The Volkswagen ID.7 model, introduced around a year ago, cannot currently be considered a sales hit. In the first seven months of the year, the Federal Motor Transport Authority registered a total of 3,187 new registrations of this car model in Germany, corresponding to a market share of one percent.
Strong demand for the VW ID.7: Emden plant would be fully utilized in two-shift operation
The start of the VW ID.7 did not go as hoped, but with the station wagon version, the VW ID.7 Tourer, the turnaround seems to have been successful. This is mainly evident from the fact that significantly more electric cars are to be produced at the Emden plant next year than planned.
In the original plans, VW had still assumed that 140,000 electric cars would be produced at the Emden plant next year. Now a total of 190,000 vehicles are to roll off the production line. This would fully utilize the plant in two-shift operation. Theoretically, up to 250,000 cars could be produced in Emden in three-shift operation, a number that will not be reached that quickly.
Strong demand for the VW ID.7: The station wagon version is particularly well-received
The ID.7 apparently accounts for a large part of the capacity expansion, which is expected to make up half of the production. The other half goes to the ID.4 compact SUV. Especially more of the VW ID.7 Tourer are to be built. Demand for the station wagon is significantly greater than for the sedan. This already seems to be affecting delivery times. “Whoever orders an ID.7 Tourer today will not get it until next year,” Emden plant manager Uwe Schwartz told the Nordwest-Zeitung.
These are similar proportions as with the combustion engine counterpart Passat, which was previously produced in Emden and is now manufactured in Bratislava. The Passat Variant station wagon version sells significantly better than the sedan. The ninth Passat generation, which was launched in 2023, is therefore only produced as a station wagon.
Strong demand for the VW ID.7: Production increases could avoid penalty payments
The decision to increase production is mainly based on the positive market reactions to the ID.7 Tourer, which was presented in March and has been available in stores since the summer. The model, but also the sedan, was predominantly positively reviewed in the trade press. In addition, there are currently only a few electric station wagons in Europe, so the competitive pressure is lower.
Another reason for the production increase could be that Volkswagen is under pressure to comply with the EU’s strict CO2 emission limits, which will come into force next year. Like other companies, Wolfsburg also has to sell enough electric cars to avoid high penalty payments.
