i had a id.4 on test for a week from volkswagen uk press office, and it was the first time i had sat in one, i really hadn’t seen one up close before.
When it arrived at my house, the first thing that I was surprised at was, just how big it was, both on the outside, and the interior. To put the size into perspective, it is the same size as the VW Tiguan on the outside, but has much more room in the inside.
The ID.4 is the big brother of ID.3, and both came to the market around the same time, and both are fully electric.
The ID.4 has a 77kWH Motor, which translates to 204ps, it goes from 0-100kph in 8.5 seconds, a top speed of 160kph and a manufacturer quoted range of 490 kilometres but these figures are generally about 25% too optimistic. I charged it to 99% full and got a range of 252 miles or 405 kilometres, which in realty isn’t a bad range, and you can live with that. During the time I had the ID.4 I went to Lytham St Anne’s near Blackpool, a distance of 84 miles each way, and when I got back home, it still had 100 miles range left in the batteries. So no ‘range anxiety’ going to the coast and back.
I usually go to a public charging point to charge up the batteries as it is much quicker than charging at home. With the ID.4 using a 50kW charger you can get in around 120 miles in one hour, so from empty to full will take just under two-hours.
I liked most things on the ID.4, but the one thing I did find a little annoying was the position of the gear-shift lever (button) as, VW in their wisdom have decided to put it just above the windscreen wiper stalk, and not in the traditional and usual place of in the centre, in between the two front seats, I guess they moved it to a bit of a silly place, because they could, and for no other practical reason.
Although the ID.4 is quick, it is not throw you back in your seat quick, which makes a refreshing change for an electric car, and the way I see it, what you loose in acceleration, you gain in range, which suits me.
Volkswagen offer a 8-year 100,000 mile battery warranty in the UK, but not sure what they offer here in Europe.
Driving the ID.4 is a real pleasure and so easy to drive, all the controls, switches and the on-board systems are very intuitive (except the gear shift) and with minutes you instinctively know where everything is, and what it does, although I have heard other reports that say exactly the opposite, I’m not technically minded at all, but I seemed to manage to work it out relatively quickly, I even surprised myself.
With the batteries it is a heavy car, and although you cannot detect it weighs nearly two-tonnes, but at lower speeds, and going over uneven road surfaces you do notice it’s a heavy thing.
The price in the UK for the ID.4 First Edition is £40,800, but prices range from £34,595 to £55,485.
