The future for R is electric, says Volkswagen

There is a long and lustrous future for Volkswagen’s R performance models, according to the German brand’s passenger vehicle chief in Australia, who has confirmed the car-maker’s electrification program will continue the R legacy.

That means that even though Volkswagen will offer hotter GTX variants of its ID electric cars (the first of which will be the ID.4 and ID.5 GTX), even higher-output EVs will join the range – potentially under the GTX R banner, although naming conventions are yet to confirmed.

Volkswagen has already spelled out its electrification ambitions Down Under, where it hopes to outsell US giant Tesla in the next five years and become the world’s largest EV-maker by 2025, despite the fact its first EV is still more than 12 months away from going on sale in Australia.

The German auto giant has also previously confirmed an expiry date of 2030-2031 for its internal combustion engine (petrol and diesel) offerings.

However, while the German brand’s local passenger vehicle boss, Michal Szaniecki, says the brand’s initial focus won’t be on high-performance EVs, it will eventually transition into faster-paced ID models that will carry over the R name.

“We will transition,” Szaniecki told carsales.

“There is a future for R and this is the performance of electric vehicles coming to Australia. What branding and concepts this will be under, we are still working out the specifics of, but of course there's a next chapter for R range. Of course, there is.”

But Szaniecki stopped short of confirming what the brand’s first potential ‘GTX R’ model would be.

“Let's see. I don’t want to... I may have something but let's make sure we are bringing exactly what we need first,” he said.

“An SUV range for Australia [will include] not ID.3 [hatch] but ID.4 and ID.5 [SUVs]. Number one, number two EVs are the key priority right now. GTX will follow, and then the R range as well – the line-up which will come soon.”

When they come to life, Volkswagen’s R-badged performance EVs will build on the athleticism of the GTX models, meaning dual electric motors, all-wheel drive and likely closer to 250kW of power on tap.

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