Shortly after presenting the Volkswagen ID.4 GTX, the sportiest and most powerful of the ID.4, the Wolfsburg brand is now showing the ID.X, a (still) prototype that transforms the ID.3 into a kind of “hot hatch” electric.
The revelation was made by Ralf Brandstätter, Volkswagen's general director, through a publication in his personal Linkedin account and is accompanied by several photos of the prototype, which has a specific decoration in gray, with fluorescent green details.
Inside, a configuration that is similar to a production ID.3, although with several surfaces in Alcantara and many details in the same fluorescent tone that we find in the bodywork.
More notable is the improvement in mechanical terms, as this ID.X uses the same electrical drive scheme that we found in the “brother” ID.4 GTX, based on two electric motors, one per axis.
As such, and unlike the other ID.3 variants, this ID.X has all-wheel drive. And this is really one of the biggest surprises of this project, since it was believed that this system — twin-engine and all-wheel drive — could not be accommodated by the ID.3 as it is the most compact of all MEB-derived models, the platform dedicated for electric vehicles of the Volkswagen Group.
Another surprise is related to power, since despite sharing the same engines, this ID.X manages to produce 25 kW (34 hp) more than the ID.4 GTX, totaling 245 kW (333 hp).
The performance of ID.X also promises to be much better than that of ID.4 GTX. The fact is that even being equipped with the largest battery available — 82 kWh (77 kWh net) — the ID.X charges 200 kg less than the ID.4 GTX.
Brandstätter tested the prototype and said he was “thrilled” with this proposal, which is capable of accelerating from 0 to 100 km/h in 5.3s (6.2s on the ID.4 GTX) and that it even has a Drift Mode similar to that we can find it (optionally) in the brand new Golf R, which Diogo Teixeira has already tested on video.
In the same publication, Volkswagen's managing director admitted that the ID.X is not intended for production, but confirmed that the Wolfsburg brand will “take several ideas” from this project, which was created by the same engineers who gave us the ID.4 GTX.