The Volkswagen ID 3 electric hatch will take on a new name when it receives an extensive facelift later this year, the firm’s sales boss has confirmed.

The model was released in 2021 as the brand’s first bespoke EV and has already had a substantial overhaul in a bid to improve the perceived quality. As previously reported by Autocar, the car will receive another substantial makeover this year, with a bolder front-end design and a focus on higher-quality interior trims.

Although Volkswagen is moving away from the numbering system originally used on its ID line-up in favour of a return to model names – as seen by the forthcoming ID Polo and ID Cross – it had been expected that the ID 3 would keep its title. 

But speaking to select media including Autocar, VW sales boss Martin Sander confirmed that the new ID 3 would arrive later this year and said: “We’re going to release the name of the next ID 3 generation shortly."

Asked by Autocar to clarify if that meant the model would be rebranded, Sander said “it’s taking on a name, yes”, although he declined to offer further details.

That will mirror the approach taken with the ID 4 SUV, which is set to receive a more extensive facelift this year and, as Autocar has previously reported, is set to be rebranded the ID Tiguan to position it alongside the firm’s best-seller.

It is unclear whether the ID 3 will receive an entirely new title, or a suffix added to ID 3. Sander also would not reveal if it would be a new name or an established VW nameplate. While the model has broadly been positioned as the electric equivalent of the Golf, VW has already ruled out it taking on that crucial title, especially with development of a dedicated electric ID Golf under way.

Speaking about the initial decision to move away from product names in favour of a numbering strategy with the initial ID models, Sander added: “Back in the days there was a notion of doing everything differently across the whole industry, with new names, new design, new sales models – and the industry has learned that not all the old things have been bad. Not everything needed to be changed, and things are moving a little bit back into a more reasonable path.”