VW is busy hatching plans for a new range of electric cars that could wear the legendary GTI badge. While the I.D. Buzz MPV stole the show in Detroit last week, a hot version of the I.D. all-electric hatchback, seen at last year’s Paris Motor Show and going on sale in 2020, is likely to arrive first.

Speaking to Auto Express at the Detroit Motor Show, Volkswagen’s sales and marketing boss Jürgen Stackmann said: “I think the formula of GTI will change – it will not be the same formula that took us here. But to have an exhilarating, fun to own, fun to drive car, with electric cars it is possible to deliver that.

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“Technology is clearly set to be able to do that – it is actually quite easy to do, with four-wheel drive if you want to.” Our exclusive main image shows what the car could look like, borrowing classic GTI red design detailing to give it “strong character”, as Stackmann referred to it.

The I.D. hatch uses new MEB architecture that will underpin a whole range of VW Group electric cars. Its 168bhp output is said to power the car from 0-62mph in “under eight seconds”. But as with all battery technology, VW will be able to balance range, charging time and performance to suit each model, with higher-output batteries expected for GTI versions.

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Christian Senger, Volkswagen’s vice president Product Line G4, e-mobility, also hinted at all-electric GTIs when speaking to Auto Express at the recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. “Today we are really successful in having a range of performance, especially at Volkswagen,” he said. “We need to recreate this with e-mobility.

“We can start with a rational approach, the car performing quite well every day. But then we can scale up. More range, more acceleration, more charging points for the money and maybe also 4WD.”

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