This new microbus, the Volkswagen Budd-e, has everything needed to give us an idea of what the vehicle of the future will look like: electric with a 600 km range, human-scale spaces, voice controls and touchscreens everywhere.
Starting with the name, Budd-e, which winks at the legendary Volkswagen T1 minibus affectionately nicknamed Bulli, Volkswagen gives its image of friendliness and innovation a welcome recharge.
Recharge, indeed. Because to do so it draws on its past, yet with a vehicle that is futuristic, electric and electronic to its very core. Preceded by years of design and technological research, the model was unveiled in absolute world premiere at CES 2016 in Las Vegas, even ahead of the Detroit Motor Show. It is worth noting that an electronics show, rather than a motor show, was chosen to present this flagship to the world — as if to underline the technological content of the new vehicle: LEDs and touchscreens in abundance, automatically opening doors, and electric propulsion.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJd89yQ001Y
During the presentation, Herbert Diess made clear that everything we see today in the Budd-e will reach the real world by 2019, though he did not clarify whether this exact prototype will be driven on the world's roads. Either way, the core elements of this microbus offer a concrete preview of the most desirable features in our next car: electric with a 600 km range, human-scale spaces, voice controls and touchscreens everywhere. The concept is based on the Modular Electric Platform, a brand-new architecture designed specifically for electric vehicles — which will certainly feature more and more prominently in the brand's line-up — minimising battery bulk and thereby guaranteeing more space for everything else, to the benefit of cabin room and efficiency.
Starting with the most important figure: the Budd-e is 100% electric and comfortably surpasses the threshold of concern for the average user — 101 kWh of batteries for distances of up to 600 km, better than Tesla.
Volkswagen promises a range of 600 km and an 80% fast charge in just 15 minutes. The Budd-e, and all the cars that will be built using this drivetrain, will be capable of reaching a top speed of 150 km/h.
The Budd-e boasts an all-wheel-drive, fully electric drivetrain. The front electric motor delivers 100 kW (the equivalent of 136 hp), while the rear delivers 125 kW (170 hp) — giving a combined output of 225 kW (a full 306 hp), with torque of 200 and 290 Nm respectively, for a total of 490 Nm. Power comes from the high-capacity battery (92.4 kWh) which, according to estimates, is capable of delivering a range never seen before — a figure that is competitive even against the average petrol car. Equally noteworthy is the fast-charging system, available via plug or inductive interface: around thirty minutes for a charge of approximately 80%.
One of the most convenient and at the same time one of the most intelligently designed safety features is the automatic opening of the doors, with the passenger door sliding (so as not to dangerously encroach on traffic lanes, hit cyclists, or scrape neighbouring vehicles).
None of the openings have handles; instead, opening and closing are activated by voice commands or by gestures on touch sensors.
The doors open to reveal the interesting new cabin concept, which features modular seating. This allows passengers to choose between sitting in a conventional two-row arrangement or settling in as if in a living room — not in the typical horizontal configuration, but rather in a mini L-shaped sofa that continues on the side opposite the sliding door.
Inside, all the new features are integrated into the fascia in a single panel with multiple displays: a large screen shows driving information with 3D navigation maps and feeds from the cameras that replace the rear-view mirrors. The screen is divided into three sections, each dedicated to different tasks: Drive (with navigation maps and similar data), Control (with vehicle status information) and Consume, which includes things such as audio control and smartphone integration to display messages, calendar and weather. The rear camera images are shown on multifunction screens that, while the car is moving, display what is happening behind, and when the vehicle is stationary become consoles for opening and closing the electric doors. The steering wheel has no buttons; instead it uses finger touches and pressure, with haptic feedback, which Volkswagen claims is more intuitive than current physical buttons.