Dune buggy is back – as an EV

Volkswagen is bringing the classic dune buggy back to life at next month’s Geneva Motor Show with a new concept vehicle.

But it’s less about a retroreboot than showing off how flexible its new Modular Electric Matrix (MEB) platform is. The e-buggy is based on the same flexible architecture as the German brand’ s forthcoming range of EVs.

‘‘A buggy is more than a car. It is vibrancy and energy on four wheels,’’ says Klaus Bischoff, head designer at Volkswagen.

‘‘These attributes are embodied by the new e-buggy, which demonstrates how a modern, nonretro interpretation of a classic can look and, more than anything else, the emotional bond that electric mobility can create,’’ Bischoff says.

The e-buggy concept is based on the classic models that were created in California in the 1960s.

Back then, the chassis of the Beetle served as the basis; now, the MEB is underneath.

True to the original style, the e-buggy has no fixed roof or conventional doors, with freestanding wheels, chunky off-road tyres and open side sills.

VW has a long association with off-the-wall recreational vehicles: from the Beetle convertible and special bodies produced by companies such as Hebmuller and Rometsch to fully open designs of the kind embraced by the Meyers Manx buggy.

Globally, around 250,000 vehicles were built as one-offs or at low volumes through to the 1980s.