Volkswagen has revealed some details about the ID. Cross, its upcoming affordable electric city SUV.
The ID. Cross is based on the updated front-wheel drive MEB+ architecture that includes upgraded batteries, support for front-wheel drive models, redesigned front and rear axles, and a more rigid anti-roll bar.
At launch three motors will be offered, providing either 85kW, 99kW or 155kW/290Nm to the front wheels. These motors will also be offered on the ID. Polo, but it looks like the ID. Cross will miss out on the 165kW unit earmarked for the ID. Polo GTI.
There will also be two battery options: a 37kWh (net) pack that supports DC fast charging up to 90kW, and a 52kWh battery that can do DC charging up to 105kW.
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According to Volkswagen, the ID. Cross is 4153mm long, 1794mm wide, 1581mm tall, and rides on a 2601mm wheelbase. That’s roughly the same size as petrol-powered T-Cross, and the electric Renault 4 E-Tech.
Boot space is said to be 475L, and this grows to 1340L when the rear seats are folded down. In addition to this there’s a frunk (or froot) that can hold 22L worth of stuff, and towing capacity is rated at 1200kg.
The ID. Cross will go on sale in Europe during the third quarter of this year, and will have a price starting around €28,000 (A$45,600).
To put that into context, the Renault 4 E-Tech starts from €29,500 (A$48,000) in Germany for the base model with a 90kW motor, and a 40kWh battery pack. Comparing base models, the ID. Cross will have a premium of around €3000 (A$4900) over the T-Cross.
From the official “spy” images provided by Volkswagen, we can see the production ID. Cross keeps the silhouette and basic details of last year’s concept car.
The concept’s nicely bulging wheel arches have been toned down, and this is reflected in the car’s width shrinking 45mm. The surfacing seems to be a less rounded and smooth, while the detailing looks to be a tad edgier.
Other changes include a taller headlight stack, fully framed door windows, and smaller wheels, which max out at 20 inches in diameter.
The production car’s cabin has yet to be revealed, but we know it will feature physical buttons on the steering wheel spokes, dashboard, and centre console, rather the much maligned capacitive buttons and sliders that proliferated throughout the range since the launch of the ID. 3.
Earlier this year, Volkswagen revealed the interior of the closely-related ID. Polo, which has a 10.25-inch instrument display that can be configured to show dials in the style of the first-generation Golf, and a 13.0-inch infotainment touchscreen in the centre of the dashboard with an optional retro theme that includes readouts in the style of mechanical odometers and a media display with a cassette tape.
The ID. Polo demo vehicle also featured light grey fabric on the door cards, knee rests and lower dashboard, while the upper dash was finished with a black mesh fabric. According to the automaker, the ID. Polo sets the template that all of the company’s EVs will follow, so expect a similar treatment in the ID. Cross.