brushed aluminum. This is an actual, is it? It's not an air intake, is it? Is that air? No, no, no. Actually, it was thought for ambient light, you know. Oh, like the down light is on the handles and things. So when you press it, this has an LED in here. Show different moods, like in the interior as well. Yeah. So this groove continues. Integrates these, not door handles, but sensors. Sensors. That will open the doors. Yeah, yes. You've got, this harks back to the original... T1. T1 and the bay window where the air goes in. Yeah, and it's very important for us, the pillar on the rear. Yeah. Which is one of the Volkswagen elements. It is. This is where the plug lives for the charger. Exactly, yeah. You touch it. I don't want to break it. It's integrated to the elements. That's lovely. That's really neat, isn't it? The tailgate goes from there to there. Exactly. So it's the whole back of the car. Yeah, yeah. Wow. I love the bold but simple delivery of it. Going back to the basics. Yeah. Going back to the true values. I grew up in Mexico. Okay. And... Oh, right. I've seen these cars all my life. Yeah. And you guys... The Beetle was made... The Beetle, yes. For, what, 30 more years than in Germany? Or 40 more years, isn't it? Yeah. I was growing up with the old T models and Hefa. Yeah. The old Beetle, yeah. These circles on the roof, I don't know if you guys can see. There's a circle here and there's a circle there. Is this... These are sensors. Okay. For the autonomous driving. It's sensing this corner and this corner. Exactly. And then you've got a camera here, very neatly disguised. Is this a brake light in here? Exactly. Yeah. Okay. The car is actually full of sensors. We have sensors integrated to the graphics. I love all that because it's hidden. It's not cluttering. Exactly. Yeah. We wanted to keep very, very... As clean as possible, the whole car. You've done a stunning job, you know. I have to say. I mean, I'm quite a purist. Because you're dealing with a very precious icon. Yeah. It was not easy, but the team did fantastic work back in Wolfsburg. We worked really, really hard to do this. I love the fact that all these people who are taking camera phone pictures and obsessing of it, they don't know that you're the guy that did the final design. It's awesome. Thank you so much for letting us drive it and have a sniff around it in such detail. I feel very privileged. There you go, the ID Buzz. On sale in 2022. Can you make it a bit sooner? Could I have one in 2020? You could try to buy this one, maybe. Good luck. Good luck with that. Good luck. I am sat in the VW ID, which is the first in the ID electric family, with Jerome Kupus. Is that right? That's your name? This is right, Jonny. What is your title in Volkswagen? Oh, I'm working in the product line, e-mobility. Okay. And I'm responsible for ID cars here, which we're seeing today. This is going to be a really big shift, because I think this is going to be e-mobility going mainstream. That's right. People are saying this could be one of the biggest shifts in car evolution since the electric starter motor and since the Model T Ford. Yeah, for us in our company, it's like the shift from the Beetle to the Golf in the past. So it's really a big thing for us. What is the ID family? The ID family is, for us, it's key for the future. Enormous range, range for daily use. So that means ranges from 200 to 350 miles, fast charging network. So this is the key for this platform. So it's not just the cars, it's the infrastructure. The range, then the fast charging capability, and also the new opportunities they offer in space and in the interior. It's amazing. It's a totally flat floor. There's nothing to stop my legs from being completely in the passenger footwell, apart from me invading a personal space. And then under here, there's no center console really. There's an armrest. It's all so minimal and open and relaxing. I mean, you've got a full panoramic roof, which always opens it up. You're sitting now here in a car which has a length from a Golf, but has an interior space like a Passat. It's a revolution in packaging. Right. Am I right in thinking that all three of these cars have got induction charging? We will offer this also, yes. We will offer also inductive charging for sure, but also normal fast charging capability via plug. Our solution for the plug is to refill these cars in up to 80% in around about 30 minutes. So it's really, really fast charging capability in the car. Have they all got four-wheel drive capability? The ID.Cross, yes, and the ID.Bus also, but the ID will just have rear-wheel drive. Fantastic. So rear-wheel drive. They've all got autonomy? Fully autonomy for sure. When able to do this from a legal perspective, we're thinking about 2025, then it's fully autonomous. That's right. But we will offer what we can offer. So the car is prepared for it. So we come up with this and we come up with a solution right from the start on. What does MEB stand for? The translation is Modular Electric Platform. The German translation is Modularer Elektrik Baukasten. Baukasten, like a chassis. Like platform, like chassis, right. You have in these car seats augmented reality display. I noticed that with this car, yeah. You're directly looking just on the street and you can do protection on the street where you have to drive and get some really interesting, also multimedia information in the display. And there's so much technology in here, but yet it's not flooding your mind and it's not cluttering you with loads of buttons and loads and loads of screens. It's actually, it's brilliant because this is the kind of technology I like. It is there, but you can decide how in your face you want it to be. Always online. All our MEBs will be always online, all the family members. Will they? In terms of software updates? Yes, right. So you can do software upgrades and also link to our Volkswagen ecosystem. We call this ecosystem We by Volkswagen. You have your own ID, then you link it into your car, you link it in. Your personal settings are totally, directly loaded when you come into the car. So your multimedia. And it's run on the Volkswagen OS. So it's really working really simple together. I think that the ID series of cars, bringing them to market has been undoubtedly accelerated because of the diesel situation, VW's diesel situation. And I think in a way that's had a really positive impact on us getting these cars earlier. You guys have made a firm statement, the Volkswagen group, saying that we're going to divert away from diesel and focus on EV. Yes, like you see, we are just looking forward and going with great cars and with great services around the cars. What you already can see in the show cars, they are really close on the serious production already. For me, the holy grail for this would be this platform making a new Beetle completely EV. I just think it would be fantastic. There's a woman posing right next to you with a bikini. And she's got a tail. That's ludicrous, she actually has a tail. No, you are right. What you are describing is to bring emotional products on the new platform. Because it's a character car. When you're a kid and you look at a Beetle or a bus like that, like the split screen type twos and that sort of thing, they have a face. And I think what VW has been really good at in the past is creating cars which have a character. A lot of people's criticism of electric cars is because they're silent. It means that it may be devoid of character. I hope, from what I've seen, VW has realized the importance of not only making a good quality, good high range EV, but an EV with charisma. Yeah, you're totally right. So we definitely come up with this idea concept in Europe as a first market. When you look at the idea, it's really a hatch. And it really fits perfectly to the needs or to the expectations of the European customers. When you look at the Yaris Cross, this is a world concept. It has to be a perfect fit for the Chinese market also. And that will be obviously the flagship for now. So it will be a more expensive, bigger range car. But that's the one that I want. This is the one you want. That's the one that I want. Our brand, the people's car brand. People's car company. It stands also for affordability. And so this is also our task to do e-mobility for everyone. So we really would like to bring it to a price point that the people can afford it. Is there any word from VW how many ID cars you're going to make? We will come up until 2025 on about 20 Volkswagen brand cars. 20 models by 2025. Worldwide, for sure. Worldwide, yeah. You've seen the excitement around it. And certainly for viewers of Fully Charged, people who are already interested in electric cars and already buying electric cars, for them this is exciting because they know they'll actually be able to buy this and that in the next couple of years. So that's what's cool about this. Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you for your time. Thank you very much. Thank you. Today's been really exciting. I haven't even been on the beach. I haven't stepped foot on it. But what I have done is I've driven some concept cars which aren't going to stay as concepts. And that's the thing for me that's really exciting. This, the ID, is a concept but it's going to become reality in 2020. This, the ID Buzz, the beautiful ID Buzz, this is going to become real in 2022. And that, for me, makes all of this worth it. Because if they were just concepts, it would be okay. Knowing that they're going to be real, that makes such a big difference. You see, VW are naughty with the whole diesel gate situation. But out of that naughtiness has come the accelerated commitment to EVs. And that's where the whole ID family becomes so much more exciting. So much more relevant to people like us and the fully charged viewers. So I'm very excited. And that, that can't come soon enough.