Volkswagen ID 4 production kicks off but we won't see it for a month

The Volkswagen ID 4 electric SUV is now in production... but we still haven't seen it.

Instead, while VW works on scaling up production over in Europe, it dished out a late September reveal date. We've got approximately a month before the company's first dedicated EV for the US is ready. The automaker said on Thursday the start of ID 4 production marks the first step in achieving a lofty goal: VW wants to build 1.5 million electric cars per year come 2025. To get there, parent company Volkswagen Group has set aside around $13 billion for VW to invest in electric through 2024.

Although production kicks off in Europe -- specifically, VW's factory in Zwickau, Germany -- the company will also build the ID 4 in China. Preproduction has also begun in the latter. Then, in 2022, the ID 4 will call Chattanooga, Tennessee home as well.

VW hopes to achieve a WLTP range of 500 kilometers, or 310 miles. European estimates are always a tad more generous based on how the cycle runs, so look for an EPA estimate around 275 miles or so when we finally receive details on the US specs. The ID 4 will also only support rear-wheel drive at launch, with plans to bring an all-wheel drive model to market later on. Hopefully not too long after, since Americans do love their AWD vehicles, though it's highly likely the AWD version won't travel as far on a single charge.

Thing won't slow down after the ID 4. We've seen numerous EV concepts from VW in the past few years, and we know a handful are definitely meant for production. Perhaps the most exciting is the production ID Buzz, which will essentially revive the classic VW Bus.