Volkswagen Once Planned An Electric SP2 Tribute—And It Looked Incredible

In 2017, while VW’s electric future grabbed headlines, something far more exciting was taking shape behind closed doors: a sports car project that never saw the light of day. One that, sadly, never made it past the concept stage.

The idea came from designer Tibor Juhasz. His sketches imagined a modern-day tribute to the SP2 (Volkswagen’s own Brazilian-built coupe from the 1970s). The original SP2 was rear-engined and rear-wheel drive, built on the Type 3 platform. It wasn’t especially fast, but it had style and soul. Juhasz’s version kept that spirit alive but reimagined it for the electric age.

Instead of an air-cooled engine and four-speed manual, the concept likely featured a rear-mounted electric motor. That would have made sense, given that VW’s MEB platform is used for rear- and all-wheel-drive models.

Design-wise, it drew from the work of Giorgetto Giugiaro—the legend behind the original Golf, Passat, Scirocco, and even VW’s wild W12 supercar concepts. In a LinkedIn post, Tibor explained that his vision was guided by instinct. He wanted to build something forward-thinking but rooted in emotion and heritage. Something that still feels relevant today.

Unfortunately, the idea never went beyond the sketchpad. Volkswagen decided to focus on practical, high-volume EVs like the ID.4 and ID.7 instead. From a business perspective, it’s easy to understand. However, for fans of fun, emotional cars, it was a missed opportunity.

This wasn’t the first time VW teased something exciting and then quietly shelved it. In 2009, there was the BlueSport—a diesel mid-engined roadster. Before that came the 2005 EcoRacer. And in 2014, the XL Sport made waves with its Ducati-powered V2 engine.

So many sparks of brilliance that never caught fire. Maybe one day, one of these dream cars will finally make it to production.