Vehicles

Four first-time EV owners share why they made the switch to the ID.4 EV

What makes someone choose to purchase an electric vehicle for the first time? We spoke with four new owners of the all-electric Volkswagen ID.4 about what motivated them to make the switch and embrace an electric future. Erick Freligh, a 50-year business systems analyst in Bothell, Washington, was considering what new Volkswagen to purchase next—in the past, he has owned a 1967 Beetle, 1986 Golf and 2012 CC—when an ad for the ID.4 popped up on his screen. He was instantly intrigued. “I

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Community

What it took to drive the Volkswagen ID.4 through 840 miles of desert

For more than half a century, off-roaders have flocked to Mexico’s Baja Peninsula. It's a notoriously dangerous yet exhilarating place to leave the pavement behind and explore cactus forests, forge dry lake beds, and power through sand washes. The climate can switch from blazing to frigid in a matter of minutes, and the roads can be ruts or just dust paths. It’s not a place for the weak. At the end of April, a specially modified Volkswagen ID.4 electric SUV became the first production EV to c

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Community

Five things to do while charging your ID.4 EV

Across the United States, public fast-charging stations are rapidly appearing at shopping malls, grocery stores and gas stations – making it easier, quicker and more convenient than ever to charge your electric vehicle on the go. Electrify America is the nation’s largest open DC fast-charging network with more than 600 charging stations and more than 2,600 individual DC fast chargers, including the completion of two cross-country and two coastal routes in 2020, and growing. The network pl

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Enthusiast Event

Volkswagen showcases vintage electric Type 2 transporter at Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance

Volkswagen showcased a 1979 Elektrotransporter that was used in a pilot study by the Tennessee Valley Authority at the annual Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance to reflect the show’s dual electric vehicle themes—EVs from the dawn of motoring and EVs of the present and future. Now in its third decade, the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance has inspired automakers from around the world to bring their rare rides and gather with like-minded car enthusiasts on the fairways of Amelia Island, Flor

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Magazine

6 driving situations where IQ.DRIVE can lend a hand

No matter how focused you are when behind the wheel, or how careful you are in everyday driving, things happen—like a sudden obstacle or a vehicle you can’t see in your mirrors. And no matter how comfortable it is inside your vehicle, that highway commute can be a little stressful. To help you better manage these situations, Volkswagen has developed advanced driver-assistance technology called IQ.DRIVE. Available on many model-year 2021 Volkswagen vehicles and standard on the Volkswagen ID.4

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Community

#TBT: Remembering Bruce Meyers, creator of the Meyers Manx

Bruce Meyers lived the life most people only read about. A surfer, inventor, artist, war hero and racecar driver, Meyers distilled the essence of 1960s Southern California car culture with the invention of his Meyers Manx, a Volkswagen Beetle-based buggy that went where the pavement ended. Last week, Meyers passed away at the age of 94. A creator of the race which would come to be known as the famed Baja 1000, Bruce was an energizing soul of car culture until the very end, living and celebrat

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Vehicles

Why American drivers prefer monochrome vehicles – and why that might change soon

If you drove down an American street and looked only at the new vehicles, you might be forgiven for thinking you’re in a black-and-white movie. Last year, U.S. car buyers chose white more often than any other color, followed closely by silver and black, according to experts in automotive paints. That’s been the trend for a decade, part of a longer evolution toward muted shades in automotive exteriors stretching back 70 years. It’s one that Volkswagen experts see as likely to continue – wi

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Innovation

How Volkswagen Automotive Cloud will help shape the connected car of tomorrow

Seattle may not be known as a hotbed for the U.S. automotive industry, but that’s changing, thanks to the increasing importance of cloud computing for connected and autonomous vehicles. In recent years, Seattle’s nickname of “Cloud City” has not only referred to the weather, but for the industry built around some of the best cloud companies and experts in the world. That’s why Volkswagen Group chose the city to help shape the future of connected vehicles with the Volkswagen Automotive Cloud.

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News

Meet two of the first Volkswagen ID.4 EV owners: a solar-powered grandmother and a baseball superfan

Alice Dibben has always been ahead of the curve when it comes to technology. A former cryptanalyst at the National Security Agency, she mastered early modern computing systems to help collect and decipher complex codes. At age 80, she installed 120 solar panels on the roof of her barn in Pasadena, Md., to help reduce her carbon footprint. And now, the 91-year-old grandmother and horse breeder has kept her innovation streak going by embracing electric driving with the Volkswagen ID.4 EV.

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Community

Violinists traveling in a Volkswagen Westfalia bring music to essential workers

Violinists Etienne Gara and YuEun Kim usually perform for crowds of several thousand in renowned venues and concert halls. The classically trained artists studied together at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. Gara is the founder and artistic director of Delirium Musicum, a Los Angeles-based self-conducted chamber orchestra, where Kim is also a core member.  The couple had plans to spend their summer recording Delirium Musicum’s debut album and touring internationally w

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Community

How one start-up baker uses his Volkswagen Golf to deliver 900 cookies a week – and a bit of joy

Alex Reponen has always had a passion for baking. After resigning from his work in federal government service in 2015, he was open to exploring a new career. “I knew I wanted to do something different and I always enjoyed baking and pastry work,” he said. “I had done it as a hobby, but I decided to totally switch gears and try baking professionally to see what it was like” To get his start, Reponen worked at a small, crowdfunded bakery in Washington D.C., where he learned the art of cr

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Vehicles

How owning an electric vehicle can save money over the long haul

Electric vehicles like the Volkswagen ID.4 offer a lot of benefits to their owners, such as zero tailpipe-emission driving and home charging. But there’s often been questions about the cost of EVs, as battery technology remains slightly more expensive than combustion engines. The truth is that while some of those differences exist, the cost of owning an EV has fallen in recent years. With Volkswagen building a global platform to support dozens of EV models worldwide, the ID.4 can offer all th

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Vehicles

#TBT: The Volkswagen Cabriolet, the ‘80s definition of fun in the sun

Once upon a time on American roads, convertibles were an everyday sight. From the ‘50s through the late ‘70s, convertible models were often the fun, stylish choice, even if life with a fabric-topped vehicle was sometimes a bit louder and less rain-proof than having a steel roof over your head. The original Beetle Convertible was a huge part of that trend, with 332,000 sold worldwide. As a result, when the Beetle was replaced by the first-generation Golf — known as the Rabbit in the United Sta

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Vehicles

Visit these five museums to see rare and vintage Volkswagens

Automotive museums across the U.S. have helped preserve some of the world’s rarest Volkswagens and feature everything — from a never-been-titled 1974 Karmann Ghia to a 1966 Volkswagen Type 2 Bus that is a piece of civil rights history. With expansive collections available to the public, anyone can admire these classic cars. Whether these five museums are pit stops or your destination, their collections of vintage Volkswagens are not to be missed. 1. LeMay – America’s Car Museum | Tacom

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Company

Join us in the electric future, and drive bigger for the planet

Today, we reveal the first electric SUV for Volkswagen in America – the ID.4 EV. While it’s new to you, it’s something we’ve been working on for a few years now, and we’re proud to finally share it with the world. But it’s not just the launch of a car – it’s our biggest step yet on our new path to change the future of driving. Our past has fueled our future and changed the way we operate as a company. It’s made us even more committed to a more sustainable future, one in which we plan to reduc

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Community

#TBT: The Volkswagen ‘Beach Bomb,’ the world’s most valuable Hot Wheels

Bruce Pascal was seven years old when Hot Wheels first hit stores in 1968. “It’s hard to explain the craze today, but Hot Wheels was huge. All of my friends were saving up to buy all the Hot Wheels they could,” he said. Hot Wheels soon became the number one toy for boys, and Pascal spent his childhood racing and collecting the die-cast cars. When he grew up, Pascal put his Hot Wheels in a cigar box at his mother’s house, where they collected dust for almost 30 years. His passion for classi

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Company

Why battery power will drive the future of transportation

Chances are you might have at least two lithium-ion batteries on your body right now – one on your wrist, and one in the phone in your pocket. You may have multiple more if you’re holding a car key fob or have a pacemaker or any other electronic device. But do you know how those batteries actually work? For a technology at the heart of modern life, batteries remain something of a mystery. While humans have used batteries for hundreds of years, it’s only within the past decade that the scie

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Company

RSVP for an EV SUV with a $100 reservation for the Volkswagen ID.4 electric vehicle

In good times or bad, people need their vehicles. Over the past few months, Volkswagen of America has worked with dealers on a new shopping and buying experience so our customers can shop from home. Next month, Volkswagen will unveil its first electric SUV, the ID.4 — and a new system that allows customers to reserve their car. The Volkswagen reservation platform will make its debut on Sept. 23rd, immediately following the reveal of the all-new, zero-tailpipe emission Volkswagen ID.4 electric

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Company

How Volkswagen is helping diverse suppliers find their footing

Automakers may be fierce competitors on the showroom floors and production lines, but in one critical area they share a common goal: working to equip diverse suppliers to help build the future of electric mobility and autonomous cars. The Automotive Industry Group (AIG)—a coalition of industry competitors including Volkswagen Group of America—works to develop and train suppliers in advanced technologies so that minority-, women-, veteran- and LGBTQ+-owned businesses have a chance to compe

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Owners

#TBT: Volkswagens tie grandkids to their family legacies

Eric Shoemaker had no real interest in cars. As a designer and entrepreneur, he primarily took an interest in hobbies like woodworking, furniture restoration, and photography. Today, however, he not only owns a business with his wife Amanda that restores air-cooled German engine components, but his website (1967beetle.com) is a go-to resource for tech tips, classifieds, and Volkswagen stories from around the globe. And what he attributes as the catalyst for his newfound passion is a 1967 Bee

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Company

Volkswagen marks National Wildlife Day with Chattanooga preservation efforts

When Volkswagen built the Chattanooga plant, the company pledged to restore nearby wetlands in an effort to help protect local wildlife and preserve the natural environment. In the first several years after the plant’s opening, Volkswagen successfully restored over 40 acres of biodiverse wetland through regular testing, monitoring and studies. Today, the total wetland area spans over 88 acres and is home to 15 endangered animals, hundreds of species of wildlife, including 167 species of b

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