Volkswagen has two new bosses; Brand CEO Thomas Schafer and VW of America President and CEO Pablo Di Si both joined the company earlier this year. The two executives were at this year’s Los Angeles Auto Show to discuss the German brand’s future and even open up the possibility of adding something even more thrilling to its EV line-up.
One of the vehicles that was rumored some time ago was the electric ID sports car. While we still don’t have all the details on what VW plans for a battery-powered performance vehicle, the two executives shed more light on the project at a roundtable interview during the auto show.
“We need to bring back a sports car for nostalgia, maybe electric.” Pablo Di Si said to the group. “That’s part of the portfolio discussion we’re having.”
Currently, the most powerful ID product VW sells is the ID.4 GTX, which produces 295 horsepower (220 kilowatts) from an 82.0 kilowatt-hour battery pack and will reach 60 horsepower in about 3.9 seconds. Beyond that, buyers can still get gas-powered hot hatchbacks such as the Golf GTI and Golf R, which produce 241 hp (180 kW) and 315 hp (235 kW) respectively.
But while rumors from 2020 hinted at a slinky or droptop sports car similar to the BlueSport concept from 2009, CEO Thomas Schafer indicated that the electric “sports car” would be more in line with its iconic gas-powered hatchback.
“It’s not going to be a sports car like a Porsche or a roadster or anything like that,” said Schafer. “We’re talking more about the Golf GTI tradition.”
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And as far as nameplates go, the ID, Golf and GTI will all live happily together.
“We have iconic brand names, Golf and GTI,” said Schafer Car in an interview. “It would be crazy to let them die and get away with it. We will stick with ID logic but iconic models will carry names.”
Volkswagen has committed to making its R performance sub-brand fully electric by 2030, with several performance electric models being considered. However, the two executives did not provide a timetable for when the first electric sports car could hit the market.
