{"id":102016,"date":"2015-12-17T10:13:27","date_gmt":"2015-12-17T15:13:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thedetroitbureau.com\/?p=102016"},"modified":"2015-12-17T10:13:27","modified_gmt":"2015-12-17T15:13:27","slug":"vws-completely-new-battery-car-could-be-worlds-first-electric-minivan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/2015\/12\/vws-completely-new-battery-car-could-be-worlds-first-electric-minivan\/","title":{"rendered":"VW\u2019s \u201cCompletely New\u201d Battery Car Could Be World\u2019s First Electric Minivan"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
A battery-Microbus? VW isn't saying.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Volkswagen is planning to reveal a \u201ccompletely new\u201d electric vehicle concept at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas early next month, and while the maker is being mum about specifics, inside sources suggest the concept vehicle could be a prelude to the launch of a new battery-electric minivan.<\/p>\n

Senior VW officials have laid out plans to offer \u201celectrified\u201d versions of virtually every vehicle offered by the Volkswagen and Audi brands in the coming years. There is already a pure battery-electric version of the compact VW Golf, and Audi intends to launch a long-range electric SUV in 2018.<\/p>\n

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Plug In!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The concept \u201cmarks the beginning of a new era of affordable long-distance electromobility,\u201d VW said in a terse statement released this week, adding that the CES show car underscores the \u201cmajor changes that the car is set to go through in the next few years.\u201d<\/p>\n

Volkswagen\u2019s corporate interest in electric propulsion has been underway for several years, but it appears to be gaining new emphasis as the maker tries to cope with the damage caused by its diesel emissions scandal. VW had long focused on so-called \u201coil burners\u201d as a clean, high-mileage alternative to traditional gasoline engines. But analysts question whether those diesels will ever fully regain their former luster.<\/p>\n

(VW’s global sales, share weaken in wake of diesel scandal.<\/em> Click Here<\/span><\/a> for the story.)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, industry analysts believe that the auto industry, on the whole, simply won\u2019t be able to meet tough new global emissions and mileage standards without the extensive use of hybrids, plug-ins and pure battery-electric vehicles, or BEVs.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
The VW e-Golf.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cEvery car will be electrified,\u201d Ulrich Hackenbe<\/strong><\/em>rg, the board member overseeing technical development at Audi said during an appearance at the Frankfurt Motor Show, where the e-tron SUV Concept debuted. Hackenberg was forced out in the wake of the diesel emissions scandal, but VW Chairman Herbert Diess is expected to maintain that goal. Diess will be a keynote speaker at the CES opening session on January 5, 2016.<\/p>\n

A teaser image of the vehicle coming to the annual Las Vegas event hints at something quite large, with a truck-sized grille that would likely be an SUV or a modern version of the classic Volkswagen microbus. The latter is more likely, a well-placed source suggests.<\/p>\n

(<\/em>Click Here<\/span><\/a> to see how the Paris climate accord will impact motorists.)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

While a number of the battery-electric vehicles now available are small passenger cars, industry experts anticipate seeing more SUVs and other large models come to market over the next few years. The problem with a product like the little Volkswagen e-Golf is that there simply isn\u2019t much room for batteries, and that means more limited range.<\/p>\n

The general consensus \u2013 backed by growing sales at Tesla Motors \u2013 is that battery-electric vehicles need to boost range, likely to 200 miles or more, to develop a more mainstream audience.<\/p>\n

Larger vehicles, like the Audi e-tron SUV Concept or a VW Microbus, would have more space in which to tuck a longer-range battery pack.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
The Audi e-tron Quattro SUV Concept will be followed by a production model around 2018.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Volkswagen wouldn\u2019t be the only manufacturer to consider offering an electrified minivan, if that is indeed what\u2019s coming to CES. FCA is expected to launch an all-new version of its Chrysler Town & Country minivan at the 2016 Detroit Auto Show, which follows a week after the CES event. The new Chrysler model is expected to be offered with a plug-in hybrid option that will deliver a significant boost in fuel economy, along with a modest range in battery-only mode.<\/p>\n

The Consumer Electronics Show has become a major showcase for alternative automotive technology \u2013 from in-car infotainment to electric propulsion — in recent years. Other senior industry executives set to speak at the show include Ford CEO Mark Fields and General Motors Chief Executive Mary Barra.<\/p>\n

(California regulators announce new autonomous vehicle rules. <\/em>Click Here<\/span><\/a> for more.)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Volkswagen is planning to reveal a \u201ccompletely new\u201d electric vehicle concept at the Consumer Electronics Show early next month, and sources suggest it could be a new battery-electric minivan. More from TheDetroitBureau.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":102018,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"make":[],"post-state":[],"category_old":[151],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102016"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=102016"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102016\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/102018"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=102016"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=102016"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=102016"},{"taxonomy":"make","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/make?post=102016"},{"taxonomy":"post-state","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post-state?post=102016"},{"taxonomy":"category_old","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedetroitbureau.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/category_old?post=102016"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}