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The incoming 'baby' Mercedes-Benz G-Class will sit on a bespoke 'ladder-frame' platform, use “nearly all unique” parts and sport a design that “is even more modern than the current car”, bosses have said.

Arriving within the next two years, the new SUV will be the entry model into a growing G-Class range as Mercedes attempts to expand 'G' into a brand in its own right – like JLR has done with Range Rover.

That will include the return of the G-Class Cabriolet, which was announced this week.

Speaking at the Munich motor show, Mercedes chairman Ola Källenius said test mules would “be appearing on roads very soon”, showing a new preview image of the incoming model's rear end.

The so-called Mini G will sit on a unique architecture, confirmed tech boss Markus Schäfer, in order to be “as authentic as possible”.

He said: “The G is a very special, authentic car, and the Mini G has to be authentic. So I cannot take just a platform, I cannot take an existing platform, I have to create my own. It's a completely new development.”

The platform is described by Schäfer as a “miniature ladder-frame chassis”, which he explained was “not ladder-frame to [the current G-Class’s] extent but when it comes to suspension, when it comes to wheel size”.

Schäfer revealed that the Mini G will use “a lot” of unique components, “far more than I ever wish to tell you”, which includes most of the car’s body.

He said: “Over time, just looking at the car’s capabilities and what's needed, I came more and more to the conclusion that everything has to be unique, the whole upper body and everything. 

"You know, I can't even take a door handle from [the current] portfolio, because the G-Class has such unique door handles.

"So we spent a lot of time tuning this car, and over time we started to develop so many unique components to make sure it’s very, very good-looking car and very capable.”

The current G-Class is offered with both combustion and electric power, but Autocar understands the Mini G will be sold exclusively as an EV.

Asked about powertrains, especially an electric one, Schäfer was coy, stating: “Stay tuned. I don't want to go in to this detail.” 

In styling terms, the Mini G will be a “tweaked” G-Class, said Mercedes design boss Gorden Wagener, and that will make it “even more modern” than the electric G580 EQ that was launched last year.

Speaking about the design, Wagener said: “You cannot change the G much: it’s iconic. I like the new [current G-Class]: that's a modern G.

"On the little one, we will give a slightly different tweak: a bit more sharpness, a bit younger [light] graphics but still circle. So it's really details.

“But otherwise we stick to the G, and it's a modern G – even a touch more modern than the big one.”

Asked if he wanted to go slightly more radical with the design, Wagener said the fundamentals had to stay the same: “You have to hold yourself back and understand what the icon is about. We strive for iconic design, and there is not such an iconic piece like the G, right?"

Europe's biggest motor show since the Covid-19 pandemic has opened its doors, with Volkswagen, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Renault, Polestar all set to reveal crucial new models.

Star cars already revealed at the Munich motor show include the new BMW iX3 and Mercedes-Benz GLC, electric family SUVs that each kick-start new eras for their marques.

The show also marks the arrival of a wave of small EVs, with the Volkswagen Group launching an entire family of new models. 

Read on for our guide to the hottest new cars being shown in Munich:

Audi Concept C

This striking concept making its debut at the Munich show draws on the seminal Mk1 TT – but it isn't purely for show, because it will go on sale in two years' time.

"The car that you see here is a preview of a production car - almost literally," said Audi design boss Massimo Frascella.

It is expected to use similar underpinnings to the upcoming Porsche Boxster and Cayman EVs, which are based on a specially adapted version of the Porsche-Audi-developed PPE platform.

Audi CEO Gernot Döllner added that it will be postioned somewhere between the TT and the R8, and categorically ruled out naming it after the TT.

Everything you need to know about the Concept C: Audi TT reborn as radical electric sports car for 2027

BMW iX3

The first car to come from BMW's Neue Klasse revolution brings a dramatic step in design and engineering – promising a range of 500 miles.

That will make it Britain's longest-range EV when sales start later this year, outdoing even the sleek Mercedes-Benz CLA.

It's also signficantly cheaper than the outgoing iX3, with prices kicking off at £58,755 – a reduction of around £6500. 

Read our BMW iX3 prototype review

Cupra Tindaya

Cupra will take the wraps off a new concept car that will showcase its next design era. 

An official preview image shows a radical new cabin similar to that of the DarkRebel concept, which was unveiled in 2023, and includes a yoke-like steering wheel, a chunky central spine and racing seats.

Everything you need to know: Cupra to showcase future of interior design with radical concept

Cupra Raval

The Cupra Raval arrives next year as a sportier sibling to the VW ID Polo and Skoda Eqiq, with angrier styling and a bespoke chassis set-up.

Cupra has confirmed that a 'VZ' hot hatch version is also on the way, bringing 223bhp, an electronic limited-slip differential and the ability to completely disable its stability control system.

Everything you need to know: New Cupra Raval hot hatch will feature 223bhp VZ variant

Changan Deepal S05

Chinese brand Changan is on the cusp of launching in the UK with the Deepal S07 electric SUV, a Tesla Model Y rival – and it is set to follow that with the Deepal S05, positioned as a competitor to the Skoda Enyaq.

In China, it is available with a choice of battery-electric and range-extender powertrains. The former has a 235bhp rear-mounted motor and a 56kWh battery pack, yielding a range of 320 miles on China's CLTC test cycle. The range-extender has a smaller, 27kWh battery that gives an electric range of 124 miles on the WLTP cycle, which is supplemented by a naturally aspirated 1.5-litre petrol engine that acts as a generator.

The S05 will make its European debut at the Munich show.

Hyundai Ioniq 3

Hyundai has previewed the design of the electric hatchback concept that it will reveal at Munich. 

Named Concept Three – all but confirming the production version will be called Ioniq 3 – it is a rakish family hatch that appears to draw on the larger Ioniq 6 saloon.

As well as previewing an eventual Cupra Born rival, the Concept Three will also serve as a showcase for Hyundai's new 'Art of Steel' design language.

Everything we know: Hyundai to preview Ioniq 3 with radical electric hot hatch concept

Leapmotor B05

Chinese brand Leapmotor has expanded its line-up to include a Volkswagen ID 3 rival.

Named the B05, it has a single 215bhp motor mounted up front, as well as a 67.1kWh battery pack. The pair yield a range of up to 260 miles.

Prices are expected to start from around £27,000.

Everything we know: Leapmotor B05 revealed as sub-£30k VW ID 3 rival

Mercedes-Benz G-Class cabriolet

Mercedes-Benz has confirmed the return of the open-top G-Class. 

A preview image shows a silhouette similar to the current tin-top model, but with a shortened roofline. 

It will be the first convertible G-Class since 2017's Maybach G650 Landaulet.

Everything we know: Mercedes G-Class cabriolet confirmed for worldwide comeback

Mercedes-Benz GLC

The new GLC kicks off what Mercedes-Benz calls its "biggest product offensive" in its history.

Designed to closely resemble the current combustion-engined GLC, it evolves the brand's design language with a new 'iconic grille' comprising 942 LED lights; inside, it gets a huge touchscreen spanning the width of the dashboard.

Underneath, it sits on the new MB.EA electric car platform, bringing 800V electricals and a range of 435 miles.

Everything you need to know: 2026 Mercedes-Benz GLC EQ is iX3 rival with 435-mile range

Mini John Cooper Works x Deus ex Machina

Mini has signalled renewed interest in high-performance cars with this pair of concepts, which will make their debut at Munich.

Based on the petrol and electric John Cooper Works hatchbacks, they are stripped-out racers produced with fashion brand Deus ex Machina.

While neither will make production, they are the first cranked-up Mini JCW models since the GP went out of production with the last-generation hatch in 2023.

Everything you need to know: Mini celebrates racing heritage with Cooper JCW concepts

Polestar 5

Polestar will reveal the production-ready version of its Porsche Taycan rival at Munich. The newcomer is promised to offer nearly 900bhp in its most potent form.

The super-saloon is described as a “company-defining project” and will be the first model built to use Polestar’s new 800V electrical architecture.

Largely developed in Britain, it's said to have “supercar levels” of stiffness and be the lightest model in its class.

Everything you need to know about the Polestar 5: 'Extreme-fast charging' Polestar 5 GT to star at Munich motor show

Renault Clio

A radically different Renault Clio will be shown for the first time. The sixth-generation hatchback is set to ditch pure-petrol engines and go hybrid-only – in part to meet stringent new EU fleet emissions targets.

The supermini will also introduce several new design cues, such as a more prominent nose with a diamond-shaped grille pattern and twin-decked lip spoilers at the rear.

Everything you need to know about the new generation hatch: New Renault Clio set for Munich show debut ahead of 2026 launch

Skoda Epiq

Skoda's new baby SUV promises to bring electrification to the masses, positioned – and, crucially, priced – to match the petrol-powered Kamiq.

A near-production concept is being shown on the Munich show floor, and it is expected to make it to showrooms almost enitrely unchanged.

Everything you need to know: New Skoda Epiq gears up to take on Renault 4 next year at £25k

Skoda Vision O concept

Skoda's new Vision O concept car will preview the next-generation Octavia Estate. CEO Klaus Zellmer told Autocar that it will be a “further step” for the brand in its design but will still “clearly be recognisable as a Skoda”.

It's likely to be based on the Volkswagen Group’s upcoming SSP platform, designed for its next-generation EVs.

Everything you need to know about the next Skoda Octavia: Electric Skoda estate concept to channel spirit of Mk1 Octavia

Vauxhall Corsa GSE Vision Gran Turismo

This wild concept car packs 789bhp and weighs just 1170kg – but, under that dramatic skin, it also serves as a first look at the next-generation Corsa.

Indeed, it is based on the same STLA Small platform that is set to underpin that car, which is due to be revealed next year.

It will make its public debut at the Munich show.

Everything you need to know: Vauxhall reveals wild next-gen Corsa concept with 789bhp

Volkswagen ID Polo

VW has confirmed that the production version of the ID 2all concept shown at the previous Munich show will take on the Polo name.

It is displaying the finished car, due in showrooms next year priced from around £22,000, in Munich – albeit in a harlequin-inspired camouflage wrap.

The ID Polo will be offered with a choice of 38kWh and 56kWh batteries, with the latter said to yield a range of around 280 miles, and the ability to charge at speeds of up to 125kW.

Everything you need to know: Volkswagen confirms ID Polo name for new £22k EV

Volkswagen ID Polo GTI

Alongside the ID Polo, Volkswagen has provided details of the GTI hot hatch version that is due in 2027.

It will be boosted to 233bhp and sports more aggressive design cues, including flared wheel arches, boot-mounted spoilers and larger alloy wheels. 

As previously reported by Autocar, the company is also working on a Clubsport variant targeting a peak output of 282bhp.

Everything you need to know: Volkswagen ID Polo GTI: 233bhp hot hatch to arrive in 2027

Volkswagen ID Cross

Alongside the ID Polo, the taller and chunky ID Cross has been shown in near-production form for the first time. It will go on sale next year, just after the ID Polo. 

Effectively an electric alternative to the T-Cross, it will start at around £25,000, meaning it's set to be one of the cheapest electric SUVs on the market.

Everything you need to know: Volkswagen ID Cross previews chunky Puma Gen-E Rival

Volkswagen T-Roc

The new second-generation T-Roc will be displayed in public for the first time at Munich, bringing a bold new look and a hybrid drivetrain that will be rolled out across VW's line-up.

It is set to be the final combustion car that VW will launch. All subsequent models are set to be battery-powered, if market conditions allow.

Deliveries will start in November and a hot R version is due next year with a high-performance hybrid powertrain.

Everything you need to know: New 2026 Volkswagen T-Roc brings bold look and hybrid power

Volvo ES90

Volvo's most aerodynamic car yet – and its first electric car that isn't an SUV – is making its debut at Munich. 

Related to the EX90 SUV, the ES90 is a five-door liftback with ranges north of 400 miles regardless of whether it is fitted with the entry-level 88kWh battery or larger 102kWh pack.

Charging speeds are capped at 350kW, allowing examples with the bigger battery to refill from 10-80% in 20 minutes.

Alongside showing the ES90, Volvo is expected to provide a closer look at the upcoming EX60 SUV.

Everything you need to know about the ES90: New Volvo ES90 revealed as BMW i5 rival with 434 miles of range

Future BMW models will all feature distinct designs as the company rapidly rolls out the new Neue Klasse design language across its line-up, according to design chief Adrian van Hooydonk.

The new iX3 is the first production vehicle to feature the radical new design language, which features cleaner lines, the removal of chrome and two new, illuminated interpretations of the kidney grille – an upright version for SUVs and a flat, wider interpretation for saloons.

BMW will rapidly roll out new Neue Klasse models, such as the new i3 due next year, but will also heavily facelift its current EV and combustion models to reflect the new design. That will involve more than 40 new model launches in the next two years.

While all the new models will feature variations on the two kidney grilles, Van Hooydonk said that while they would clearly be part of the “same family”, each model would have “very different features and characteristics”.

He added: “We want to give each of our products their own character, and that’s more true today than ever before, because each of our products will encounter different competitors in their segment, and you have to be very aware of it.

“It's not enough to just be the BMW in the segment: you have to be the best in each segment, and you have to think about what that segment needs and wants, and what the competition is likely to do. And then you have to plot your own course.

“We have grown [our range] in the last couple of years and in the last decades, and the secret to that success is that we offer real choices to our customers. We offer a family resemblance, but it's not Russian dolls. We’re going to continue in that vein with this new family.”

A key part of the Neue Klasse design philosophy is a reduction in the number of lines and trim elements featured in the exterior styling. Van Hooydonk added that would be reflected in the design of future M performance models, but said they would still be “more expressive” than the rest of the range – and cited the i8 as a source of inspiration.

“It’s typical they are more expressive, because they are faster cars and more dynamic, and that is what they will express,” said van Hooydonk. “But in those cars there will be a certain restraint in the designs that we started years ago with the i3 and i8, and then continued with i4 and iX. What you see here is built upon all those steps, and now it's going to get rolled out over the entire portfolio.

“If you do a very clean design it will probably last longer, and that's also good for our customers, because it's good for resale value and we’re also aiming to extend the life cycles of our product."

Volkswagen design chief Andreas Mindt has hinted that a dramatic makover next year for the ID 4 will take a significant number of styling cues from the new ID Cross concept.

While Mindt wouldn’t give specific details, he said the “ID 4 will be the big brother” of the new ID Cross, which is due to go on sale next year. The ID 3 will also receive a similarly dramatic overhaul, although Mindt refused to elaborate.

However, he did hint that Volkswagen would move away from the extremely short front ends on its early bespoke electric efforts, most notably the ID 3 – although it is unclear if that can be addressed in a heavy update.

“With electric cars you don’t have engines so the bonnet can be really short, so companies including us did this,” he added. “But the pedal box stays in the same place, and when that stays it’s wrong, because all you create is a very deep dashboard and long glass window, and that is like an oven and you don’t have energy to cool it down – so it’s a mistake.”

As previously reported by Autocar, the ID 4's mid-life update will be so extensive that it will be more like a new generation than a facelift, as part of a drive to sustain its strong sales figures and make it a more obvious electric equivalent to the Tiguan.

The ID 4, Volkswagen's second bespoke electric car after the closely related ID 3 hatchback, is approaching its fifth birthday, having launched in 2020 as a crucial component of the firm's drive to become a global leader in EV sales.

It quickly became one of the world's most popular EVs, and remains an important part of Volkswagen's electric portfolio: in the first half of 2025 it was Europe's second best-selling electric car, behind the Tesla Model Y, according to figures from Jato Dynamics.

And now, at five years old, the Toyota bZ4X and Tesla Model Y rival is due an extensive round of design and technical updates to bring it into line with its newer stablemates.

Volkswagen CEO Thomas Schäfer told Autocar the new 2026 ID 4 is "really beautiful" and hinted at just how extensively it has been overhauled: "We'll re-do the ID 4 completely inside and out. It will be a completely different car - a huge step up."

A major priority for the design overhaul is to ensure the ID 4 is visually related to Volkswagen's new-generation electric cars. "We felt it needed to fit in with the new design language going forward, since it is still our most important electric vehicle in numbers," said Schäfer, specifically mentioning the ID 1 and ID 2.

“It's also to stay competitive for a while: let's [bring] a completely new one.”

Autocar understands the new ID 4 is known internally as the 'electric Tiguan', hinting at a push to present the two similarly sized SUV models more overtly as siblings. 

The company has not confirmed plans to go as far as changing the ID 4’s name, but Schäfer previously suggested to Autocar that the Tiguan moniker would always have a place in Volkswagen’s portfolio - even as the line-up goes all-electric: “We've decided we're not going to throw away the traditional, successful names that have carried us for so long, that we've invested in for so long, like Golf and Tiguan. Why would you let them go?”

An electric Tiguan equivalent has long been understood to be part of Volkswagen's product roadmap, the combustion-powered car being Volkswagen's most popular car globally, and was earmarked for a launch in 2025 or 2026 - which would coincide with the planned rollout for the upgraded ID 4.

Speaking to Autocar, Volkswagen technical development boss Kai Grünitz recently confirmed that the ID 4 will follow the ID 3 hatchback in adopting the new design language first introduced on the 2023 ID 2all concept, giving them “a family resemblance to the ID 2” as well as a “lower and squatter stance”.

Inside, Grünitz confirmed that the facelifted ID 3 and ID 4 will receive fully revised interiors featuring a new dashboard and user interface. Among the changes is a return of physical buttons and knobs in place of digital display-based functions and the controversial slider element, a move first hinted at by the ID 2All.

“We’re going to bring back a round knob for the volume control,” an insider said, adding: “If you develop something that works, and it has worked for years, there’s no reason to replace it.”

Technical details of the facelifted ID 3 and ID 4 have yet to be revealed, though Autocar has been told Volkswagen’s best-selling electric models will benefit from the efficiency and performance gains brought to other more recently launched models, including the ID 7, through newer and more technically advanced electric motors and more contemporary battery and inverter technology.

The facelifted ID 3 is scheduled to be revealed during the second quarter of next year, with the ID 4 arriving later in 2026. 

The ID 4's rakish-roofed ID 5 sibling is understood to be earmarked for retirement, rather than undergoing the same round of updates. Volkswagen does not break out individual model performance in its annual reports, but the ID 5 is not currently in Europe's top 25 EVs, and has sold around a third the number of ID 4s in the UK since the duo launched. 

The updates are part of a broader effort to reset Volkswagen’s image as a maker of EVs after early criticism of quality, software and user experience in its first-generation MEB-based models.

Alongside the arrival of three new MEB Entry-based EVs next year – the VW ID 2, Cupra Raval and Skoda Epiq – the goal is to extend the lifespan of the current 400V models to keep VW at the top of Europe’s EV sales charts, insiders say, while the firm readies its next-generation 800V SSP platform, which is due to underpin VW EVs from 2028.

Volkswagen also intends to differentiate its EV designs by region, with European and US models sharing a common design theme while Chinese-market cars receive their own styling direction. This strategy was hinted at by the unveiling of the ID Aura, Era and Evo at the Shanghai motor show in April.