Skip advert
Advertisement

Volkswagen reveals details of new MEB electric car platform

VW has provided more information on its MEB electric car platform and how some of its multi-billion pound EV investment will be spent

Volkswagen MEB platform

Volkswagen has revealed the first details on the MEB platform technology that will underpin its forthcoming range of I.D. electric cars – and announced aggressive sales targets along with how some of its €6 billion (£5.4 billion) investment in EVs will be spent. 

The first I.D. product is expected to be a five-door hatchback and it should go on sale before the end of 2019. VW has confirmed that it will be built at its Zwickau factory, and stated that it is investing €1.2 billion (£1.1 billion) in the plant. The company says that by the end of 2020 it expects to be selling 150,000 electrified vehicles per annum, with 100,000 of those belonging to the I.D range. While the remainder of EV sales will come from existing cars such as the e-up! and e-Golf. The German manufacturer is also targeting a 10-fold growth in I.D. sales, meaning it intends to sell one million I.D. vehicles per year by 2025.

VW says that across the wider group – so including SEAT, Audi and Skoda – it expects 27 pure-electric MEB models to be on sale by the end of 2022. And that in total, 10 million vehicles will be based on the first wave of the MEB platform, which has been conceived from the ground up to accommodate batteries and electric motors, with no compromise for combustion-engined variants.

Advertisement - Article continues below
Skip advert
Advertisement
Skip advert
Advertisement - Article continues below

• Volkswagen e-Golf long-term review

The company has also detailed how other production sites in Germany are being adapted for MEB. Its battery systems factory in Braunschweig will expand to facilitate half a million battery packs per year, while the facilities at Salzgitter (rotors) and Kassel (electric motors) will also receive fresh investment. VW says it plans to spend €1.3 billion (£1.2 billion) across these three sites. 

The first I.D. hatchback is expected to be available for roughly the same price as a well-specced diesel Golf – so it should start from around £25,000 after the UK government plug-in grant is applied. As Auto Express revealed last year, the car will make use of the MEB’s packaging advantages to offer an extremely long wheelbase that gives the interior space of a Passat in a vehicle that’s roughly the same length as the current Golf. Every vehicle based on the new platform will have fast charging as standard – enough, the firm claims, to take the battery from empty to 80 per cent charge in around half an hour. 

VW’s Board Member for E-Mobility, Thomas Ulbrich, said MEB will be as significant a step in the brand’s development as “the transition from Beetle to Golf”. He added, “The MEB is the economic and technological backbone of the electric car for all. The MEB models will range from compact cars to the lifestyle Bulli (a pure-electric tribute to the classic VW camper van). That is something quite unique.”

VW has revealed that a prototype production version of the car is currently under preparation in its ‘Pilot Hall’ in Wolfsburg, and that it will soon begin tests at the firm’s top-secret Ehra-Lessien proving ground in eastern Germany. The car should be revealed in full in the final quarter of 2019, although UK sales aren’t likely until early 2020.

Looking for an electric car? Then take a read of the best EVs on sale.

Get the latest electric car news, reviews and analysis on DrivingElectric.com

Skip advert
Advertisement
Editor-at-large

John started journalism reporting on motorsport – specifically rallying, which he had followed avidly since he was a boy. After a stint as editor of weekly motorsport bible Autosport, he moved across to testing road cars. He’s now been reviewing cars and writing news stories about them for almost 20 years.

Find a car with the experts

Skip advert
Advertisement

Recommended

Rejoice! Electric VWs getting cheaper thanks to breakthrough battery tech
VW ID3 factory

Rejoice! Electric VWs getting cheaper thanks to breakthrough battery tech

VW is ready to use new battery technology to drive down the cost of its new, affordable electric cars
News
16 May 2025
Best electric car deals: today's top discounts and incentives on new EVs
Best electric car deals - header image

Best electric car deals: today's top discounts and incentives on new EVs

Making the switch to an EV? These car brands have an offer (or two) for you
Best cars & vans
28 Apr 2025
Volkswagen ID.Every1 concept: entry-level ID.1 EV will ‘still feel like a Volkswagen’
Volkswagen ID.Every1 concept - front action

Volkswagen ID.Every1 concept: entry-level ID.1 EV will ‘still feel like a Volkswagen’

The Volkswagen ID.1 will arrive in 2027 and look to start below £20,000
News
23 Apr 2025
Volkswagen to extend its range with range-extender PHEVs for Europe
Volkswagen Touareg - front cornering

Volkswagen to extend its range with range-extender PHEVs for Europe

EV-lite range-extender technology could prolong the shelf-life of Volkswagen’s petrol engine offerings to 2030 and beyond
News
23 Apr 2025

Most Popular

Car Deal of the Day: Sacre bleu! The Renault 5 keeps getting cheaper
Renault 5 - front full width

Car Deal of the Day: Sacre bleu! The Renault 5 keeps getting cheaper

The modern-day Super Cinq comes with a super price. It’s our Deal of the Day for 14 May
News
14 May 2025
Want a new small car? You probably can’t afford one and car bosses blame the EU
Luca de Meo - Renault 5

Want a new small car? You probably can’t afford one and car bosses blame the EU

Renault and Stellantis bosses demand changes to the emissions rules driving up new car prices
News
15 May 2025
Best electric cars 2025: the top 10 best EVs you can buy
Best electric cars header

Best electric cars 2025: the top 10 best EVs you can buy

Thinking about making the switch to an electric vehicle? Here are the EVs that should be on your shortlist, and why…
Best cars & vans
14 May 2025