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IT might be one of the most quickly conceived concepts that the car industry has ever seen, but Volkswagen’s new ID. 2all may yet prove to be one of the most significant. Created in barely six weeks, under the direction of new design boss Andreas Mindt and with backing from VW’s newly installed CEO Thomas Schäfer, the ID. 2all (yes, we know – dodgy name) is said to be at least 80 per cent of a new, smaller, more affordable EV that could cost from just under £22,000. Walking around the car after its unveiling in Hamburg, I was struck by how clean, simple and unfussy it is – and how the details show that it has been created with that £22k price tag in mind. The front end could…

Richard_Ingram@autovia.co.uk @rsp_ingram ● Similar size to the VW ID.4 and priced from around £40,000 ● Ford’s bespoke design includes SYNCMove infotainment tech FORD is reinventing the Explorer name for a new mid-size electric SUV. Following in the footsteps of the sleek Mustang Mach-E, the new 2023 Explorer has been revealed with a choice of two trims, two battery options and up to 335bhp from a dual-motor configuration that brings all-wheel drive. Built on the same MEB platform as the Volkswagen ID.4, the Ford Explorer is the result of an ongoing partnership between the two brands. The companies have already shared their commercial-vehicle expertise on vans and pick-ups, and now the attention turns to passenger EVs. Volkswagen has had something of a head start, though: the ID.3 and ID.4 have been…

Using VW’s MEB platform presented Ford with a few challenges but also opportunities, as Demkiw explains. Q What inspired the design of the new Ford Explorer? A “Our new Explorer is unique for Europe. It’s a bit different to our current offerings; the design draws inspiration from the [US-spec] Explorer, but in a more compact and nimble way. The mantra was to embody a very bold, dynamic design that uses a simplified, pure, very aero-driven aesthetic.” Q Were there any restrictions or complications from inheriting the platform from VW? A “There were obviously some platform components we couldn’t move as much as we ordinarily would. But we were able to get the shorter rear, the A-pillars further rearward, a wider track. All of those things have a big impact in…

John_McIlroy@autovia.co.uk @johnmcilroy ● Concept points to supermini EV ● Expected to go on sale in 2025 WE’VE been waiting for a couple of years to see how Volkswagen plans to make electric motoring more affordable – and after one false start with the ID. Life concept, here’s the firm’s proposed solution: the ID. 2all, a supermini that will be a rival for the likes of Vauxhall’s Corsa-e and the Peugeot e-208 when it goes on sale in 2025. The ID. 2all is VW’s first take on MEB Entry, a project announced in 2019 to deliver EVs costing less than 20,000 Euros. That price has now risen up to “less than 25,000 Euros”, but it’s hoped that the car could cost from just under £22,000 in the UK. The MEB Entry…

Andreas Mindt didn’t have long to settle in as VW’s design chief. When he joined from Bentley on 1 February, he had a very tight timeframe to develop the ID. 2all. Q How long did you have for the concept? Is it the fastest you’ve ever done? A “About six weeks. So yes, the quickest, although when I was at Bentley, we did the Batur, and that was quite quick as well. Maybe I learned something there.” Q How did you know what to design, when the platform is still being developed? A “We were given some fixed hard points. We’d no time to change anything anyway, to be honest, so we just did it.” Q The price is very important on this car. Are there elements designed to cost?…

THE ID. 2all will lead an affordable EV charge by Volkswagen, as the firm aims to catch up with the likes of Peugeot and Vauxhall by introducing a range of small zero-emissions cars by the second half of the decade. Alongside the new concept, VW has announced that a baby SUV, using the same MEB Entry platform and almost certainly the same 38kWh and 56kWh battery packs as the ID. 2all, will arrive in 2026. It will be one of four MEB Entry cars built at the VW Group plant in Barcelona; the others will be the roadgoing version of the Cupra UrbanRebel and an as-yet-unseen small Skoda SUV. The company has also confirmed that it is pairing up with Skoda to work on a project, first outlined in Auto…