Hybrids aren’t exactly unheard of for Volkswagen, but they’re far from common. The brand’s electrification footprint in the US has been approximately zero outside of the e-Golf and then ID. models like the Buzz and 4. That appears to be about to change.
Volkswagen
Volkswagen is a mainstream automaker founded by the German Labour Front in 1937 as the “people’s car” company. Famous for the Volkswagen Beetle, Type 2 Bus, and modern classics like the Golf and Jetta, Volkswagen has emerged as one of the world’s largest automakers and a subsection of the larger Volkswagen Group, which either directly or indirectly owns controlling stakes in Porsche, Audi, Bentley, Skoda, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Rimac, Seat, and more.
- Founded
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28 May 1937
- Founder
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German Labour Front
- Headquarters
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Wolfsburg, Germany
- Owned By
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Volkswagen Group
- Current CEO
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Thomas Schaefer
Volkswagen is reportedly planning to launch a hybrid powertrain for one of its most popular crossovers later this year. It’s said to be headed to the Euro-only T-Roc first, but more Volkswagen models, including the Tiguan, can expect to see it sooner rather than later.
Volkswagen Hasn’t Had A Hybrid Here In Almost A Decade
Volkswagen’s first US hybrid was the 2013 Jetta. VW stuck a 27-horsepower electric motor to the 1.4-liter 150-horse turbo-four for a combined 170 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque. It couldn’t do much on electric power only, but it had an EPA rating of 42 city/48 highway. For comparison, that matched the contemporary Camry Hybrid in the city and beat it by 10 mpg on the highway.
After about three years, it was gone forever.
Since then, it has had EVs, VW has had 48V mild hybrids, and VW has had PHEVs. In Europe, that is. We’ve only gotten the EVs.
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At the Munich show in September, Autocar reports, Volkswagen will be revealing a new conventional hybrid. The site describes the system as “similar to that used by the Prius” with a 1.5-liter gas engine and electric motors. It will make 201-268 horsepower and 258-295 lb-ft of torque.
The first application for the new system will be the T-Roc tiny crossover. The VW Golf and its counterpart at Skoda are set to get it shortly after.
Those models use VW’s MQB Evo platform, which means it will likely work with any MQB Evo vehicle. Autocar says it has been told the hybrid will thus end up in the Tiguan and Euro Passat, as well as multiple other Seat and Škoda models.
VW Spending Big On ICE, But There Are No Guarantees For America Just Yet
Volkswagen has committed to investing heavily in internal combustion engines over the next few years, up to $65 billion. That investment includes this new hybrid power system.
The report didn’t mention the potential for other markets, but North America seems an easy choice. Buyers here are not flocking to EVs, but they’re also not happy with fuel prices. The Tiguan, already sold here, seems an obvious choice for the powerplant. The Volkswagen Taos, VW’s even smaller SUV, also seems a logical choice.
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On the other hand, if incoming EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin accomplishes his plans, CAFE and exhaust emissions rules could be almost completely gutted. If that occurs, it may no longer make sense for VW to homologate the system for use in North America.
Volkswagen confirmed last year that it was planning to bring PHEV models to the US, but not conventional hybrids. But that was last year. We’ll have to wait until the Munich show to learn more about this new development.
Source: Autocar
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