VW Teases ID.Buzz Electric Van

Few vehicles are as ingrained in pop culture as the Volkswagen Bus. The iconic, funky shape, expansive interior space, and quirky diesel engines helped them power road trips and life-changing journeys for decades. They are still quite common today, though VW hasn’t built them in several years. That’s about to change, and in a meaningful way.

The ID.Buzz is an all-electric bus with strong visual ties to its hippie-toting predecessor. Volkswagen teased the upcoming electric vehicle in a recent video that the automaker produced to preview the ID.5 crossover. The video provides a clear shot of the colorful van, but the artful camouflage hides some detail. VW made good use of patterns and swirls of color to keep us from getting a complete picture, but from what we can see, the similarities to the ID.Buzz concept vehicle are striking. The greenhouse and proportions are the spitting image of the concept, but the lower front fascia, headlights, and mirrors are different between the two.

In time, the ID.Buzz line may expand to include configurations for commercial applications or rideshare services. Volkswagen hasn’t elaborated on range or powertrain figures for the van, but reports have pointed to two main layouts: a rear-wheel-drive version and an all-wheel-drive version with more power.

Since concepts aren’t required to be road-legal, they frequently lack mandated safety equipment such as side mirrors, turn signals, and proper headlights. The ID.Buzz seen in the video has more prominent headlights and what appear to be roadworthy side mirrors, which indicates that the van is nearing its final production-ready form. We should see the full, undisguised production van in early 2022. The ID.Buzz will be sold as a 2024 model when it arrives on dealers’ lots in 2023.

The other model featured in the video, the ID.5, is a 4-door coupe crossover that shares the same vehicle platform as the ID.Buzz. VW offers three powertrains for the ID.5, including a 172-horsepower motor, a 201-hp electric motor, and the top ID.5 GTX gets a 295-hp dual-motor system. The video does not mention an ID.5 release date for the United States, but Volkswagen will launch both versions in Europe in 2022.

Volkswagen is the source of information for this article. It was accurate on November 4, 2021, but it may have changed since that date.