Volkswagen’s ID. BUZZ campervan concept is set to enter production at VW’s Hanover, Germany facility as the ID. California.
First unveiled ahead of the International Motor Show in 2017, and recently previewed again in psychedelic camouflage during the new ID.5 launch last month, the ID. BUZZ is a conceptual reinterpretation of the Type 2 camper van synonymous with Volkswagen during the 1950s.
Production now looks set to go ahead, following Volkswagen’s recently announced overview of the assembly lines across its European facilities.
Volkswagen ID.Buzz
The all-electric campervan will thus be a continuation of VW’s ‘California’ campervan range that debuted in 2003. It will be built at the Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles’ (VWCV) facility in Hanover, which will be dedicated solely to electric vehicles when production begins in 2025.
“Today’s decisions by the supervisory board confirm our future course at VWCV: we are developing Hanover into a multi-brand and high-tech site and at the same time strengthening our own commercial vehicle model range,” VWCV chairman Dr. Carsten Intra explained in an official statement. “And we’re investing in the sustainable expansion of our successful California model series.”
Having drawn attention to the number of orders for VW’s new compact Caddy California, which have “continually and significantly increased”, Intra went on to explain that the ID. BUZZ-based ID. California will “combine the ongoing trend towards mobile leisure arrangements with sustainable CO2-neutral mobility.”
Volkswagen ID.Buzz
Though further production details remain unclear, it’s likely the ID. California will sit atop VW’s EV-dedicated ‘MEB’ architecture and feature a single electric motor that drives the rear axle. Dual electric motor options are similarly expected to follow. Battery options meanwhile range from 48 kWh to 111 kWh, based on VW’s technical specifications for the ID.4. This has led to speculation of a 545-km(ish) electric range for the ID. California.
The ID. California will be joined on the production line at Hanover by VW’s new Multivan, the latest variant of the T 6.1 panel van, and a new electric model from Bentley. Hanover will also be the production site for Audi’s ‘Artemis’ project, Ingolstadt’s new high-tech electric flagship.
The ID. BUZZ ‘AD’ meanwhile is also set to live on at Hanover as a vehicle for autonomous technology development.
