Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Automotive News
  • Automobilwoche
  • Automotive News Canada
  • Automotive News China
Subscribe
  • Subscribe
  • Newsletters
  • Login
  • HOME
    • Latest news
    • Automakers
    • Suppliers
    • New Product
    • Environment/Emissions
    • Sales By Market
    • On The Move
    • Auto Shows
    • Munich Auto Show
    • Geneva Auto Show
    • Paris Auto Show
    • Beijing Auto Show
    • Shanghai Auto Show
  • Features
    • Long Read
    • Interview of the Month
    • Focus on Electrification
    • Focus on Technology
    • Segment Analysis
    • Cars & Concepts
    • Supplier Spotlight
    • Europe By The Numbers
  • Opinion
    • Blogs
    • Commentary
    • Guest columnists
  • Photos
    • Photo Galleries
    • Geneva Photo Gallery
    • Beijing Photo Gallery
    • Frankfurt Photo Gallery
    • Paris Photo Gallery
    • Shanghai Photo Gallery
  • Podcasts
  • Car Cutaways
  • EVENTS
    • ANE Congress
    • ANE Rising Stars
    • ANE Eurostars
  • More
    • Publishing Partners
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
    • Media Kit
    • About Us
    • Capgemini: Invent Head on automotive takeaways from CES 2023
    • Capgemini: Securing the industry's future through a radical rethink
    • Capgemini: Succeeding with the automated driving journey through AI
    • Capgemini: The circular economy is spurring new thinking on EV batteries
    • Capgemini: Toyota and Capgemini leaders on how OEMs can handle industry changes and succeed
    • HEXAGON: Plugging into data is the only way to make winning EVs
    • TUV Rheinland: Ideas, services and certifications for smart mobility
    • TUV Rheinland: Testing of automated and autonomous vehicles on test tracks
    • Toyota Europe
    • UFI Filters
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Automakers
December 19, 2020 04:39 AM

VW plans to make potential Tesla Model S fighter in Wolfsburg

  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print
    Wolfsburg Golf 8 production 2020

    VW promises that its Wolfsburg plant, where it currently makes the Golf (shown), will become a "pioneering factory for the highly automated manufacture" of EVs.

    Volkswagen brand aims to develop a full-electric sedan for global markets that could take on Tesla's flagship. It will be built in VW's home plant in Wolfsburg, Germany.

    The new model would slot in above the VW Aero midsize electric car, which is due in 2023, but below upper-premium electric sedans such as the Mercedes-Benz EQS that will debut next year, a VW source told Automotive News Europe.

    "Think Model S," a second source said.

    While the Model S is priced to compete with the upper-premium models such as the Mercedes S-Class, its dimensions more closely match those of the large premium E-Class, which is in the segment below.

    VW Group board members this month approved giving Wolfsburg the brand flagship sedan as it pushes to turn the longtime production home of the Golf into a "pioneering factory for the highly automated manufacture" of electric vehicles.

    Influential VW labor leader Bernd Osterloh in September called for an EV to be built in Wolfsburg by 2025, demanding that the model use the automaker's latest generation technology and newest software. Osterloh is a member of VW's supervisory board that makes strategic decisions at the automaker.

    The demand was reiterated by VW Group board member Stephan Weil, who is also the head of Lower Saxony, the German state that includes Wolfsburg.

    VW Group previously announced large investments to build EVs at factories in Hanover, Emden and Zwickau without committing to EV production in Wolfsburg. An investment plan with a concrete development budget and estimated production volumes for Wolfsburg still needs to be finalized.

    Despite its size, the sedan would still fit on an evolved version of the MEB platform, which already underpins the ID3 and ID4 electric models and was designed for vehicles in the compact and midsize segments.

    Keeping the new sedan on the MEB architecture would help VW avoid using the more expensive PPE architecture that VW Group premium brands Audi and Porsche will use. The PPE platform relies on costlier technology to, among other things, speed up battery recharging times.

    The estimated output for the new sedan could rise to 300,000 units a year, the VW source said, if production would be extended to key overseas markets such as China and the United States.

    Development of the sedan would be managed on an elite level, bundling all activities from engineering to production, according to the company. This would give VW brand a setup similar to Audi subsidiary Artemis, which functions as a type of corporate skunk works focused on delivering the group's most technologically advanced vehicle as early as 2024.

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    Renault, Nissan revamp opens up chase for new partners
    Recommended for You
    Renault Nissan logos 2023
    Renault, Nissan revamp opens up chase for new partners
    Britishvolt UK plant sketch
    Britishvolt battery startup set to be bought by Australia's Recharge
    Renault Nissan
    Rebalanced Renault-Nissan alliance brings Renault to U.S. doorstep
    Capgemini Invent Head on automotive takeaways from CES 2023
    Sponsored Content: Capgemini Invent Head on automotive takeaways from CES 2023
    Sign up for free newsletters
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    Get Free Newsletters

    Sign up and get the best of Automotive News Europe delivered straight to your email inbox, free of charge. Choose your news – we will deliver.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    SUBSCRIBE TODAY

    Get 24/7 access to in-depth, authoritative coverage of the auto industry from a global team of reporters and editors covering the news that’s vital to your business.

    SUBSCRIBE NOW
    Connect with Us
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • LinkedIn
    • Instagram

    Founded in 1996, Automotive News Europe is the preferred information source for decision-makers and opinion leaders operating in Europe.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI  48207-2997
    Tel: +1 877-812-1584

    Email Us

    ISSN 2643-6590 (print)
    ISSN 2643-6604 (online)

     

    Resources
    • About us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise with us
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Awards
    • Rising Stars
    • Eurostars
    • Leading Women
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Automotive News Europe
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • HOME
      • Latest news
      • Automakers
      • Suppliers
      • New Product
      • Environment/Emissions
      • Sales By Market
      • On The Move
      • Auto Shows
        • Munich Auto Show
        • Geneva Auto Show
        • Paris Auto Show
        • Beijing Auto Show
        • Shanghai Auto Show
    • Features
      • Long Read
      • Interview of the Month
      • Focus on Electrification
      • Focus on Technology
      • Segment Analysis
      • Cars & Concepts
      • Supplier Spotlight
      • Europe By The Numbers
    • Opinion
      • Blogs
      • Commentary
      • Guest columnists
    • Photos
      • Photo Galleries
      • Geneva Photo Gallery
      • Beijing Photo Gallery
      • Frankfurt Photo Gallery
      • Paris Photo Gallery
      • Shanghai Photo Gallery
    • Podcasts
    • Car Cutaways
    • EVENTS
      • ANE Congress
      • ANE Rising Stars
      • ANE Eurostars
    • More
      • Publishing Partners
        • Capgemini: Invent Head on automotive takeaways from CES 2023
        • Capgemini: Securing the industry's future through a radical rethink
        • Capgemini: Succeeding with the automated driving journey through AI
        • Capgemini: The circular economy is spurring new thinking on EV batteries
        • Capgemini: Toyota and Capgemini leaders on how OEMs can handle industry changes and succeed
        • HEXAGON: Plugging into data is the only way to make winning EVs
        • TUV Rheinland: Ideas, services and certifications for smart mobility
        • TUV Rheinland: Testing of automated and autonomous vehicles on test tracks
        • Toyota Europe
        • UFI Filters
      • Social Media
        • Facebook
        • Instagram
        • LinkedIn
        • Twitter
      • Contact Us
      • Media Kit
      • About Us