VW ramps up R&D on autonomous driving vehicles

In case you haven't noticed VW is aggressively positioning itself as a premier electrified vehicle proponent with the recent release of its I.D.4 EV. The company is also doubling-down on autonomous driving technology, which goes hand in hand with smart and zero-emissions platforms. The Autonomous Driving Component will be first seen in commercial vehicles, however, rather than consumer cars and SUVs.

“With the confirmation of the group’s supervisory board for our Autonomous Driving R&D program, we are setting the course for the future of mobility. Autonomous, electric driving will make an important contribution to urban mobility and road safety. Our vehicles are the logical first choice to apply such systems to", explains Carsten Intra, CEO of Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, after today's Supervisory Board meeting of the Volkswagen Group.

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Watch VW's mobile EV charging robot in action

It reminds us of R2-D2, but this robot won't accompany you on inter galaxy adventures. Instead, it tops up your electric vehicle's batteries. VW shares a teaser video of its prototype EV charging robot and how it'll do its work. The robot looks cute with its face that lights up when it grabs the battery trailer and plugs it into your car.

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See the VW I.D. Buzz Microbus drive around at Pebble Beach

We've already heard the rumour that the VW I.D. Buzz Microbus EV concept will be put into production for a 2022 rollout and while the concept vehicle brought a huge nostalgia factor to visitors to past car shows, this is the first time we're seeing the VW I.D. Buzz Microbus in its natural habitat, the Californian shores. A video shared to Facebook by David Bernardo shows the EV driving along with classic VW's. Seeing a concept car actually running gives us hope that it is on its way to production.

NAIAS 2017: VW's I.D. Buzz concept draws the biggest crowds at Auto Show

The I.D. Buzz packs some nostalgia as well as many new ideas in a bubbly yet familiar packageBy Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla

Detroit- Credit it to the power of nostalgia or the thirst for something completely new, or a mix of both. In its solitary corner at the Cobo Center here in Detroit, the Texas yellow, neon and white I.D. BUZZ, a futuristic re-imagining of the iconic VW Microbus seemed to radiate a strangely seductive glow which seemed to draw the most crowds here at day two of the North American International Auto Show.

There are a handful of Volkswagen models that capture the imagination even with an entire generation of consumers who may not have been alive to actually ride in them. Some, like the Beetle, have been reinvented ad nauseam and others, like the Microbus transporter (or Kombi, if you prefer) and the Karmann-Ghia, have been begging a re-introduction.

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