Volkswagen Confirms The ID.Buzz Is Back For 2027
There’s been some confusion around the Volkswagen ID. Buzz’s skipping of the 2026 model year in the U.S. Is it a pause, or something else? Speaking to InsideEVs during a media roundtable at the 2026 New York International Auto Show, Volkwagen Group of America CEO Kjell Gruner set the record straight.
“We just skip the model year ‘26 with the ID. Buzz. We just go directly from ‘25 to ‘27,” he said. The CEO assured the media that there wouldn’t be a gap in dealer inventory: “Against other rumors, there’s a consistent offer in the market.”
Back in December, Volkswagen sent a memo to dealers, letting them know that the ID.Buzz wouldn’t have a 2026 model year. “The ID. Buzz continues to serve as an important halo product for the Volkswagen brand, and safeguarding its market presence remains a top priority. Following a careful assessment of current EV market conditions, we have made the strategic decision not to move forward with MY26 ID. Buzz production for the U.S. market,” the memo read.
Photo by: Kevin Williams/InsideEVs
Gruner explained the decision as a simple matter of supply and demand: “We just looked at demand, supply, and then said, is it worth it to launch model year ‘26? Also in terms of complexity reduction, we just said, we skip that part and go directly [to 2027].” VW Group’s American CEO assured us that “there’s always going to be a Buzz out there,” confirming that 2027 production will start “in the summer” with deliveries reaching customers by early fall.
While it’s potentially concerning that a lack of demand for Volkswagen’s flagship electric vehicle could cause the automaker to skip a model year, a Volkswagen spokesperson present at the roundtable clarified that the 2025 model year arrived late, so the 2026 model year would’ve had a short run, anyway.
ID. Buzz sales boomed globally to 60,700 units sold in 2025—a 102% increase over the year prior—only 7,300 of those sales happened in the U.S. 2025 Buzzes are still common on dealer lots, some advertised with deep five-figure discounts.
Asked whether Volkswagen would consider introducing other variants of the Buzz sold internationally to our market, such as the shorter-wheelbase version or utilitarian cargo van body style sold in Europe, the answer was a flat-out no. “It’s just not the right thing for the US market,” Gruner said of the short-wheelbase Buzz, adding that it “doesn’t make sense here.”
The CEO was open to the idea of an adventure-focused ID. Buzz variant stateside, saying the company was having “intro discussions” around a camping-focused variant. I guess we’ll have to wait until at least model year 2027 to find out how those talks pan out.
