VW Contradicts Works Council on ID.3 Stay in Zwickau

Less than 24 hours after Volkswagen's deputy works council chairman said the ID.3 would stay in Zwickau until at least the end of 2027, the company contradicted him. Christian Sommer, spokesperson for Volkswagen Sachsen GmbH, told regional broadcaster MDR that the plant will still transfer ID.3 production to Wolfsburg next year. He said the facts remain unchanged — and that the back-and-forth is "particularly regrettable for the workforce."

The conflicting statements landed within one day of each other at a sensitive moment for the Saxony site, which builds 300,000 electric cars per year and employs 8,000 people.

What did the works council actually say?

Speaking at the Automotive Forum Zwickau on Tuesday, Jürgen Mahnkopf, Volkswagen's deputy works council chairman, told the German news agency dpa that the ID.3 would remain in Zwickau at least until the end of 2027. For the time being, he said, only the ID.3 GTI would be produced in Wolfsburg.

Mahnkopf's reasoning was volume-driven. Retaining ID.3 production in Zwickau would compensate for declining output of the Audi Q4 e-tron, which is also built at the plant. That would have kept VW Sachsen more diversified than planned, for a while longer at least. The company's denial now suggests Zwickau may soon build just two vehicles.

What was the original plan?

The "Christmas Peace" collective bargaining agreement of December 2024 set out an unwelcome distribution of models across German VW plants:

• The two compact MEB-platform models from Line 1 — the VW ID.3 and the Cupra Born — were to move to Wolfsburg in 2026 alongside the facelift of both series.
• Of the electric SUVs built on Line 2, the ID.5 would be discontinued and the ID4 would come only from Emden, where part of ID.4 output already originates.
• Zwickau would have been left with the Audi Q4 e-tron and its Sportback derivative alone.

The picture has improved slightly since. Volkswagen reversed the Cupra decision roughly a year ago, announcing the Born would stay in Saxony long term and the ID.3 in the short term. The ID.4 and ID.5 will still be phased out at the end of this year.

Why Wolfsburg was ready anyway

Wolfsburg prepared for ID.3 production several years ago, specifically for overflow volumes. Demand came in lower than expected, so no overflow ever materialized. Under the plan Sommer reaffirmed, the complete relocation from Zwickau to the main plant is likely to take place next year — with ID.3 output ramped up in Wolfsburg in parallel before the Zwickau lines stop.

What does this change for Zwickau?

Even after the Cupra decision keeps the site multi-brand, the 8,000 employees face deeper restructuring. With only two vehicles left, the plant will likely scale back from two production lines to one.

The stakes run higher than line count. Zwickau is one of four German VW production sites whose future is uncertain, and there is a risk that all Volkswagen vehicle production there could cease after 2031.

What to watch next: whether VW corporate formally confirms the Wolfsburg transfer timeline, the ID.3 GTI launch in Wolfsburg, and the end-of-year phase-out of the ID.4 and ID.5 in Zwickau.