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The next Volkswagen Golf might not be what you expected, with reports suggesting the brand is taking one of its future models back to the drawing board to turn it into the next iteration of its iconic hatchback.
Insider reports published by UK publication Autocar tip the ID.2, which will aptly sit below the ID.3 EV in size and market position, will become the next-generation Golf instead of a Polo-sized compact electric car as previously thought.
As recently as January, it was expected that Volkswagen would create a much more affordable electric car, below $40,000, in the same size class as the Polo.
On top of that, Volkswagen Australia says it's in on the project, ahead of the local arm beginning to bring electric cars to Australia after a long push for more action on EVs from the former government.
Volkswagen Australia passenger vehicle product chief Michelle Rowney told CarsGuide last month that the brand has nothing confirmed just yet, but is in discussions with HQ in Wolfsburg to bring the new model to Australia.
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"We're part of the project, so we're working with the factory and planning but do we have confirmation? Not yet," Rowney said.
While it could be concluded that the ID.2-turned-Golf could be built on the same VW platform as the Cupra Born small electric hatchback, sources say it will instead be the first car from the VW group to be built on the next iteration called MEB-Plus.
The platform will allow charging up to 200kW, and will likely be the basis for a series of cars from other brands, including a similar car from Cupra.
Volkswagen CEO Thomas Schafer had previously said the brand would let the Golf nameplate live alongside the ID.3, which was previously expected to succeed the Golf, so it seems no lies were told.
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Speaking to Autocar in November, he said "the ID 3 has never been a successor to the Golf, it is more a Golf Plus", and said there is room for both to exist.
"It would be crazy to let them die and slip away," Mr Schafer explained. "We will stick with the ID [naming convention] logic but iconic models will carry a name.
"We would not let go of the Golf name, no way."
