- The Volkswagen ID.Buzz will get a second generation, VW CEO Thomas Schäfer has reportedly told Auto Express.
- Schäfer also said the electric van will still be sold in the United States, but it shouldn’t cost as much due to a new modular platform and cost-effective batteries.
- VW paused U.S. sales of the ID.Buzz for the 2026 and 2027 model years, but it’s expected to return for 2028; the 2025 model started at $61,545 when it was last sold.
A lot of people love the palpable nostalgia provided by the Volkswagen ID.Buzz, largely because it effectively captures the retro look and feel-good vibe of the original Type 2 Microbus. But vibes only go so far, and VW’s new-age icon hasn’t translated into strong sales, at least in the United States. That has a lot to do with the electric minivan being too expensive; Volkswagen’s CEO Thomas Schäfer even said as much. He also said that will change with the planned next generation, which will once again be sold in America.
Speaking to Auto Express this past weekend at the Paris auto show, VW’s boss not only acknowledged that the next ID.Buzz needs to be more affordable, but he also suggested how the company plans to accomplish that. One major piece that should help will be the adoption of the Scalable Systems Platform (SSP), which will provide the foundation for all of the VW Group’s next-generation vehicles, including both electric and combustion-powered models. Schäfer also reportedly hinted at the use of lithium-iron-phosphate batteries that are less expensive to produce than the current lithium-ion packs.
It remains to be seen what the more affordable future ID.Buzz will look like. People often really like a retro-inspired design, until they don’t, as VW design boss Andreas Mindt reportedly told AE. He used the new Beetle and its successor as an example of how customers can get tired of the nostalgia play. Still, Mindt promised that whether his team decides to stick with classic design cues or take things in another direction, the new ID.Buzz will be “interesting.”
Currently, sales of the U.S. version of the Volkswagen ID.Buzz are on hiatus. It debuted for the 2025 model year, won our annual 10Best award, and then VW decided it would skip the 2026 model year. After announcing a 2027 ID.Buzz with a new Touring model back in May, the automaker last month did an about-face and delayed the EV’s return until 2028. If its U.S. vacation isn’t extended once again, the ID.Buzz will come back with new software, a vehicle-to-load function, and digital key integration. Pricing is TBD, but the ‘25 model started at $61,545 when it was last sold.
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Eric Stafford’s automobile addiction began before he could walk, and it has fueled his passion to write news, reviews, and more for Car and Driver since 2016. His aspiration growing up was to become a millionaire with a Jay Leno–like car collection. Apparently, getting rich is harder than social-media influencers make it seem, so he avoided financial success entirely to become an automotive journalist and drive new cars for a living. After earning a journalism degree at Central Michigan University and working at a daily newspaper, the years of basically burning money on failed project cars and lemon-flavored jalopies finally paid off when Car and Driver hired him. His garage currently includes a 2010 Acura RDX, a manual '97 Chevy Camaro Z/28, and a '90 Honda CRX Si.