Volkswagen electrifies the dune buggy
It's based on the automaker's modular electric drive matrix platform.
Volkswagen has created a fully electric dune buggy concept, modernizing the Beetle-based roofless vehicles from the '60s and '70s. The automaker based the vehicle on its modular electric drive matrix (MEB) platform, which also serves as the basis for a $23,000 Tesla rival that's reportedly in the works. To stay true to the original dune buggies, Volkswagen designed the car with no fixed roof and conventional doors. It also created the vehicle with open side sills and outfitted it with large wheels and off-road tires.
The company says the concept model proves that the MED has the "potential to facilitate the development of low-volume niche vehicles" and not just large scale ones. Volkswagen is hoping to sell 10 million electric cars based on that platform, but it clearly plans to use MED for smaller projects. It's not entirely clear if Volkswagen plans to sell electric dune buggies in the future. At the moment, it's a one-of-a-kind fully electric concept that the automaker plans to showcase for the first time at the 89th International Geneva Motor Show from March 7th to 17th.
"A buggy is more than a car. It is vibrancy and energy on four wheels," Klaus Bischoff, Head Designer at Volkswagen, said. "These attributes are embodied by the new e-buggy, which demonstrates how a modern, non-retro interpretation of a classic can look and, more than anything else, the emotional bond that electric mobility can create."
