Volkswagen design chief Andreas Mindt has hinted that a dramatic makover next year for the ID 4 will take a significant number of styling cues from the new ID Cross concept.
While Mindt wouldn’t give specific details, he said the ID 4 will be "the big brother” of the new ID Cross, which is due to go on sale next year. The ID 3 will also receive a similarly dramatic overhaul, although Mindt refused to elaborate.
However, he did hint that Volkswagen would move away from the extremely short front ends on its early bespoke electric efforts, most notably the ID 3 – although it is unclear if that can be addressed in a heavy update.
“With electric cars you don’t have engines so the bonnet can be really short, so companies including us did this,” he added. “But the pedal box stays in the same place, and when that stays it’s wrong, because all you create is a very deep dashboard and long glass window, and that is like an oven and you don’t have energy to cool it down – so it’s a mistake.”
As previously reported by Autocar, the ID 4's mid-life update will be so extensive that it will be more like a new generation than a facelift, as part of a drive to sustain its strong sales figures and make it a more obvious electric equivalent to the Tiguan.
The ID 4, Volkswagen's second bespoke electric car after the closely related ID 3 hatchback, is approaching its fifth birthday, having launched in 2020 as a crucial component of the firm's drive to become a global leader in EV sales.
It quickly became one of the world's most popular EVs, and remains an important part of Volkswagen's electric portfolio: in the first half of 2025 it was Europe's second best-selling electric car, behind the Tesla Model Y, according to figures from Jato Dynamics.
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Well, it couldn't be any worse than the current ID4. I had the misfortune to be given a lift in one, and it was just horrible.