A VW board member says more needs to be done to push the pros of EVs. VW will use its expertise in China to help expand its European model range. Despite this, the company won’t sell range-extender EVs in Europe. One of VW’s most influential board members believes that once automakers actually convince buyers to go electric, internal combustion cars could end up viewed the same way we now see horses, an outdated form of transportation. According to Martin Sander, VW’s board member for sales, marketing, and aftersales, more needs to be done to persuade people to buy an EV, rather than simply talking about ICE bans, such as the 2030 deadline in the UK. More: VW’s Cheapest Golf Left America In 2021, Mexico Could Bring It Back “[Today] I look out of the window: not many horses – it’s predominantly cars,” he told Auto Express. “This is why I hate the discussion about the ICE (internal combustion engine) ban. Everyone is just talking about the ICE ban. How do you convince customers about a new technology if you’re only talking about when there will be a date when you are not allowed to use these vehicles – vehicles you have got used to over the last decades – anymore?” The recently updated VW ID.3 Neo. Sander believes that “over time, more and more customers will be convinced” to buy an EV if barriers to ownership, such as improvements to charging infrastructure, are removed. “Let’s talk about what we need to do to actually convince customers: the charging infrastructure; talk positively about the advantages of electric vehicles, and possibly do something around the energy prices,” he noted. Read: VW Kills Its Last Manual Gearbox Model In America The board member suggested that if these conditions are met, the number of customers interested in owning an ICE-powered vehicle could drop to as little as “three, four, five percent” by 2035. No EREVs For Europe The Chinese-spec VW ID. Era 9X has a range-extender powertrain. Interestingly, while VW transitions towards electrification in Europe, it doesn’t plan to introduce any of the range-extender EVs it offers in China, suggesting that demand for this powertrain won’t be strong enough in Europe. Read: VW’s New $16,200 EV Sedan Is Longer Than A Jetta And Runs On Xpeng Tech Despite this, Sander notes that the lessons VW is taking from its expansion of electrified vehicles in China will help it overseas. “Everything we are learning in China will help us to be competitive in all the other markets around the globe where we are competing with the Chinese,” he said. “On our end it’s very much about scale, efficiency and cost, and this is what we are working on diligently. We have to be competitive. There’s no alternative.” The fully electric VW ID.Polo GTI.
