Herbert Diess' tumultuous tenure as Volkswagen Group CEO is now seen by many in Wolfsburg as a disaster. Diess, a former BMW executive who was appointed to VW's top job in 2015, oversaw the company's major shift to electric vehicles and set up in-house software development unit Cariad. Neither has been an outright success so far.
Despite the help of experts such as Blackberry QNX, Cariad is burning through much more cash than expected and is struggling to deliver the software architecture for Volkswagen Group's MEB platform electric vehicles on time. Crucially, the poor performance of the Cariad means that the highly profitable VW Group's premium electric vehicles - from the upcoming all-electric Porsche Macan and Audi Q6 E-Tron to new electric models from Bentley and Lamborghini - will be delayed.
Current Volkswagen-branded MEB-platform EVs are big, heavy, expensive, and don't pack particularly well for occupants and cargo. To make matters worse, the VW brand's ID models look dated and low-end compared to the competition. Demand for the ID, which Diess had seen as the future of the VW brand in the wake of the Dieselgate scandal, is about 30 percent lower than expected. Volkswagen recently announced a temporary halt to production of the ID4 SUV and new ID7 sedan at its plant in Emden, Germany, citing "strong consumer reluctance," which is not even on sale in most markets. Andreas Mindt's work appears to be done.
Andreas Mindt, appointed head of Volkswagen Design in February 2023, began his career at the brand in 1996 after graduating from the Design Academy of the University of Pforzheim career. He remained there until 2014, working on projects such as the first-generation Tiguan SUV and the Mk 7 Golf, before moving to Audi to lead the development of a new design language for the brand's entire model portfolio.
The affable and dynamic Mindt was appointed Bentley design director in 2021 to oversee the design of the Mulliner-built Bentley Batur coupe, a car intended to set the course for the famous British marque's future design direction. "I wanted to be there longer," Minter said of his two-year stint at Crewe. "My aim is to create a Bentley that you can see on the street in five years or so." But the crisis at Volkswagen led to Diess' successor, Porsche chief Oliver Blume, recalling Minter Wolfsburg. "I might plan to come back to Volkswagen later," Minter admitted, "but now is the right time; the right time to do Volkswagen Design..." He paused. "Then change it."
ID2all previewed the production ID2 compact EV hatchback planned for 2026, and also pointed to the future design direction of the next-generation VW ID model that will be designed under Mindt's direction.
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