3 Buyer Types VW Thinks Will Buy the ID.Buzz, Which is Not a Minivan
On Episode 10 of The AutoGuide show brought you by eBay Motors, we had Jeffery Lear, Director of Product and Strategy for Volkswagen USA. Our discussion centred around the brand’s upcoming electric vehicles, specifically the ID.Buzz and ID.7.
It’s NOT a Minivan
During our talk on the ID.Buzz, we asked Lear how he would classify the new multi-passenger vehicles. He was adamant that, despite the sliding doors, the Buzz is not a minivan. “We actually classify it as a bus.” Lear said, “we believe it’s sort of an invention of a new segment.”.
We pressed further on the Minivan Topic, he reiterated “yes it’s a three row vehicle, yes it has plenty of functionality and space. But no, we will not call (the ID.Buzz) a minivan.”
So, Who Will Buy It
This led us to ask, just who will buy the ID.Buzz then? Since Volkswagen classifies it as creating a brand-new, unprecedented segment, there isn’t existing sales metrics to base it on.
“What we believe the buyer pools are, we kind of bucket into three groups.” Lear states, “The nostalgist are one of those groups. There’s going to be plenty of people who had a Beetle or a (micro)bus before. Plenty of die-hard Volkswagen fans.”
As for the second group, he says it will consist of “…plenty of people who just want to get into a three-row electric vehicle. There’s a couple out there, there’s expensive ones out there, Mercedes-Benz, the Model X, but they’re $80K, $90K, $100K. So, bringing a more attainable people mover in this space is really important.”
The final group is for those that just think the ID.Buzz looks unique and cool. “The third bucket is just simply a design buyer.” Lear continues, “you know, maybe they need the space too. But (it’s) someone who just wants to go against the grain. How many buyers of Wranglers actually take them off-roading? Probably not too many. Will everybody use (the ID.Buzz) to haul seven passengers? Probably not, but it’s just exciting to drive something that’s a little but different.”
Become an AutoGuide insider. Get the latest from the automotive world first by subscribing to our newsletter here.
Will it Work?
All of these hypothesises and predictions are sound, but how the ID.Buzz is actually perceived by the market, and who will buy it, we won’t know until much later into the year when it finally goes on sale.
A 20+ year industry veteran, Mike rejoins the AutoGuide team as the Managing Editor. He started his career at a young age working at dealerships, car rentals, and used car advertisers. He then found his true passion, automotive writing. After contributing to multiple websites for several years, he spent the next six years working at the head office of an automotive OEM, before returning back to the field he loves. He is a member of the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC), and Midwest Automotive Media Association (MAMA). He's the recipient of a feature writing of the year award and multiple video of the year awards.
More by Mike Schlee
Comments
Join the conversation
“…plenty of people who just want to get into a three-row electric vehicle. There’s a couple out there, there’s expensive ones out there, Mercedes-Benz, the Model X, but they’re $80K, $90K, $100K. So, bringing a more attainable people mover in this space is really important.” Uhmmm - you might want to check the size of the market for $50k cars. Most people think that even that price is unobtainable....
It certainly looks a minivan to me, albeit a very cool one. Minivans, despite a bit of uncool stigma, are tough to beat when it comes to moving people and stuff. I've owned four minivans over the years, and certainly wouldn't mind another, especially one as sweet as the Buzz. As a father and DIYer I find minivans to be the near perfect vehicle, especially in an AWD configuration.