ID.2all Becomes ID.Polo
Volkswagen is rebranding its all-electric ID models, applying the names from established internal-combustion models to the EVs. That starts with the ID.2all concept, which previews an affordable EV due to enter production in 2026. That production model will now be known as the ID.Polo, and there will be a sporty ID.Polo GTI version as well, VW has confirmed. The latter could be derived from the ID.GTI concept first shown in 2023.
“Our model names are firmly anchored in people’s minds,” VW brand CEO Thomas Schäfer said in a statement. “They stand for a strong brand and embody characteristics such as quality, timeless design, and technologies for all. That’s why we’re moving our well-known names into the future. The ID.Polo is just the beginning.”
Rebadged Models Confirmed For Europe, But U.S. Plans Unclear
Volkswagen
The choice of the ID.Polo name makes sense, as this car is smaller than the ID.3 hatchback VW currently sells in Europe, and which the automaker has described in the past as the EV equivalent of the Golf. VW didn’t go so far as to say that the ID.3 would be renamed the ID.Golf, but did say the new naming scheme would be applied “with each new model generation,” so that could happen when the ID.3 gets redesigned.
VW also confirmed that the electric SUV concept due to be unveiled September 7 ahead of the Munich Auto Show will be named ID.Cross, and that name would transfer to a production model due within the same 2026 timeframe as the ID.Polo and ID.Polo GTI as an electric counterpart to the Volkswagen T-Cross. VW will also display camouflaged prototypes of the ID.Polo and ID.Polo GTI at the Munich show.
The Polo and T-Cross aren’t sold in the United States, indicating that these electric models won’t be sold here either. VW currently sells only the ID.4 crossover and ID.Buzz minivan in the U.S., having canceled plans to bring the ID.7 sedan here. The automaker’s North American division hasn’t confirmed how it will rename these models to fit with the new naming scheme.
EV Headwinds In America
Volkswagen
VW introduced the ID family in 2018 with not only a dedicated naming scheme, but a shared EV-specific architecture called MEB designed for flexibility and ease of high-volume production. The automaker promised EVs “for the millions, not millionaires,” and so far its succeeded with global EV deliveries surpassing 1.5 million units last month. That demand has been driven largely by Europe, and the more-affordable new models will help continue that momentum.
Things don’t look as good in the U.S., where VW has been a victim of the Trump Administration’s new tariffs, and where EV demand has been weaker. After sales plunged 65% in the second quarter to less than 2,000 units, VW will pause ID.4 production at its Chattanooga, Tennessee, plant in October, The Chattanooga Times Free Press reports. While an update for the ID.4 is reportedly on the way, VW hasn’t confirmed any other new EVs for the U.S.
