This car might be small, but the news is big.
From the Beetle to the Golf, Volkswagen has built its reputation on making practical, desirable cars accessible to the masses. Now, it wants to repeat that trick in the electric era with the ID. EVERY1, a €20,000 small EV upon which the future of the company hinges. At today's exchange rate, that’s less than £17,000.
Despite not going into production until 2027, VW has been motivated to reveal the ID. EVERY1 early. That’s because Wolfsburg has some catching up to do – the Dacia Spring has stolen a march on the market, and the Renault 5 is garnering great press. The French firm has also already shown the Twingo EV, likely to be the ID. EVERY1’s main rival on size and price.
So what exactly will the ID. EVERY1 bring to the party? The production car will be built on the new front-wheel-drive MEB platform and, as per VW Group tradition, the up! successor shares underpinnings with several other cars, including the ID. 2, ID. 2X, Cupra Raval and Skoda Epiq.
A single, front-mounted motor provides propulsion, delivering 94bhp (70kW). It’s a modest output by modern EV standards but aligns with the ID. EVERY1’s budget-conscious brief. Volkswagen hasn’t disclosed performance figures yet, but given the claimed 155-mile range and 81mph top speed of the concept, expectations should be kept firmly in check.
That power is drawn from a yet-to-be-specified battery, though Volkswagen’s larger ID. 2all – due in 2026 – is set to offer 38kWh and 56kWh pack options, making the former the obvious call for the ID. EVERY1. Charging speeds are another unknown.
Although a concept, it's clear the ID. EVERY1 is very close to a production reality. Volkswagen’s design boss, Andreas Mindt, claims the car has “charisma and identity”, with styling cues from past models like the up! and Mk1 Golf. The Pyramid Gold paint scheme also recalls the MkIV Golf. It’s a clean, upright look that is immediately identifiable as a VW. The roof is a particularly nice touch, with a sculpted central channel running through into a rear boot spoiler.
Such simplicity is intentional. Fewer lines and creases – plus the absence of unnecessary styling flourishes – mean a cheaper car to produce, essential to meet the ambitious €20,000 target.
The lights are one extravagance of the concept. The three-dimensional headlights feature a prominent central bulb that has the ability to blink, while the vertical daytime running LEDs display the battery level on approach. The look is mirrored at the back, with the rear lamps closely matching the design of their front counterparts. One thing unlikely to make it to production is the flush door handles of the concept, which neatly disguise the fact that the car has four doors. Another is the oversized 19-inch alloys.
Inside, the interior is minimalist chic, with its flattened two-spoke steering wheel and fabric seats sporting a splash of body colour. A central touchscreen dominates the dashboard but, mercifully, it looks like VW has opted to return to physical buttons for the climate control system. Naturally, being an EV means there’s a practicality benefit, with boot space swelling to 305 litres – an increase of 54 over the up!
Volkswagen is also making a lot of noise about the ID. EVERY1 being the first model in the Group to use a “fundamentally new, particularly powerful software architecture”. The upshot is that the car can be updated and equipped with new functions throughout its entire life cycle over the air – rather than being fixed at the point of ordering. No doubt this will provide VW with a healthy secondary income stream from the car, especially as it changes hands. Being the simplest model, the ID. EVERY1 is the perfect beta test for the technology before it rolls out on future VWs.
The ID. EVERY1 is set to be the last of nine new cars by 2027 – four of which will be electric models based on the MEB platform. It’s a strategy Volkswagen CEO Thomas Schäfer is bullish about: “The ID. EVERY1 represents the last piece of the puzzle on our way to the widest model selection in the volume segment. We will then offer every customer the right car with the right drive system – including affordable all-electric entry-level mobility.”
Time will tell if VW manages to hold its €20,000 target. But if it does, the ID. EVERY1 could become one of the most significant EVs of the decade.
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