What's the news?
Volkswagen will later this year launch its all-electric ID hatchback. It's expected to be as significant a car in Volkswagen's history as the Beetle or the Golf, and Volkswagen is planning a huge family of spinoff models, using the same MEB electric car chassis and batteries.
The latest member of that family will be the ID Roomz, a spacious, family-friendly SUV that Volkswagen will show in concept form at the upcoming Shanghai motor show. The Roomz, says Volkswagen: "has a number of innovations on board: as its name suggests, the concept car sets trendsetting impulses when it comes to variability of the vehicle interior, boasting completely new seat configurations, high-quality materials and customisable light."
As you can see from the first teaser image, the Roomz is also being set up for autonomous driving. The little circles on the roof, just above the windscreen, are the telltale installations for forward-looking LIDAR scanners, which autonomous cars use to 'see' the world around them. Volkswagen says that the Roomz has been designed around Level 4 autonomy, which means that a driver can leave the car entirely to its own devices in most circumstances, but can take control of the vehicle if they wish to do so.
"The ID Roomz shows us what we can expect from full-size electric SUVs in the future. The puristic look emphasises the clear function and the user experience is intuitive and natural," says Klaus Bischoff, Chief Designer at the Volkswagen brand.
Style-wise, the Roomz seem to look rather like a cross between the ID hatchback and the existing T-Roc SUV, which is hardly a surprise we guess. It will join the ID hatchback, the Buzz, Crozz, Vizzion, R (that's the all-electric Pikes Peak hillclimb car), and the Buggy as part of the ID family.