VW Commercial Vehicles wants to expand its electric and digital product range

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Nobody there hopes to capitalize on the legacy of the VW “Bulli”. “We’re also working on an electric successor to the T6.1,” boss Carsten Intra said on Thursday. The same goes for the Crafter van. Comes with combined electric and combustion propulsion.

Further steps will be taken in 2023 in the development of autonomous driving, in which the Hannover-based company plays a leading role. After the billion-euro deal with US company Argo AI ended, news came that VWN could expand its ongoing collaboration with Intel subsidiary Mobileye.

Manager Christian Senger did not want to confirm the specific name of the “new partnership in operation”. “But we’re on schedule.” Details would likely be available in the first half of the year – just like an “autonomous driving system”. In addition, additional test drives with automatic sub-functions are planned in German cities.

In the fall, VW pulled the plug on existing cooperation with Ford with Argo AI. Basically, projects with the US auto company went well, according to Intra. “Some thought we’d bury our plans – but it’s the other way around.”

VW supplies Ford with components for the MEB electric platform, and the two sides have also joined forces for individual vehicles such as the new version of the VW Amarok pick-up and the Ford Tourneo. VW division Cariad also plays a central role in software issues where there were major delays in system development at the start. The brand is planning a serial version of ID.Buzz with highly automated functions from 2025.

When annual figures are presented, it is said that the demand for the current variant is developing strongly. Nearly 32,000 units have been sold so far. ID.Buzz should also arrive “as soon as possible” in Japan, Singapore, Turkey and Israel.

Key figures from last year are already known: worldwide deliveries fell 8.6 percent to just under 329,000 vehicles. The total number of e-models sold on VWN was just over 7,500 in volume, but more than double that of the previous year.

Higher prices were also effective in the increase in sales by 15.6 percent to 11.5 billion euros. Profits from continuing business increased significantly from 73 to 529 million euros – a significant loss of 454 million euros occurred in the first Corona year of 2020.

(SDA)

Source :Blick