VW’s ID. Golf won’t come before 2029

The launch of VW’s electric Golf successor, the ID. Golf will be postponed by 15 months to 2029. Large parts of the SSP vehicle architecture will be rolled out later than planned.

According to the German publication Manager Magazin, this applies, in particular, to VW’s vehicle models and Audi in some cases. Therefore, the volume models based on the new SSP platform would not go on sale before 2029.

According to the magazine, the Group Board of Management made the decision on 2 July. While the next Golf generation based on the SSP will be postponed by 15 months, a large electric SUV called ‘T-Sport’ will not be launched until 2031, three years after the initial plan.

The successor to the ID.4, VW’s most successful EV, is also said to be postponed by 15 months, just like the more compact ID. Golf. The premiere of this ID.4 is now also scheduled for 2029, but presumably later in the year than the ID. Golf. This is according to the specialized newspaper Handelsblatt, which also confirmed the other information from Manager Magazin.

Significant setback

Although VW has not yet confirmed the alleged postponement, it would be a significant setback for Group CEO Oliver Blume and VW brand boss Thomas Schäfer. Schäfer had only confirmed at an event at the beginning of June that the SSP would be launched in 2028.

It is unclear whether the entire platform will be delayed or just variants for individual segments. According to earlier announcements, the SSP will become the standardized electric platform for numerous group models of various sizes. Schäfer had spoken of “probably” 2028. However, if the Executive Board decides or has to decide on a different timetable just a few weeks later, this is not a good sign.

Software glitches

Manager Magazin thinks there are several reasons for the postponement. One of them is all too well known at VW: the software. The SSP vehicles are to use the so-called E3 2.0 from the VW software unit Cariad.

“However, the architecture is so late that the models must be launched on the market at very tight intervals. This would not work, according to the Group. Several models would have to be pushed back considerably in some cases,” the press report states.

Plans are also in place for the Group’s other hardware platforms: to keep the electric model range fresh until the launch of the SSP, the current MEB is being further developed into the MEB+. The first MEB+ models are due to arrive in 2026.

“If such an investment is to pay off, the financiers argue, it must run longer than previously planned. The SSP models would, therefore, have to be deployed for the first time later,” Manager Magazin wrote.

Nevertheless, it is still possible that other SSP models, such as the Trinity from Zwickau, will still make their debut in 2028, albeit possibly in smaller numbers. However, according to the new information, the SSP’s volume rollout will not occur until 2029.

Production and sales impacted

This will impact not only Group production but also sales, of course. On 1 July, VW hired a new sales board member, Martin Sander, who returned to his earlier employer after heading Ford of Europe for a while.

His main task will be to sell more electric cars. If the supposedly more attractive models on the new SSP platform come later, Sander’s job will not get any easier.

Meanwhile, VW brand CEO Thomas Schäfer was reconfirmed at his job last week. The Supervisory Board extended his contract by five years (until 2030), and they want to tackle the upcoming challenges of the shift to electric mobility together with Schäfer.

Schäfer’s original contract was for three years and would have expired in mid-2025. He came from Skoda in 2022 when Ralf Brandstätter was sent to head VW China. With the early extension of five years, Volkswagen is trying to create consistency in its management.