Volkswagen ID.4 to be priced from under $60,000

Fleets and governments could hold the key to cheaper versions of the upcoming Volkswagen ID.4 electric SUV, which is slated for Australian release late in 2023.

Volkswagen Australia says it has had keen interest from fleet buyers looking to lower their carbon footprint and take advantage of a booming shift towards zero-emissions vehicles – and it’s those fleets that could bolster a business case for the arrival of more volume-focused variants.

“We still do get fleet enquiries on EV – when are we bringing them in, how many can we have – so we know that demand is there,” said Volkswagen Australia head of product for passenger vehicles, Michelle Rowney.

In confirming details of the upcoming ID.4 and its coupe-inspired ID.5 sibling, Volkswagen said it would start it EV rollout with the highly specified ID.4 Pro Performance.

Built on a ground-up EV architecture known as MEB, it will be fitted with the largest 82kWh battery pack that provides a WLTP range of 522km – and it’ll come loaded with gear likely to include a panoramic sunroof, head-up display, sports seats and 19-inch alloy wheels.

While pricing is yet to be confirmed, Volkswagen says the ground-breaking model will be priced commensurately to top-end versions of the similarly-sized Tiguan mid-size SUV.

“The ID.4 will bring electric performance to a broad customer base with target pricing similar to our most in-demand SUV, the Tiguan 162TSI R-Line,” said Volkswagen Australia brand director Michal Szaniecki.

That would price the ID.4 well under $60,000 – from around $57,690 plus on-road costs, ensuring it would take advantage of EV rebates and incentives available in most parts of the country.

Eventually expected to arrive at the top of the ID.4 range is the GTI-spec GTX flagship.

Of course, the ID.4 isn’t the only Volkswagen Group Australia EV due to hit dealerships soon; sister brand Cupra is planning to release its Born electric hatch by mid-2023 and Skoda is hoping to have the Enyaq iV – the ID.4’s sister model – in the market by early 2024.

And the ID.4 isn’t the only product coming from the Volkswagen brand’s own fast-expanding ID family.

“Arriving at the same time will be the coupe-style ID.5 with pricing similar to a Tiguan R, enabling customers to alternatively pick an even more design-focused BEV,” said Szaniecki.

The Tiguan R sells from $68,990, providing an indication of the positioning of the ID.5.

If that pricing is realised – keeping in mind that high inflation and price rises that have hit every brand over the past two years provide an uncertain backdrop for cars that are still 12 months away – it would set the ID.4 and ID.5 up to undercut key rivals such as the Hyundai IONIQ 5, Kia EV6 and Tesla Model Y.

But more affordable ID.4 models are on the way, with Rowney confirming at least one cheaper version “will closely follow” the late 2023 arrival of the original ID.4.

The obvious option is the ID.4 Pure Performance, which gets a more basic level of performance and a smaller 55kWh battery with a claimed WLTP range of 345km.

Volkswagen is evaluating an ID.4 Pure Performance as the model that “takes on a key role during discussions with fleet and government agencies”.

But any expansion of the initial ID.4 range will have to wait for the facelifted model, which is expected to be unveiled globally in 2024.

It’s only then that the ID.4 is likely to sell in bigger numbers locally. Indeed, ID.4 sales will start off slow compared with the boom of the Tesla Model Y, which in September was the top selling SUV in the country.

Blame it on supply – something that has taken its toll on Volkswagen sales in recent times.

Volkswagen Australia expects to get at least 3000 to 4000 ID.4s to sell in 2024 – but there are plans to ramp up dramatically after that, with Rowney confirming the target is Tesla.

“Our goal is that we will outsell them [Tesla],” she says. “We are a volume brand and that’s what we want to do.

“We don’t look at [ID.4] as it sits in that little EV segment; it sits in the medium SUV segment, it suits the needs of a family car, it suits the needs of that segment.”

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