Volkswagen Won’t Sell the Electric ID.7 Sedan in North America, After All

Volkswagen ID.7 not coming to U.S.
(Images: Volkswagen)

After delays, Volkswagen decided to just pull the plug on bringing its electric sedan to the U.S.

It’s been nearly two years since VW first debuted its all-electric sedan, meant to join the brand’s lineup alongside the ID.4 crossover and the ID.Buzz van, at least on our shores. Now, after what it’s calling an “ongoing challenging EV climate” — and even that’s probably underselling it — the German automaker decided to scrap its plans to bring the ID.7 over here altogether.

That development emerged by way of an Automotive News report, in which a VW spokesperson cited the fear of slow sales as a reason behind the cancellation. The ID.7 was initially supposed to hit our market last summer, but the company decided to indefinitely delay the launch as it continued to monitor prevailing market conditions. Suffice it to say, those conditions have not improved over the past several months, in terms of a sudden spike in demand or more favorable market circumstances in which to launch A) an electric vehicle and B) an electric sedan. So, you can look at this latest decision as the natural outcome of what was, already, VW holding its breath for a suspiciously long time on the matter.

Had it actually arrived in the U.S., the general consensus was for Volkswagen to price the ID.7 between the ID.4 and ID.Buzz — in the $50,000 to $60,000 price point. The automaker will still sell it in China and Europe, where the buying markets are a bit more willing to buy an electric sedan that provides an alternative to the likes of Tesla and VW’s rival EV brands including BMW and Mercedes-Benz.

Betting on Scout?

Moving more into the editorial side of this latest news, it makes decent sense that Volkswagen would arrive at this conclusion. To be clear, the company has not (at time of writing) published an official statement to the effect of cancelling the ID.7’s U.S. launch. But short of an enthusiastic marketing campaign leading up to a launch, it’s reasonable to say the writing’s on the wall. (And if there’s a dramatic change from VW’s end, we’ll make sure to publish the appropriate update).

There are still a few players willing to stick things out in the sedan segment, electric or otherwise. But when it comes to America, we love, love, love us some SUVs — and Volkswagen Group just happens to have one in the pipeline: the new Scout. Not only will it be available in a SUV and a truck variant, but it also supposedly will hit the same price bracket in 2027.

As the situation stands right now, the only rub for Volkswagen brand dealers is that Scout Motors intends to bypass the dealership model entirely. Instead, it plans to sell the Traveler SUV and Terra truck directly to consumers, a decision that has VW dealers furious…possibly to the point of litigation (though Scout Motors’ counsel insists it has the right to sell directly to consumers and will defend itself against any legal action taken by VW dealer franchisees). We’ll have to see how that all plays out, but the main point is that Scout Motors and its vehicles will likely provide a larger boon to Volkswagen Group’s bottom line than a relatively slow-selling sedan would.

As for the Volkswagen brand, we could see new hybrid variants of popular models like the Tiguan in lieu of fully electric vehicles, as the company attempts to pivot and offset recent struggles like the ID.7 launch and even issues with its ID.4 rollout over the past few years.