VW brand's Trinity EV flagship will have 3 key innovations

FRANKFURT -- Volkswagen brand has given its flagship electric sedan, which is expected to take on the Tesla Model S, the working title "Project Trinity," symbolizing VW's goal of achieving three leaps in innovation.

The new EV will be based on a new electric architecture that focuses heavily on artificial intelligence and digitalization. VW management is currently drawing up the product specifications for the vehicle, which is due to launch in 2026.

"It's time for the next step," VW brand CEO Ralf Brandstaetter wrote in a LinkedIn post.

The production version of the Trinity will have a "highly efficient flat seat concept with an iconic design," he said.

The EV will be positioned above the upcoming Aero midsize electric car in VW brand's expanding lineup of electric cars that includes the ID3 Golf-sized hatchback launched in Europe in September and the ID4 crossover due to go on sale globally next year including in the U.S.

The production Trinity will "democratize" advanced technology such as autonomous driving, Brandstaetter said.

With Project Trinity VW brand is taking the lead to develop a "state-of-the-art" flat-panel electrical platform that will set standards for range, charging speed, and above all digitalization," he said.

The EV will have Level 2+ autonomous driving capability and will be ready for Level 4. The level of self-driving that the production Trinity car will offer will depend in part on regulators in its various markets.

BMW recently said it would not give a date by when it would enable eyes-off driving in its iX.

The production Trinity will be built in VW's home plant in Wolfsburg, Germany. Its production will adopt a "radical, new approach" heavily based on fully networked processes, Brandstaetter said.

"We will demonstrate that you can build innovative electric cars in a highly efficient and economical way not only in Berlin," Brandstaetter wrote, referring to Tesla's new European factory that is due to open in Gruenheide near Berlin in July.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has said he will use the plant to demonstrate a radical overhaul of how its cars are built.

In a tweet on Thursday, VW Group CEO Herbert Diess said the Trinity project "will revolutionize Volkswagen - and especially Wolfsburg."

It's a "huge challenge for our most traditional and historic site to compete against a greenfield in Gruenheide. But we take on the challenge!" Diess tweeted.

VW Group's supervisory board members approved the flagship electric sedan for Wolfsburg in December, bowing to pressure form labor unions and local politicians who were worried that the automaker's home plant could be left behind as the industry increasingly focuses on electric cars.

Project Trinity is the VW brand's equivalent of Audi's Artemis program that aims to restore Audi's reputation as a technological leader.

The Artemis project is developing a three row, seven-seat electric flagship, codenamed "Landjet," for Audi, Porsche, Bentley. Versions for all three brands will be built at VW Group's factory in Hanover, Germany. 

Audi's car will launch in 2024 and Porsche and Bentley will launch their versions later.