Close-to-production battery-powered SUV previewed at German show will touch down here in 2022 before hatch, confirms VW Oz MD

The Volkswagen ID.4 electric SUV has debuted at the Frankfurt motor show and it will leapfrog the ID.3 hatch to become Australia’s first pure-electric Volkswagen model.

Set to arrive in 2022, the Volkswagen ID.4 was revealed, curiously, in a glass cube on the Frankfurt stand with the I.D. Crozz concept that inspired it lurking nearby.

Wrapped in lens-flaring psychedelic livery, to the naked eye the ID.4 looked like a larger SUV version of ID.3, which it is.

Thought to be largely complete and ready to roll off the production line in 2020, the first-ever battery-powered Volkswagen SUV ditches the original concept’s trick sliding doors for a pair of conventional openers.

Set to rival small electric SUVs like the upcoming Kia e-Niro and the pricier Tesla Model Y, the Volkswagen ID.4 is rumoured to command a modest premium over the €30,000 ($A48,000) Volkswagen ID.3 hatch, which which it shares its MEB architecture, battery pack and rear-mounted electric motor.

No specs have been released, but it’s thought that it will also come with the ID.3’s 45, 58 and 77kWh lithium-ion battery packs that provide for a range of 330km, 420km and 550km respectively.

The entry-level model will be offered with a 110kW electric motor while the bigger battery versions get the punchier 150kW/310Nm.

Later on, an all-wheel drive version is also expected as well as a sportier coupe version.

Speaking to carsales, a senior VW source said Volkswagen Australia was lobbying Germany to prioritise exports of the ID.4 — and even the adorable Kombi-channeling I.D. Buzz people-mover and cargo van — over the ID.3 hatch to satisfy SUV-hungry Australian consumers.

It was a sentiment echoed by Volkswagen Group Australia managing director Michael Bartsch, who when asked which model would come here first replied: “Definitely the SUV. That will launch with the SUV. No question. You just have to look at the numbers of the moment.

“I had a look at the August figures, it was the first time that the mix between sedan, hatch and SUV swung to 60 per cent [SUV].”

Declaring the production Volkswagen ID models to be perfectly-judged in the looks department, Bartsch said that for Australia the car-maker’s designers had “hit the right note”.

“I think that hit the absolute right note in terms of it being seen as a next step of mobility, rather than looking like you’re partaking in an experiment in moving forward in the future,” said the VW Australia boss.

The industry veteran also went onto dismiss any concerns over the pure-electric SUV’s range, claiming most Australians rarely drive 500km in a day.

When asked whether Volkswagen would begin lobbying the government for EV subsidies, Bartsch called for Canberra to instead focus its attention on pushing through both a free trade agreement with Europe while abolishing and replacing luxury car tax with a fairer alternative.