After confirming that 1 million electric vehicles have been built on its MEB electric car platform, the Volkswagen Group achieved a significant milestone. Volkswagen had plans to create a specific EV platform back in 2015, anticipating the auto industry’s shift to entirely electric vehicles.
When the German manufacturer pushed its EV strategy in 2018, the modular electric drive matrix (MEB), which included the Audi e-tron, was formally launched. The “ID” electric car series from Volkswagen as well as a number of other EVs from VW brands are built on the MEB platform.
The ID.3, ID.4, ID.5, ID.6 (China), and the planned flagship ID.7 electric car, which will be released in Europe later this year and in the US in 2024, are all built on the MEB platform.
The platform is also used by other Volkswagen Group brands, such as Audi, Cupra, and KODA.
For instance, the MEB architecture is used by the Audi Q4 and Q5 e-tron, Cupra’s first electric vehicle “Born,” and the KODA ENYAQ iV. A few months later, VW declared that it was open to partnerships, and in 2020, it partnered with Ford to introduce two electric vehicles (EVs) in Europe.
The first of these was an electric Explorer SUV, which went on sale in March for less than €45,000 (approximately $48,500). Ford has now disclosed that it is creating its own proprietary technology, but the cooperation is essential to growing Ford’s footprint in Europe. Utilising VW’s MEB platform will assist close the gap rather than taking the effort to design its own platform and delaying a rollout.
The carmaker claims that five of its brands, including Volkswagen, Audi, Cupra, KODA, and Volkswagen commercial, helped it reach the milestone. Volkswagen added that eight plants are being pushed in Europe, the US, and China by the five brands. With Cupra, KODA, and VW, the business is teasing a tiny MEB-based EV.
With the next-generation “MEB+,” Volkswagen is already hard at work improving the platform and enabling a range of over 430 miles (700 km) and quicker charging times. As it works towards a totally electric future, the German automaker anticipates that by 2030, 80% of its passenger cars will be electric in Europe.
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