For the first time ever, Volkswagen has been spied testing the long-awaited ID.2 electric hatchback. Previewed by the ID.2all and ID.GTI concepts, the newcomer currently wears body panels from the compact ID.3 electric hatchback.
Snapped on Germany’s most famous racetrack wearing 20-inch wheels from sister brand Cupra, the 2025 Volkswagen ID.2 is often described as an all-electric replacement for the combustion-powered Polo. Some say it’s a subcompact, though Volkswagen has made it clear it’s a compact.
Whatever segment we’re tackling, it doesn’t matter because we have the numbers that matter. In terms of wheelbase, the ID.2all concept and the production Polo measure 2,600 and 2,552 millimetres (102.4 and 100.5 inches), respectively. However, the all-electric show car is significantly roomier in the rear, offering 490 litres (17.3 cubic feet) of boot space compared to the Polo’s 351 litres (12.4 cubic feet).
For reference, the ID.3 is listed by Wolfsburg's favorite son at 2,770 millimeters (109 inches) and 385 liters (13.6 cubic feet) with the rear seats upright. As for why the ID2.all concept offers more trunk space than its big brother, the answer is front-wheel drive instead of rear-wheel drive.
Volkswagen has not provided power numbers for the ID.GTI concept, while the ID.2all promises 166 kilowatts or 226 metric ponies. Converted to mechanical, that would be 223 horsepower. By comparison, the Polo GTI makes 152 kilowatts/207 horsepower/204 horsepower from its 2.0-liter TSI turbocharged four-cylinder with direct injection.
Photo: Baldauf
All in all, pretty respectable numbers. Driving range is estimated at up to 450 kilometers (280 miles) in WLTP Procedure test cycle, which is much more optimistic than the EPA estimates range. Volkswagen is unlikely to bring the ID.2 to the U.S., because a subcompact electric vehicle would not make sense in this part of the world. Since it will be built by SEAT in Spain, the ID.2 would not qualify for the $7,500 tax credit.
Depicted with comically short rear doors and a front passenger-side charging port, unlike the passenger-side rear panel of the ID.3 and the crossover-bodied ID.4, the ID.2 will be Volkswagen’s first production vehicle based on the MEB Entry platform. The Wolfsburg-based automaker is targeting a starting price of less than 25,000 euros, or $27,535 at current exchange rates.
So far, the Volkswagen Group has confirmed two mechanically similar models in the form of the Cupra Raval and Skoda Epiq. The Spanish model is very much obliged to reach 100 kilometers per hour (62 miles per hour) in 6.9 seconds. The Skoda brand, meanwhile, is full of praise for the Epiq's bidirectional charging.
Audi could also use the MEB Entry, as the Ingolstadt-based company plans to launch an entry-level electric vehicle in 2027. It would slot below the Q4 e-tron, but Audi hasn’t yet decided on a platform. Reportedly dubbed the Q2 e-tron or A2 e-tron, the zero-emissions successor to the Q2 and A1 will be built in Germany rather than Spain.