The Volkswagen ID.4 EV is set to get big changes for 2026, including, according to reports, a possible name change.

The current ID.4 is already in its fifth year on the market, and while it did well in the early going, increasing competition as well as a door handle issue that led to a stop-sale order have slowed the EV momentum. And yes, this is an EV that is starting to show its age as technical advancements pile up in the EV sector.

Add it all up and you have a candidate for a big overhaul. VW CEO Thomas Schäfer recently confirmed, in fact, that the ID.4 is set to get a major overhaul for next year, significant enough to be considered a new generation.

Schäfer told Autocar that the new ID.4 as "really beautiful”, and explained that its design is inspired by the European-market ID.1 and ID.2. "We felt it needed to fit into the new design language, as it remains our most important electric vehicle in terms of volume," he said.

He also stressed the magnitude of the overhaul coming to the model: “We will completely redo the ID.4 inside and out. It will be a totally different SUV, a huge step forward.”

The change is expected to be so significant that Autocar reports the model might even change its name, possibly to something like "Electric Tiguan." That hasn’t been confirmed yet, but it wouldn't be surprising. While some consumers are open enough to embracing all-new models, some prefer a familiar and trusted name.

Schäfer has stated in the past that it would be foolish for the brand not to leverage its strong historical names.