FILE PHOTO: A Volkswagen logo is seen at the New York International Auto Show Press Preview, in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., March 27, 2024. REUTERS/David Dee Delgado/File Photo
BERLIN (Reuters) - Volkswagen has pushed back the launch of a new ID.4 model from its next generation Trinity EV project to the early 2030s as part of a reshuffling of plans for the delayed programme, a person close to the company said late on Monday.
The German automaker had been due to release the new ID.4, and later another electric SUV, under the Trinity project using its new SSP platform, the brainchild of former CEO Herbert Diess aimed at uniting the group's EV platforms.
Originally set to launch a vehicle in 2026, the project was delayed by Diess' successor Oliver Blume due to software problems at the group's struggling Cariad subsidiary.
To plug the gap, the carmaker has created a new version of its existing MEB platform on which it plans to release another ID.4 in 2026.
In an internal document presented to the automaker's board, executives reasoned there was no longer a need to release another larger car on the SSP platform immediately, and so pushed back the release of another ID.4 and SUV to the early 2030s, according to the person, who declined to be named.
An electric Golf compact car on the SSP platform is still set to be released later this decade.
Reuters was not able to independently verify the document.
German business paper Handelsblatt reported on Monday evening that Volkswagen was postponing the launch of the new models because of weak demand for electric cars and a need to cut costs.
A Volkswagen spokesperson declined to comment on internal plans.
Trinity is one of several projects created under Diess that Blume has reshaped in an attempt to streamline the automaker's sprawling production network in the transition to electric cars.
The company said at its results conference earlier this month it would need to make significant cost cuts and reduce production capacity to revive margins.
(Reporting by Ludwig Burger and Victoria Waldersee; Editing by Mark Potter)
