There are big shifts underway at Volkswagen. The brand is not only preparing a raft of new EVs like the ID. Cross and an all-electric Polo that have been previewed in near production form, but it’s also rethinking design to broaden appeal. That means moving back toward features that feel more familiar to shoppers, including something as simple as returning to traditional door handles instead of the flush pop-out ones so many EV makers favor.

Read: VW’s ID. Cross Might Finally Be What Budget Buyers Have Been Waiting For

At the IAA Mobility show in Munich, VW boss Thomas Schäfer sat down with Deutsche Welle and touched on several topics, including the slowdown in EV sales across major markets like Europe and the United States. Asked whether VW was making a conscious effort to make its EVs more approachable, Schäfer was quick to emphasize the value of familiarity.

Back To Basics

“People expect some sort of familiarity with the vehicle, with the brand, that they are buying into,” he said. “People buy brands so from that point of view, functions have to be easy. You know, like door handles for example. It’s all nice to have these flush door handles but they are terrible to operate, so we definitely have proper door handles on the cars and customers appreciate it. It’s the feedback we’re getting.”

More: Hate Retractable Door Handles? China Might Finally Make Them Go Away

And he’s not alone. As we recently reported, regulators in China are also eyeing flush and retractable handles, considering a ban after safety concerns and accident investigations. Given the size and influence of China’s auto market, such a move could ripple far beyond its borders, pushing other automakers to rethink their approach to what was once a trendy design cue.

While the ID. Every1 concept unveiled earlier this year featured flush door handles, both the ID. Cross and the ID. Polo previewed in Munich use more traditional ones. They may sacrifice some aerodynamic efficiency, but they’re far easier to operate in everyday life.

The Broader EV Transition

In the same interview, Schäfer also discussed VW’s wider transition to electric vehicles. He argued that electromobility is the superior option for buyers but questioned whether demand and infrastructure will grow fast enough for Volkswagen to stop selling ICE-powered models in the European Union by 2035.

“The end result is clear,” he said. “The question is can we make it fast enough for 2035? Is the uptake and the infrastructure growth for charging happening fast enough so that 2035 is a realistic goal? he said. “Whether it’s a couple of years later, it needs to be reviewed.”

The presence of Chinese automakers added some international flavor to this week’s Munich Motor Show, but in reality the event was more about familiar German brands and their new, and in some cases unfamiliar, faces.

Related: Star-Stricken Mercedes GLC EV Has A Grille Big Enough To Swallow A BMW iX3

All of the big German automakers were on hand with fresh concept cars and production models that showcased new stylistic directions. It feels like we’re at one of those moments where car design is changing across the industry for premium European brands after a period during which the big players have struggled to reinvent themselves and work out how to differentiate EV and combustion cars, or whether to even differentiate them at all. But have the Germans really rediscovered their design mojo?

Photos Stefan Baldauf & Guido ten Brink

Let’s start with BMW and the iX3, arguably the biggest story from the show because it’s about so much more than a new SUV. The iX3 is the first of the Neue Klasse cars and brings a fresh design language that will shape the brand’s entire lineup for the next decade, as well as a crucial new EV platform.

There was some murmuring here at Carscoops that the iX3’s profile deviated too far from Munich’s conventions, but overall this has to be viewed as a massive hit. BMW designs have mostly either been butt ugly or blandly handsome over the last 20 years, but finally here’s a fresh, modern-looking car with real presence, and one that brilliantly manages to riff on the classic face of old-timers without looking like a lazy retro rip-off.

Photos Stefan Baldauf & Guido ten Brink

To our eyes, the iX3’s key rival, the electric Mercedes GLC, is far less successful. The body looks flabby and dull next to the BMW’s and while we’re all for the three-pointed star marque borrowing some classic inspiration to put new energy into its famous grille, the light-up nose on the GLC, which will find its way onto other future models as well, looks like an afterthought here.

Photos Stefan Baldauf & Guido ten Brink

Audi’s Concept C looked far more confident. Previewing an electric TT successor that will share tech with the upcoming Porsche 718 Boxster and Cayman EVs, it takes inspiration from both the TT and Auto Union’s 1930s Type C racers.

We’re reminded of the string of uber-strong Bauhaus-infused concept cars Audi delivered in the late 1990s and early 2000s, many of which made production, as well as Jaguar’s Type 00 concept, though we think Audi did a better job.

Photos Stefan Baldauf & Guido ten Brink

Volkswagen’s ID. Polo and Polo GTI, the near-production versions of the car we previously knew as the ID.2, looked less radical in comparison, but they still represent a shift in the automaker’s design that hearkens back to the solid shapes and surfaces that made some of the brand’s biggest sellers so enduring.

Think about how fresh the Mk4 Golf still looks almost 30 years after we first met it, or the Mk1 does more than 50 years after it debuted. That’s the kind of self-assured, non-faddy style the ID. Polo embraces, but at the same time the ID. Cross showed VW could also have some fun with the same design language.

Photos Stefan Baldauf & Guido ten Brink

And now it’s time for our question of the day: do you think the German automakers have got their design act together, or do some of them need to get back to the drawing board? And in the battle of the grilles, who did it best – BMW, Audi or Mercedes? Leave a comment below and let us know your opinions and the reasoning behind them.

Audi/BMW/Mercedes

Volkswagen is going back to its roots and putting a new focus on the core strengths that made us love its cars in the first place. That’s the message the automaker put out at this year’s Munich Motor Show, where it revealed some of the models that make up the new “true Volkswagen” family it hopes will help it fight rivals from China.

Related: VW Revives Polo Name For EV Era And Teases First Ever Electric GTI

Most obviously, the names of the ID. Polo and its GTI twin, plus the ID. Cross, an electric alternative to the popular T-Cross combustion crossover, tells us that VW is putting new energy into its best-known badges and bringing its ICE and electric lines closer together. An ID. Golf will arrive by 2028, and a production version of the ID. Every1 concept, which could be called ID. Up, lands in 2027.

A Broader Commitment

But VW’s commitment to its core strengths goes deeper than simply ensuring familiar badges don’t fade away in the electric age. The automaker claimed it’s now focusing on new design, high standards of quality, attractive price-performance ratio, and innovative technologies.

“Our goal for the next five years is clear,” said VW brand CEO Thomas Schäfer. “By 2030 we want to establish ourselves as the leading high-volume manufacturer for pioneering technology.”

Schäfer’s boss, VW Group CEO Oliver Blume claimed the new family of EVs with improved software and battery tech has what it takes to protect the company from Chinese EVs steadily infiltrating Europe’s car market.

“Competition, for me, is very positive,” Blume told CNBC. “It is like in sport: when you have good competitors, you have to be better. That’s what we have been prepared to do in the last years, in terms of improving ourselves. I don’t fear the competition.”

Blume thinks VW can improve on its 28 percent electrified market share, but those qualities that promise to make cars like the ID. Cross a hit won’t be restricted to EVs, the automaker says. The automaker’s Munich stand also featured the facelifted version of the big-selling T-Roc crossover, the T-Cross’s big brother, along with the Tayron SUV launched earlier this year.

We’ve known for a while that Volkswagen was rethinking its electric vehicle naming strategy, but the finer points were left vague until now. The company has confirmed that the production version of the ID.2 all concept will be called the ID. Polo, with the sportiest version carrying the GTI badge, which is a first for an electric VW.

More: VW ID. Cross Promises Big Looks At A Small Price

“Our model names are firmly anchored in people’s minds,” said Thomas Schafer, CEO of the VW brand. “They stand for a strong brand and embody characteristics such as quality, timeless design and technologies for all. That’s why we’re moving our well-known names into the future. The ID. Polo is just the beginning.”

This approach means Volkswagen will blend its classic model names with the ID prefix for future EVs. That opens the door for possibilities like an ID. Tiguan down the line. To highlight the change, the company is showing camouflaged versions of both the standard ID. Polo and the ID. Polo GTI at the IAA Mobility motor show in Munich, offering the public an early look at what’s due next year.

From Concept to Production

From what we can decipher, the production models remain faithful to the ID.2 all and ID.2 GTI concepts. That’s anything but surprising, given that both were already presented as a near-production cars rather than far-off prototypes.

The overall design carries Volkswagen’s usual restraint, while the GTI version sharpens the edges with larger and intricately styled wheels, subtly flared arches, bespoke bumpers, a front diffuser, and a split spoiler on the tailgate. The stance sits lower, as you’d expect from a GTI.

“We are bringing one of our strongest brands, the GTI, into the electric world,” added Martin Sander, VW board member for sales and marketing. “Also launching in 2026, the ID. GTI Concept model will go into production as the ID. Polo GTI. It will offer outstanding dynamics and plenty of driving pleasure.”

Platform and Performance

Underneath, the ID. Polo is built on the electric-only MEB Entry platform. It measures 4,053 mm (159.5 in) long, 1,816 mm (71.5 in) wide, and 1,530 mm (60.2 in) tall, making it just a touch larger than the Alpine A290. All versions are expected to use a single motor driving the front wheels. For the GTI, output is projected at 223 horsepower, with rumors pointing to an even more focused Clubsport variant in the near future.

Production of the ID. Polo is scheduled to begin in time for a European launch in early 2026. VW has no plans to bring the subcompact hatchback to North America. At the same Munich show, the company will also reveal the ID. Cross Concept, a compact electric SUV that previews the production ID. Cross. Scheduled for release at the end of 2026, it will serve as the electric counterpart to the T-Cross.