According to a recent report, VW will not be using any kind of internal combustion to propel its upcoming modern interpretation of the Camper/Microbus van. Set to arrive on the market before or around the year 2020.
The reason they’re leaning towards this propulsion solution is to keep the familiar look/proportion with short overhangs. This could be achieved by mirroring the old van’s layout, and having the engine in the back, but apparently this has been deemed too expensive to develop.
This way, the vehicle will have a big battery pack in the floor, like a Tesla Model S, and still be eligible to use VW’s modular MQB platform.
AutoExpress obtained the information from VW chairman of the board Dr Heinz-Jakob Neusser, who was quoted as saying “if we want to do this on an attractive cost base, we are not able to put a rear engine into such a car.”
He adds that “the e-motor is much smaller than a combustion engine and we can build it in another way. It’s easy to bring battery space into such a vehicle, because you can put them under the floor. We have these systems already.”
This could be VW’s way to try to make EVs cool, by launching an iconic model that will surely be retro-inspired solely with electric power. If that’s the case and the vehicle is competent, then they could be on to a winner, especially since battery tech will continue to go down in price and up in capacity, so by the year we’re expecting to see this, the difference will be noticeable (and surprising).
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