17 concept cars are parked in front of the club house at Pebble Beach’s legendary golf club. Usually, club members use this area to practice their putting. Today, celebrities like Jay Leno, car enthusiasts and guests from all over the world come here to get an impression of the automotive future. There are 16 cars with powerful engines, dark paint jobs and a burly demeanor. And then there is the ID. BUGGY with its gaudy green exterior on a pedicured green lawn. And everybody is looking!
The crowd pleaser
The Concours d´Elegance is the final event of the Monterey Car Week. On its so-called “concept lawn”, automotive manufacturers show off their most exciting concept vehicles. The ID. BUGGY doesn’t really fit in with this ensemble, but that’s exactly why it needs to be here.
Green on green, that's a perfect stance: ID. BUGGY on the "concept lawn"
Jay Leno, the famous American TV-host and automotive expert is a regular visitor at Pebble Beach.
Audi is showing its R8 LMS GT2. Next to it is the Porsche 993 Concept Gunther Werks, the Aventador SVJ Roadstar 63 from Lamborghini as a limited edition and Bugatti’s La Voiture Noire. The ID. BUGGY is different. It almost looks as if it smiles. Almost a little sassy, too. People love it.
“Incredible cultural importance”
“I think it definitely needs to be here, because this car has an incredible cultural importance,” says Klaus Bischoff, head of design at Volkswagen “You can see it from people’s reactions. They love the car, it makes them smile.”
Klaus Bischoff, head of design at Volkswagen: "this car has an incredible cultural importance.”
The Concours d´Elegance is the impressive and glamorous end of an incredible week for car enthusiasts on California’s Monterey peninsula. Nowhere else can you see this many cars from all generations: Old ones, expensive ones, and unique ones. Just after sunrise, which means about 6:30 a.m.on a Sunday morning, the first fans arrive to snatch up the best spots. They want to be as close as possible to the cars of their dreams. They are schlepping camping chairs, parasols, good food and drinks.--Ready to enjoy this perfect day at the 18th hole.
To see classic cars, luxury vehicles or funky showcars, visitors pay between 450 and 3,000 US-Dollars. Usually tickets are sold out long before the event and the traffic jam in the neighborhood is legendary.
Many great golf matches were decided here. Some of them by the notoriously unpredictable winds in this area. Today, it’s an automotive promenade and the only people losing this match are those who can’t take pictures because their smartphone ran out of power.
The Monterey Car Week is a six-day event. For the Volkswagen brand that’s a perfect opportunity to offer test drives with the ID. BUGGY. Since its world premiere, the fully electric concept has been winning hearts all over the place. Monterey is no exception. Wherever people see it, they stop, wave and take pictures.
The inventor of the dune buggy
Even Bruce Meyers dropped by. 55 years ago, he invented the first Buggy – the legendary Meyers Manx – the historic example for the ID. BUGGY of today. Meyers, now 93 years old, used the platform of a VW Bug for his Dune Buggy. With the ID. BUGGY, which is based on the modular electric toolkit (MEB), Volkswagen wants to revive this concept. Manufacturers can then use this platform for their own creations.
Bruce Meyers with the Meyers Manx and the ID. BUGGY
At the famous 17-mile drive, which runs across the Monterey peninsula and along three golf courses, Meyers saw the ID. BUGGY for the first time. A Buggy fan stops by in a green original Meyers Manx. “First of all, having Volkswagen realize that I started that crazy thing 55 years ago, is such a wonderful thing. I’m really obliged. It’s a wonderful experience to do something that became a phenomenon,” says Meyers, who, you can tell, is still proud of his invention.
Tribute to e-mobility
Even though, at first sight, the Monterey Car Week is all about the most expensive vintage cars, super luxury vehicles and powerful sports cars – e-mobility has long been a hot topic in these circles as well. At “The Quail” auto show, a special exhibition pays tribute to e-mobility. It includes electrified VW-classics from the 1970s, like the Microbus (1964) and a Beetle Zelectric Sedan (1965). This year, they share this space with the “regulars” from the pre-war era, the super sports cars and home-made vehicles. It’s a confirmation for all those who invest in a future of e-mobility.
Rarities of e-mobility: the Microbus and the Beetle "Zelectric Sedan"
It’s only fitting then that, following the ID. BUZZ (2017) and the ID. R (2018), there is now a third member of the future ID. family on the concept lawn – the ID. BUGGY. “The Buggy already created this counter-intuitive effect back in the 70s and was created for a very specific purpose, namely cruising on the beach,” says chief designer, Klaus Bischoff. “People already liked it back then, and that’s what they remember today. They associate the car with a particular lifestyle, and besides, it’s just incredibly cool to drive it around.”
The ID. BUGGY quickly became an audience favorite
At the Concours d´Elegance in the French town of Chantilly, the ID. BUGGY had already won the audience award, just two months ago, in June. At Pebble Beach, there is no award for concept cars. One might say that the ID. BUGGY remains undefeated. Those who saw the reactions of car fans in Monterey, know that the fully electric beach cruiser would have made a very popular candidate. It just smiles at people. And they smile right back.
