Volkswagen ID.7 Tourer revealed as a wagon, electrified

Previewed in 2023, the Volkswagen ID.7 Tourer is the brand's first entry into the electric station wagon segment. It's positioned near the top of the Volkswagen range, and it's nearly identical to its sedan counterpart but it aims to lure buyers away from SUVs with a spacious cargo area.

While launching a wagon in 2024 might sound insane, the Tourer wasn't developed with the American market in mind (despite the concept that previewed it making its debut in L.A.). It's headed to Europe, where crossovers and SUVs make up over half of the new-car market, but big wagons remain relatively popular. Viewed from the front, the Tourer looks pretty much like the sedan that it's based on: it features a sculpted bumper and horizontal headlights linked by a light bar. The character line that runs down both sides remains, but designers flattened the ID.7 sedan's distinctive arch-shaped silhouette to clear up more cabin space. Bright strips near the top of the roof line help reduce visual mass, and a roof-mounted spoiler adds a sporty touch to the design.

From the driver's seat, it's nearly impossible to tell the ID.7 sedan apart from the Tourer without looking in the rear-view mirror. You face a small digital instrument cluster, a dashboard that's flat, wide, and fitted with electronically-operated air vents, and a 15-inch touchscreen for the infotainment system. It's what's out back that counts: Volkswagen notes that trunk space checks in at up to 21.3 cubic feet with five passengers and 60.5 cubes with the second-row seats folded flat. That's less than you'll find in the latest Passat, which went wagon-only.

Volkswagen hasn't published technical details; all we know is that the Tourer will be offered with two different battery packs and that the biggest option unlocks a maximum driving range of up to 425 miles when tested on the optimistic WLTP cycle used in Europe. It's built on the modular MEB platform, so it will presumably come standard with the sedan's 282-horsepower single-motor, rear-drive powertrain, but making it all-wheel-drive should be as straight-forward as adding a second electric motor to the front axle. We're told charging the bigger battery from 10% to 80% can take less than 30 minutes.

Dealers across Europe will begin receiving the ID.7 Tourer before the end of 2024's first quarter, though pricing hasn't been announced. Nothing has been confirmed regarding a U.S. launch of the Tourer, but sales of the ID.7 sedan are scheduled to start in the second half of 2024.

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