Volkswagen has debuted its electric beach buggy at Geneva, and I'm just going to come out and say it: this thing is adorable. Built on the same modular platform as the ID. Crozz, ID. Buzz and others, it's a super-fun retro dune cruiser with style for days.
Dune buggies started out in the 60s, chopped and hacked out of early Volkswagen Beetles, and VW wants to revive the California surfie spirit of these things moving into the electric age. And frankly, with a modular platform to build on top of, the Germans can make more or less anything they want out of the ID. electric platform.
The specs, such as they're relevant for a concept car, are thus: a single 201-horsepower, 228 lb-ft (309 Nm) electric motor in the rear, fed by a 62-kWh battery pack in the floor, giving a WLTP range of 155 miles (250 km). The wheels are 18 inches, with BF Goodrich All-Terrain chunky tires. 0-60mph (0-98 mph) is a decent 7.2 second sprint and the top speed is limited to 99mph (160kmh).
Realistically though, it's the design that makes this one sing. It's ultra-clean and sleek, with a water-resistant Nappa leather interior that looks like it's ready to be hosed down after a day out getting dirty. There's a strap-down tray for surfboards, skateboards or whatever else you want to lug back there. The "hey you" dash, squashed-oval steering wheel and pedals are the definition of bare minimum, and the rounded LED head and taillights brand it as Volkswagen through and through.
It's got practical touches too, like the Targa bar, which gives some rollover protection, and winch/tow points at all four corners.
Volkswagen seems ready to talk about manufacturing the thing, or at least supplying a platform to external manufacturers that could support something exactly like this ID. Buggy concept, as well as four-seater and AWD versions. The whole bodywork is detachable, as well, so third-party builders could make all sorts of body shapes for it.
Don't expect it to be super practical – the originals never were, and this one maintains the proud Meyers Manx tradition of having no doors. But those old beach buggies still turn heads no matter who you drive them past, and we can see the ID. Buggy charming a whole new generation when it hits the streets.
Source: Volkswagen
