Volkswagen Vizzion I.D. concept previews EV flagship

Volkswagen has teased its latest concept car design, the Vizzion I.D. ahead of its 2018 Geneva motor show premiere.

Sporting a conservative exterior design dubbed "elegant and emotional" and measuring a colossal 5.11 metres long, the Volkswagen Vizzion concept does without a steering wheel, fully embracing autonomous driving functionality.

Employing level five autonomy, the only inputs occupants can make include voice and gesture control. Volkswagen even hints that children can 'drive' the vehicle without parental supervision – although that decision will up to law-makers, not car-makers.

"Furthermore, use of this car will be made possible for customer groups who cannot drive today, e.g. because of their age," says Volkswagen.

"Its automatic driving control will make it safe and much more comfortable," insists the German car giant and propulsion will be provided by two electric motors, not a combustion engine.

After being engulfed in serious scandal over the past few years, Volkswagen is investing heavily in electric car technology to clean up its image. Dieselgate and monkeygate have made headlines for all the wrong reasons yet the company's corporate health couldn’t be better, topping the charts in 2017 as the world's largest car maker and recording a 4.2 per cent sales increase, selling 6.23 million vehicles.

Power for the four-seat, four-wheel drive luxury saloon comes from a pair of electric motors generating a combined 225kW output, providing the same levels of power as a turbo V6 and more torque than a V8 engine. It has a top speed of 180km/h which should be okay for German autobahn set.

Energised by a 111kWh Lithium-ion battery pack, Volkswagen reckons the Vizzion can cover 665km per charge – but only when "braking regeneration is factoring in".

Roughly the same length as the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, the new Volkswagen Vizzion concept is understood to preview a production car that will replace the unloved Phaeton.

Volkswagen is planning to launch its all-new I.D. range of electric vehicles in early 2020 with the I.D. which will be a compact hatchback EV. It will followed by the I.D. Crozz SUV and I.D. Buzz4, an EV sedan.

The German corporation's ambitious strategy is to launch more than 20 EV models bearing the I.D. badges by 2025.

It's not clear how Volkswagen EV plans will unfold in Australia, as the car-buying public continues to shun electric vehicles. Volkswagen Australia has previously stated it expects EV demand to grow but it remains to be seen whether the company will assault the Aussie market with I.D. electric vehicles by the turn of decade.