Photo: Volkswagen
Volkswagen has sent a letter to ID.4 reservation holders in the U.S., announcing a price hike and changes to the reservations program. The new prices will come into effect on January 4, and Volkswagen won’t communicate publicly until then.
Starting with the 2023 model year, the Volkswagen ID.4 electric crossover selling in the U.S. is built locally in the company’s Chattanooga plant. This offers important advantages, allowing Volkswagen to tailor the car’s characteristics to the U.S. customers’ preferences. For instance, the American ID.4 features a slightly different interior, which Volkswagen considers more appropriate for the local market.
It also helps improve the availability of the car, especially at a time when parts shortages and production disruptions are a new reality. In the case of the ID.4, Volkswagen has diversified its North American suppliers, including the battery suppliers. This allows it to ditch the reservation system altogether, expecting to build enough ID.4 cars so that the customers can buy them from dealer lots as with other models.
To achieve this, Volkswagen will offer the ID.4 with batteries built by two suppliers. More specifically, the 82-kWh batteries will be made by either LG Energy Solutions or SK On, whereas the 62-kWh batteries will come from SK On only. If you ask, yes, the batteries have different characteristics, with the SK On parts offering faster charge times, of 30 minutes for a 10%-80% charge, as opposed to 36 minutes for the LG ES parts. The customers would not be able to choose their battery, but they’ll be able to see what they get in their reservation account and on the car’s window sticker.
According to a letter it sent to ID.4 reservation holders, Volkswagen will take the last reservations for ID.4 on January 4. The German carmaker said it expects to have sufficient ID.4 volumes rolling off the production line in Chattanooga to have the cars in dealerships. Such statements indicate that Volkswagen expects the production to exceed demand, begging the question of exactly how many reservations there are to fulfill. Some people on the VWIDtalk.com forum say they have reserved their ID.4 in 2021 and still don’t have a production date.
For those whose cars are not yet in production, there’s more bad news down the line. The same email mentions another $1,500 price hike on top of the one announced in August when the 2023 Volkswagen ID.4’s prices were announced. The new price increase affects all 2023 trims on orders entering production on or after January 4. Even ongoing orders will be affected if they haven’t entered production before that date.
Thus, the most affordable Volkswagen ID.4 Standard trim has an MSRP of $38,995. Nevertheless, as Volkswagen mentions in the email, this is not a “lock-in” price, and the customers still need to sort things out with their dealers. Chances are the final price would be higher because there are hardly any electric vehicles selling at the MSRP.
It also helps improve the availability of the car, especially at a time when parts shortages and production disruptions are a new reality. In the case of the ID.4, Volkswagen has diversified its North American suppliers, including the battery suppliers. This allows it to ditch the reservation system altogether, expecting to build enough ID.4 cars so that the customers can buy them from dealer lots as with other models.
To achieve this, Volkswagen will offer the ID.4 with batteries built by two suppliers. More specifically, the 82-kWh batteries will be made by either LG Energy Solutions or SK On, whereas the 62-kWh batteries will come from SK On only. If you ask, yes, the batteries have different characteristics, with the SK On parts offering faster charge times, of 30 minutes for a 10%-80% charge, as opposed to 36 minutes for the LG ES parts. The customers would not be able to choose their battery, but they’ll be able to see what they get in their reservation account and on the car’s window sticker.
According to a letter it sent to ID.4 reservation holders, Volkswagen will take the last reservations for ID.4 on January 4. The German carmaker said it expects to have sufficient ID.4 volumes rolling off the production line in Chattanooga to have the cars in dealerships. Such statements indicate that Volkswagen expects the production to exceed demand, begging the question of exactly how many reservations there are to fulfill. Some people on the VWIDtalk.com forum say they have reserved their ID.4 in 2021 and still don’t have a production date.
For those whose cars are not yet in production, there’s more bad news down the line. The same email mentions another $1,500 price hike on top of the one announced in August when the 2023 Volkswagen ID.4’s prices were announced. The new price increase affects all 2023 trims on orders entering production on or after January 4. Even ongoing orders will be affected if they haven’t entered production before that date.
Thus, the most affordable Volkswagen ID.4 Standard trim has an MSRP of $38,995. Nevertheless, as Volkswagen mentions in the email, this is not a “lock-in” price, and the customers still need to sort things out with their dealers. Chances are the final price would be higher because there are hardly any electric vehicles selling at the MSRP.
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