First drive in the VW ID. buzz
What a heart
The VW ID.Buzz in Hamburg The colorful look is still camouflage and will not appear in series.
© press-inform – the press office
Volkswagen is hardly known for its highly emotional cars. But the electric bus of modern times is not only something for the eyes and head, but also for the feeling. The first test drive in the electric VW ID. buzz
It’s strange that the most emotional model from Volkswagen’s previous electric family doesn’t come from Wolfsburg or Zwickau, but from Hanover. It’s a utility vehicle in itself, and a very handsome one at that. The new VW ID. Buzz the most casual body hat yet. It will be available on the international markets from autumn as a normal and long version as well as a cargo version for craftsmen and tradesmen. We did a first extensive tour through Hamburg with the standard variant and are always impressed.
Hurricane Zeynep has announced itself in the Hanseatic city of Hamburg with a lot of tailwind and media fanfare; a storm like it shouldn’t have happened in decades. That’s exactly what the people in charge at Volkswagen expect from the ID. Transporter, not just an electric bus, but the ID. Buzz – a cool hum, which should become a real alternative to the unmanageably large number of crossovers with plugs. For decades, Volkswagen has always fantasized about the modern new edition of the legendary Samba Bus. None of the ideas succeeded because the platform was just as lacking as the high pressure to create such a model, because after all the T4, T5 or T6 models sold just as well as station wagons and crossovers of various sizes. The forced change to electromobility now made many things possible and while many thought that in addition to limousines, station wagons and SUVs, an electric off-road vehicle in the Iltis style could also win the race, the e-bus was at the top of the wish list for many. And now he’s here!
The design of the series model with the characteristic two-tone paintwork is pasted over in the prototype and the interior is also cloaked behind black camouflage mats, but it is already clear that the design will be one of the great strengths. In the southern port area of Hamburg, in the shadow of containers and sheet piling, it starts over broken roads and cobblestones into the real world of a big city. The 4.71 meter long Hanoverian can already score points here, because it is compact to maneuver with a turning circle of around eleven meters, parks cheerfully and drives unusually comfortably even over breaks and bumps in the asphalt. The Lower Saxony transporter is already on the move from the bottom up and committed to the cause. No surprise, because the electric motor in the rear has an output of 150 kW / 204 hp and a maximum torque of 310 Nm. As with the other models in the ID family, the 77 kWh battery pack is installed between the axles and is intended to achieve a range of 400 kilometers without recharging. It will not stay with one drive variant, because there should be a smaller 50 kWh battery for the cargo variant in particular, because the tradespeople look at every euro. Less and more power should follow later, as well as an all-wheel drive version – MEB makes it possible.
Despite its impressive weight of around two tons, the ID. Buzz through the turbulent inner-city traffic from the HafenCity in the direction of Sankt Pauli. The rainbow finish is eye-catching and so mobile phone cameras keep clicking at traffic lights. Short intermediate sprints between the intersections – no problem and anyone who changes the driving program can also switch to the so-called one-pedal mode with maximum deceleration, in which the brake pedal remains almost useless. The engine power is generous enough – the top speed of 145 km/h is unfortunately even more manageable than with the other ID models. Here the VW engineers leave a painful gap, because for so many families the ID. Buzz is the ideal holiday companion, but the limited maximum speed is not much on the motorway. After all, the ID. Refuel Buzz after the latest technical revisions on the in-house electric platform with up to 170 kilowatts at the fast charging station. It may be even more important for some customers to be able to leave the magnetic card in their pocket in the future, because the ID Buzz works with plug-and-charge. Plugging into the charging station is enough and the Elektrobully refuels without further additions.
Whether the VW ID. Buzz will be a success, especially in Europe with the commercial vehicle variant Cargo, which should start at around 30,000 euros. This offers a loading length of 2.21 meters, can swallow two Euro pallets and has a loading volume of four cubic meters. The five-seater passenger car variant, priced from around 40,000 euros, offers not only an electric boot lid and two powerful sliding doors, but also 1,121 liters of volume behind the generously dimensioned rear. The loading sill is 62 centimeters high. The trailer load: 1,000 kg. The seats are comfortable in the front and rear, the space is great and the camouflage mats cover not only the well-known displays with diagonals of up to 12 inches, but also the seven USB ports in the cockpit, center console and in the doors. No question – the VW ID. Buzz will find his fans. Not only among tradespeople, but also among those for whom the VW T7 Transporter is simply old world.