Design chief reveals new recipe for company’s upcoming cars as it seeks to capture old mojo
MARK TISSHAW
Volkswagen design boss Andreas Mindt has been in position for less than a year but has quickly outlined his vision for the marque with the ID 2all and the ID GTI concepts, which show a return to a more friendly and familiar design look for VW as part of its goal to be a ‘loved brand’ once more. Production versions go on sale in 2025.
Mindt, who has spent much of his career in Wolfsburg and was one of the key designers of the seventh-generation Golf, rejoined Volkswagen after moving to other brands within the group. He led exterior design at Audi and was design chief at Bentley in his two most recent roles.
Here, he tells Autocar his plans for this new design philosophy that sees the firm return to being “the nice guys”. He says: “We’re a ‘love’ brand, with trustable design, a strong identity and authenticity and built on three pillars: stable, likeable and with a ‘secret sauce’, which is about delivering more than people expect and with a sense of humour.”
The ID 2all is a very European car. Is global design a thing of the past?
“Global design became complicated and unnecessary.
We now have seven regions with specific portfolios: Europe, South America, North America, FAW in China, SAIC in China [the last two are joint ventures], our own new design centre upcoming in China and our sub-brand in China for Jetta. Even in China, all tastes are different, the traffic looks different, the people look different: it’s like travelling between Finland and Portugal. We have the same values across the world but certain design elements are different. You don’t put your fishing rod in the same lake.”
Were the ID 3, ID 4 and ID 5 created as global cars?
“I think so, yes. Maybe the thinking has changed over the years. China changes every year and every time you go there, you don’t believe what you see, especially after Covid. You fly back to Germany and it feels like a medieval country! You have to change your approach to that.”
Will the ID 2 make it to China?
“There is not a plan, no. The physical buttons [in the interior, below the touchscreen] have no relevance in China.”
Where does the ID 2 sit alongside the Golf?
“With ID 2all, we wanted to create a true, proper Volkswagen. This was the task we had. We did the analysis of our brand and what it stood for and came up with our three values [stable
