Volkswagen of America Boss Aims for EV 'Sweet Spot'
Seen in spy photos, in conceptual drawings, and as a prototype, the upcoming Volkswagen ID.4 crossover launches on September 23rd, with the potential to arrive in the greenest U.S. states by year’s end. The vehicle marks the end of a half-decade journey for the automaker that began with a very expensive scandal and ended with a new direction and philosophy.
Scott Keogh, CEO of Volkswagen of America, knows that green doesn’t sell on virtue alone. His aim is to position the ID.4 as a competitor to popular compact crossovers that just happens to be electric.
Speaking to Automotive News, Keogh described how the automaker is dealing with the aftermath of its North American plant shutdowns. Assembly plants in Puebla, Mexico and Chattanooga, Tennessee went idle for 11 and 8 weeks, respectively, leading to inventory shortages that persist to this day. For the brand’s big-margin Atlas, the timing of the pandemic left the company with few vehicles in reserve when society reopened.
“We’re sitting in, I would say, high 40s, low 50s day supply,” Keogh said, adding, “We are very very thin on [the Atlas].”
Keogh claims Chattanooga is now at “110 percent utilization,” with Puebla going “full-bore.”
As for the ID.4, which will see North American assembly move to Tennessee a year and a half after production starts in Germany, Keogh says he views electric propulsion as a “consumer proposition, rather than a legislative/political proposition.”
“Frankly, it’s one of the most strategically important cars we have,” he said of the ID.4. “We want to put a car right into that sweet spot of price, sweet spot of packaging, sweet spot of tech, of everything, so when you’re looking at this segment, it’s not, ‘Oh, yeah, I think I’ll buy this electric car over there.’ No, it’s right into the mainstream.”
Explaining that compact crossovers boast an average transaction price in the $33k-34k range, VW’s American boss said that, with federal and state tax incentives factored in, the ID.4’s price can mirror that of its rivals. “Potentially, even a little bit lower than that,” he said. “So will we hit a $29k? I don’t see it. Will we hit a low 30s? I think we will, and I think that’s a hell of a place to be with this car and this technology.”
The ID.4 can be had in an all-wheel drive/twin-motor configuration, and early test drives show the ID.4 is capable of balancing power, range, and handling. Maximum range is estimated at 300 miles.
When asked about the diesel emissions scandal that broke five years ago this month, Keogh said the result of the PR and economic damage was the arrival of truckloads of humility at VW’s door. Whereas before VW was known for being “dramatically hierarchical,” the automaker now prides itself on its culture of transparency — a workplace where, Keogh claims, concerns and information now flow up and down the food chain.
“Honestly, we’re a company that wants to take advantage of being given a second chance,” he said.
“I think there’s not many times in life where you’re given a second chance. I think we fought and earned and deserve our second chance, but we want to take maximum advantage of it. And by taking maximum advantage of it, we want electrification to happen. We want zero CO2 in 2050 to happen. We want to return to being a loved company, which we always have been in America. We don’t want to be the Darth Vader, we want to be the absolute loved and admired company. Are we there yet? No. Are we working our way there, and have we earned our seat at the table? I think we have, but it’s been a very, very challenging five years, obviously.”
[Image: Volkswagen]
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- Bd2 There's nothing wrong with admitting there is a problem yet that is but the first step. Hopefully GM can resurrect their vaunted hybrid technology and apply it to high value luxury vehicles and perhaps give the world a revival of that V Magic. They could even give Genesis a run for it's crosshatched grille money.
- TMA1 Tell me the ICE version is going to weigh less. A 5,800 lb electric Charger just took the worst part of the old Charger and made it 30% heavier.
- Danddd Just say no to CVTs unless you like the sound of droning.
- Oberkanone GM will have 30 EV models by 2025. Over 40% of GM sales will be EV by 2025.quote - Marry Barra circa 2020Including 4 Chevy EV, 2 Buick EV, and 4 Cadillac EV.
- Dwford There's plenty of time between now and 2030-35 to design and sell through a whole new generation of ICE vehicles, if not 2 generations. Chevy seems to be on a dual track plan with ICE and EV versions of the Equinox and Blazer nameplates. No reason Cadillac can't do something similar.
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VW’s American boss said that, with federal and state tax incentives factored in, the ID.4’s price can mirror that of its rivals. “Potentially, even a little bit lower than that,” he said. “So will we hit a $29k? I don’t see it. Will we hit a low 30s? I think we will, and I think that’s a hell of a place to be with this car and this technology.” But first you have to have $7500 in federal income tax liability after credits to receive the benefit of that $7500. If not, you only receive the amount to bring your federal tax liability to $0. It's certainly a lot more income than I currently have with 2 child tax credits. All this points to a MSRP flirting with 40K before options. I guess I'll have to wait a few more years.
Dear Volkswagen, You never get a second chance to make a first impression. Sincerely, an unhappy ex-customer