Volkswagen news and facts

Energy and charging solutions provider Elli is changing its charging tariffs effective June 1, 2023. The new price system will provide even more flexibility for Elli’s customers: price-per-minute charging will no longer apply anywhere in Europe, vehicles can be connected to AC chargers for longer before a blocking fee is charged, and the minimum contract period for charging plans will be reduced to one month. These measures will help to cushion the price increases for new customers that rising costs have made unavoidable.

Volkswagen is upgrading the third generation of the Touareg with extensive improvements: the suspension as well as the display and operating concept of the full-size SUV have been revised, and the front and rear design have been sharpened. Particularly striking features are the newly developed HD matrix headlights at the front and the LED taillights, which are realised as a light strip. For the first time in Germany it incorporates a red-illuminated Volkswagen logo. Presales will begin tomorrow on Thursday, 25 May. Prices start from €69,200.

The 18th International Architecture Biennale opens in Venice on 20 May 2023. The Volkswagen Group is a partner of the curatorial team of the German Pavilion and supports the pavilion concept ‘Open for Maintenance – Wegen Umbau geöffnet’, which focuses on sustainable approaches to building construction and urban development. For the first time, the citizens of Venice as well as local and social initiatives will be invited to a grand neighbourhood festival on the eve of the opening to get in contact with artists and experts. Federal Building Minister Klara Geywitz takes part as commissioner of the German Pavilion. In March, materials for the pavilion were sustainably transported from Leipzig to Venice in an ID. Buzz Cargo.

Volkswagen Group has completed the sale of its shares in Volkswagen Group Rus LLC including its local subsidiaries (Volkswagen Components and Services LLC, Scania Leasing LLC, Scania Finance LLC, Scania Insurance LLC) to Art-Finance LLC who is supported by the Russian Dealer Avilon. With the registration of the transaction, ownership of the shares in the authorized capital of Volkswagen Group Rus LLC and its subsidiaries is transferred from the sellers to the buyer.

25 years of the Polo GTI! – To mark this anniversary, Volkswagen is launching the special-edition model Polo GTI Edition 25. It was in 1998 that the Polo first added those three iconic letters to its name: GTI. Now, a quarter of a century after the launch of the Polo III GTI, VW presents a limited edition of the current 152 kW (207 PS) Polo GTI. The powerful drive is impressive, but it’s not the only thing that stands out about this sporty compact car: with features including sports suspension, the electronic differential lock XDS, a comprehensive range of standard equipment and some special design highlights, the anniversary model is something special. The Polo GTI Edition 25 will be available to order in Germany from 1 June, priced at €35,205.

Three weeks ago, Volkswagen presented the new ID.7 as an all-electric limousine for the upper mid-size class. The most dynamic model variant will now follow in late summer with the world premiere of the ID.7 GTX. Equipped with the latest drive generation of the ID. models, the dual-motor all-wheel drive system and a host of sporty design elements, the long-distance limousine is a high-performance model. The launch of the new GTX model is planned for the IAA Mobility in Munich (5–10 September 2023).

The Volkswagen Group continues its partnership with the Kultursymposium Weimar, a biennial event organised by the Goethe-Institut. Among the international speakers and guests is Professor Patrick van der Smagt, Director of the Machine Learning Research Lab at Volkswagen Group. Volkswagen also supports the work of the Goethe-Institut as a founding member of the Business and Industry Advisory Board, represented by Volkswagen’s Board Member Hauke Stars.

The Supervisory Board of CARIAD has approved a comprehensive realignment of the Volkswagen Group’s software subsidiary. Peter Bosch, previously responsible for manufacturing at Bentley and the Volkswagen AG representative on the Board of Scout Motors, has been appointed CEO. Supported by acknowledged software experts and a transformation team of experienced managers from the Volkswagen Group, CARIAD senior management and technology specialists will comprehensively advance the development of CARIAD.

The Volkswagen Group’s Brand Group Volume further strengthened the close cooperation between the sister brands Volkswagen, Škoda, SEAT/CUPRA and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles in the first quarter of 2023. To take account of this successful development and the significance of the Brand Group Volume in the ongoing transformation of the Volkswagen Group, the four volume brands are publishing their key financial metrics for the first time in a Brand Group Volume quarterly report.

Shell Germany and the Volkswagen Group are jointly driving forward the expansion of the charging infrastructure for electric mobility: On May 4, 2023, the first innovative 150 kW Elli Flexpole charging station was put in operation at a Shell service station in Göttingen. The charging station of the Volkswagen brand Elli has a unique battery storage system that enables connection to a low-voltage grid. Thanks to this new technology, the charging stations can be installed easily and flexibly, and the grid expansion can be accelerated. Following a successful test operation, Shell and Volkswagen also plan to install the Flexpole charging station at other locations in Germany and Europe.

Volkswagen Group Technology is the central technology supplier for the electric vehicles based of the Volkswagen Group. In the case of the ID.7, Volkswagen's new flagship, the division contributes around 40 percent of the total value added – including a completely new, highly efficient electric drive generation. This was announced today by Thomas Schmall, Member of the Board of Management of Group Technology, at the Vienna Motor Symposium 2023. Since September 2020, Volkswagen Group Technology has already equipped more than 580,000 MEB vehicles of the Group with high-tech components, making it one of the largest suppliers in the world of e-mobility.

The Volkswagen Group is pushing ahead with its ambitious electric vehicle (EV) strategy in North America. Its battery company PowerCo SE aims to build its largest gigafactory to date in St. Thomas, Ontario/Canada with an annual production capacity of up to 90 GWh in the final expansion phase. The planned investment of up to €4.8 billion / CAD$ 7 billion until 2030 has the potential to create up to 3,000 highly skilled jobs at the factory and tens of thousands more indirect jobs in the region. The announcement was made today in the presence of Canada’s Prime Minister, the Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, the Honourable François‑Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, Ontario’s Premier, the Honourable Doug Ford, the Honourable Victor Fedeli, Ontario's Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade, and Joe Preston, Mayor of the City of St. Thomas.