Volkswagen is still trying to figure itself out after all these years, and the transition to electric propulsion isn’t helping with the brand’s identity crisis. Since the launch of the ID 3 in Europe back in 2017 the brand has been all-in on using the ID prefix for its electric vehicles. This week, however, Martin Sander—Board of Management member in charge of sales and marketing—told German publication Auto und Wirtschaft that the brand would be reverting to conventional names for its EVs starting in 2026, reports Carscoops. The upcoming ID 2 (pictured above as the 2023 GTI variant concept) could actually see the transition of the Polo to electric, a nameplate celebrating 50 years in existence. Apparently Volkswagen found that the ID names were confusing to consumers, who were used to the typical VW nomenclature.
It doesn’t take a genius to understand that VW nameplates dating back to the 1970s, like Passat, Golf, Jetta, Polo, or Lupo have brand equity and consumers don’t necessarily want to learn a new naming system. By keeping the name the same you can capture returning customers who loved those cars in the past. It’s basically free marketing done by your own company over the decades. Volkswagen fumbling their own recognizable names in an era of alphanumeric sludge naming was a totally unforced error, and it’s about time they learned from their mistakes. In order to get regular car buyers to transition to electric vehicles, Volkswagen needs to make the buying experience as familiar as possible. Most people are resistant to change, so why give them an opportunity to go elsewhere?
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Thus far the ID name hasn’t really made inroads in the U.S. market, so it doesn’t seem like VW has much to lose by dropping the naming scheme. VW of America has only imported the lackluster ID 4 crossover and the ID Buzz van, while other markets have seen the ID 5 and ID 6 SUVs and the ID 7 sedan. VW had planned to push the ID 2 and ID 1 city and supermini cars (previewed by the ID.Every1 concept above) in the coming years, but now they’ll have an opportunity to bring back the much-beloved Polo and Lupo names, or perhaps even the excitable Up! model.
With Volkswagen already working on an all-electric next-generation Golf, it makes sense for that car to lead the movement here in the states. We probably won’t see the smaller models any time soon. I, for one, am excited about a return to actual car names. I hope Volkswagen is the trendsetter here and we begin to see the number letter cars start to leave other brands’ stables as well.