VW CEO Doesn’t Like Touch Sliders

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  • VW CEO Thomas Schäfer says actual buttons replace touch sliders.
  • Future models will have more physical controls, including four window switches.
  • The next generation VW also gets proper door handles.

Volkswagen used to offer some of the best interior quality in the mainstream segment before the current generation of vehicles. In 2019, the Golf Mk8 features a simplified cabin with fewer physical controls. That same year, the electric ID.3 pushed things even further by eliminating the dedicated rear window switch. Worse yet, the steering wheel buttons become touch-sensitive.

More frustrating is the touch slider used to adjust climate settings. Located below the infotainment screen, it didn’t even light up at first, and it took several years for VW to add backlighting to make it visible at night. Even company bosses don’t like to adjust the air conditioning and volume with sliders.

In an interview with Top Gear magazine, VW CEO Thomas Schäfer admitted that he saw no reason why any customer would want this user interface: “I don’t understand why anyone would [touch-sensitive] slider.” Actions speak louder than words, and the German automaker has promised to remove this “feature” and bring back actual buttons.



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Photo by: Volkswagen



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ID Volkswagen 2026. Polo volume knob

Photo by: Volkswagen

In the upcoming ID. Polo, there is a row of dedicated physical buttons on the center console, equipped with a rotary knob at the bottom. Additionally, the steering wheel features traditional buttons without any nonsense touches. A closer look at the driver’s door reveals the four window switches and other physical controls that VW used for decades before adopting a minimalist wave like other brands.

As for why this happens, you rarely hear corporate executives say it’s due to cost cutting. That said, we recently heard Ferrari CEO Benedetto Vigna admit that touch buttons are 50 percent cheaper to make. In VW’s case, says the head honcho Top Gear that “there is a spirit of iPhone-like design and utilization.” R&D boss Kai Grünitz approaches this subject from a different angle:

‘Every Volkswagen is created for the board of directors, and especially for the CEO. Luckily, [Ferdinand] Piech and [Martin] Winterkorn understands what customers want.’

Reading between the lines, the company’s head of technical development stated that former CEO Herbert Diess missed the mark when it came to customer preferences.



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ID Volkswagen 2026. Polo steering wheel

Photo by: Volkswagen



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