Volkswagen is getting ready to launch a new electric car starting at about €20,000 ($22,000) in 2027, and it looks like the entry-level EV may no longer be nameless. A newly filed trademark could have just given away what VW plans to call it.
Volkswagen trademarks ID. UP as potential entry-level EV
The new entry-level EV is “the last piece of the puzzle,” Volkswagen brand CEO Thomas Schäfer said last March after unveiling the ID. EVERY1 concept car.
Volkswagen said the production version will launch in 2027 with a starting price of around €20,000 ($22,000).
The new model will sit below the ID. Polo in Volkswagen’s Electric Urban Car Family, a lineup of compact, affordable electric cars.
Volkswagen’s current entry-level EV lineup includes the ID. Polo, ID. Cross, the Cupra Raval, and Skoda Epiq, all based on its new MEB+ platform.
After launching the lower-priced standard versions of the ID. Polo and ID. Cross recently, starting at €24,995 and €27,995, respectively, Volkswagen is preparing to launch an even smaller, more affordable EV next year.
A recent trademark filing with the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) and the German DPMA may have just revealed the name of VW’s upcoming €20,000 EV.
Volkswagen filed a trademark application for the name ID. UP on October 22, 2026, with the EUIPO and DPMA, suggesting this will be the name of the upcoming electric car in 2027.
The trademark follows previous reports that VW planned to revive the former Up! name as part of its shift away from its previous numerical naming scheme (ID.3, ID.4, ID.5, etc.).
Volkswagen has kept most details a secret thus far. Like the ID. Polo, the first to go on sale with an established VW nameplate, the ID. UP is expected to use the same 37 kWh LFP battery to reduce costs.
The VW ID. Polo with the 37 kWh battery offers a WLTP range of up to 334 km (207 miles), so the smaller ID. UP will likely provide around the same, if not slightly more.
Volkswagen said it will offer at least 250 km (155 miles) of range. It will also use a new 70 kW (94 hp) electric motor, enabling a top speed of 130 km/h (80 mph).
The production version of the ID. EVERY1, expected to arrive as the ID. UP, will be one of nine new models VW plans to launch by 2027.
Volkswagen previously said the entry-level EV will be 3,880 mm long, which would position it between the former Up! (3,600 mm) and the ID. Polo (4,053 mm). Despite its compact size, VW said the electric city car will seat four passengers and offer a luggage compartment volume of 305 liters.
The VW Group’s new Electric Urban Car Family is off to a strong start, securing nearly 150,000 orders after series production began in June.
All models within the family are built on the MEB+ platform with a FWD powertrain, and share more than 80% of the components and tech.
Volkswagen said the production version of the ID. EVERY1 will be among the first vehicles based on its zonal, software-defined vehicle (SDV) architecture, which it is developing through its joint venture with Rivian.
In March, the Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies (RV Tech) joint venture tested the new SDV architecture on the ID. EVERY1, alongside Audi and Scout reference vehicles, validating over-the-air (OTA) capabilities.
The new architecture will enable “highly automated driving features” and “advanced infotainment solutions,” with continuous OTA updates.
While VW said it will deploy the SDV architecture in “electric vehicles across markets in the Western Hemisphere,” the entry-level EV is not expected to reach the States.
Volkswagen is, however, preparing to launch the ID. Tiguan, which will launch in 2027 as the successor to the ID.4 (and ID.5 in Europe).
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