Volkswagen Adds Bi-Directional Charging For ID.4 And ID.5 In Europe

The Volkswagen Group’s electric vehicle (EV) ramp up continues, with a 2022 over-the-air (OTA) upgrade planned to give the ID.4 and ID.5 electric SUVs bi-directional charging.

That means the Volkswagen ID.4 will be able to act as a generator to supply electricity from their 77kWh lithium-ion battery packs if houses or businesses suffer power failures, starting in Europe.

Volkswagen will sell purpose-designed bidirectional direct-current wall boxes for homes, so owners can either charge their cars at home or charge their home from their cars.

Another upcoming OTA upgrade will lift the ID.4’s charging capacity from 125kW to 135kW, but up to 150kW for the more powerful ID.5 GTX.

Volkswagen claims the upgrades will slash nine minutes from the 5% to 80% charging time, and that it will also incorporate a user-chosen Battery Care Mode, which caps charging at 80%.

“Our goal is to ensure that an electric vehicle is capable of being a customer’s primary car – without any compromises,” Elke Temme, the CEO of the Volkswagen Group’s Elli energy and charging business, said.

“That is why we are building a complete charging eco-system, with residential charging solutions and a rapid expansion of the fast-charging infrastructure required for mobile charging, as well as competent advice, comprehensive charging tariffs and the right fleet solutions for business customers.”

Volkswagen also plans to eliminate the need for charge cards or apps, with a Plug and Charge feature that communicates directly with the charging point via the charging cable. The charging port itself will carry a secure communication to authenticate the vehicle and the customer’s payment details.

The ID.4 is already the fastest selling Volkswagen in US history, with the company claiming more than 40,000 confirmed orders in mid-December.

It also suggested 90% of ID.4 buyers were first-time EV converts, and the company plans to launch locally built (Chattanooga, Tennessee) ID.4s this year, using Georgia-built lithium-ion batteries from South Korea’s SK Innovation.

Volkswagen’s EV plants in Europe are already carbon neutral, and it is planning 20 new solar and wind farms in Europe by 2025, delivering up to 7TWh of energy.