- Volkswagen is singing the praises of plug-in hybrids as EV demand is “plateauing.”
- While the brand’s CEO says the future is electric, he suggested plug-in hybrid powertrains could stick around longer than originally expected.
The electric revolution has hit a speed bump as consumers aren’t embracing EVs as quickly as some automakers predicted. This has caused a handful of companies to rethink their plans and even backtrack on electric-only timelines.
Volkswagen is joining the chorus of automakers singing the praises of plug-in hybrids as brand CEO Thomas Schäfer recently said, “we still need this transitional technology” as “battery-electric drive is plateauing out a bit at the moment.” The executive went on to tell Autocar that hybrids were once seen as a thing of the past but, “within the last six months, all of a sudden everyone wants hybrids.”
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Given consumer sentiment, Schäfer said he’s “very glad” the company decided to continue offering plug-in hybrid versions of the Golf, Passat, and Tiguan. He went on to suggest plug-in hybrids could now stick around even longer than originally expected. However, the company apparently sees the writing on the wall and they’ll “carry on with what we have” as plug-in hybrids are simply a bridge to the electric era.
This suggests the company will continue using the same basic plug-in hybrid powertrain as the future is “absolutely” electric. Despite this, we can expect continued development that will likely focus on increasing the electric-only range.
That being said, it sounds like Volkswagen will become more selective about which models and markets receive plug-in hybrid powertrains. As Schäfer said, the company doesn’t need to offer one “in every single model and in every single region.” This suggests the company may focus their plug-in hybrid efforts on high-volume models in markets that aren’t ready to go fully electric.
