In late 2017, Volkswagen (VW) announced the return of the much beloved Kombi bus – this time as an electric vehicle.
The German motoring company planned to begin its production process for these vehicles in 2019 and 2020, to be ready for release onto our roads in 2022, a not-too-distant future.
The VW Kombi is best associated with some of our best travel memories, including a certain nostalgia for family road trips and is reminiscent of the Hippie culture of the 1960s and ’70s along with chilling at the beach with a few surf boards strapped to the rooftop.
‘But what about the cute, bug-faced minibus?’ you may wonder. You need not fear; the iconic VW minibus boasts modern features that will cause anyone with itchy feet and a healthy dose of wanderlust to hit the open road, as soon as this its the market.
This Kombi will be an entirely different creature, not only modern in design and technology, but it will be powered by electricity.
VW is calling the I.D. Buzz the first autonomously driving van. The van will be able to reach 600 kilometres, and reach 80 per cent battery capacity in less than 30 minutes of charging.
Volkswagen plans to enervate its I.D. (intelligent design) range and bring it into the cleaner, greener 21st century by championing electromobility, a concept growing less and less strange as technology evolves.
Imagine road-tripping in one of these – with less strain on the environment and more space in the back for you to enjoy the ride. Keep your ear to the ground, though; it’s not too long until the Kombi will be buzzing down your street.
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Conceptual images: Volkswagen AG
