Item: Volkswagen ID 3
Rating: 4
Author: Simon Davis

9 April 2021

1938, 1974, 2020. It’s a chronological sequence that Volkswagen dearly hopes will look right and natural when we gaze back on events in decades to come. That’s how important the cartoon-faced electric subject of this week’s road test is to the world’s largest car maker brand; to its ambitions in an automotive sphere that is changing more quickly than many could have imagined. Beetle begets Golf, which begets Volkswagen ID 3: VW’s past, present and future.

At least, that’s the plan. And despite the software glitches that delayed the ID 3’s launch last year, it’s not going so badly. The car arrives for scrutiny here off the back of enviably strong numbers. Consider this: in December 2020, the best-selling car in Europe was the Volkswagen Golf, with 29,949 sales. And its closest rival?

The ID 3 coasts without any perceptible mechanical drag when you lift off the accelerator, rolling on for seemingly impossible distances on flat roads
Simon Davis
Road tester

The ID 3, amazingly, with 26,987 sales. That the third spot was occupied by the Tesla Model 3 tells you something about just how rapidly the landscape is evolving. The difference is that while Tesla has but four established products in its line-up with only one left-field project on the horizon (the Cybertruck), for VW the ID 3 merely marks the vanguard of an industry- leading electric car offensive.

Right now, the headline is 70 new fully electric models by 2028. And already VW is making good on those promises, to the extent that its old target of 35% BEV sales in Europe by 2030 has recently been doubled. Alongside the ID 3, we already have the Volkswagen ID 4 crossover, and its coupé-shaped Volkswagen ID 5 sibling will arrive before the year is out. Appealing concepts such as the Volkswagen ID Buzz and ID Vizzion also demonstrate that this sub-brand is versatile enough to unfurl itself in directions as varied as the minibus and sports coupé segments.

Of course, the catalyst for all this, somewhat poetically, was Dieselgate. The fallout almost crippled the firm and perhaps the only route out to continued commercial success – nay, forgiveness! – was ID. Officially, those initials stand for ‘intelligent design, identity and visionary technology’. We’ll now discover what exactly those words mean outside the prism of slick marketing.

The ID 3 range at a glance

At present, there are three different mechanical specifications for the ID 3. Entry-level ID3 Pure models feature a 45kWh battery. Pro models get an upgrade to a 58kWh (net capacity) battery and a 143bhp motor. ID3 Pro Performance cars use the same battery but gain a more powerful, 201bhp motor. ID3 Pro S models also develop 201bhp but have a bigger, 77kWh battery.

There are six trim levels: Life, Business, Family, Tech, Max and Tour. The first three are available with both Pro and Pro Performance spec. Tech and Max are exclusive to the Pro Performance set-up, while Tour models get the big-range Pro S battery pack and motor configuration.

Verdict

1 VW ID 3 2021 road test review hero front

Model tested:

Rating: 8

Volkswagen ID 3

Good

Strong combination of range, practicality and near-£30k value

Performs well at low speeds and retains plenty of motorway punch

Bad

Notably plain, dry and featureless to drive, even by EV standards

Misses VW’s high standards, in some ways, for material quality

TECHNICAL SPECS

Model tested:

ID 3 Pro Performance Life

Price:

£30,490 after gov't grant

Price as tested:

£30,490 after gov't grant

Electric motor/s:

AC permanent synchronous magnet

Drive battery:

64kWh

Model tested

ID 3 Pro Performance Life

Price

£30,490 after gov't grant

Price as tested

£30,490 after gov't grant

View all specs and rivals

Electric motor/s

AC permanent synchronous magnet

Drive battery

64kWh

Power

201bhp at 5500-6000rpm

Torque

229lb ft

0-62mph

7.3sec

Top speed

99mph

Kerb weight (DIN)

1730kg

Battery size

58kWh usable

Energy efficiency

4.0mpkWh

Range

263 miles

Max. charge rate

100kW

Rivals Kia e-Niro Peugeot e-2008 Nissan Leaf

Power

201bhp at 5500-6000rpm

Torque

229lb ft

0-62mph

7.3sec

Top speed

99mph

Kerb weight (DIN)

1730kg

Battery size

58kWh usable

Energy efficiency

4.0mpkWh

Range

263 miles

Max. charge rate

100kW

Rivals Kia e-Niro Peugeot e-2008 Nissan Leaf

DESIGN & STYLING

2 VW ID 3 2021 road test review hero side

Manufacturers have, by and large, been transitioning into the electric realm cautiously, with modified versions of existing ICE platforms. However, the scale of VW’s ambition led it to invest heavily in bespoke hardware from the outset.

The VW ID 3 sits on the new MEB architecture. Being adjustable for wheelbase and track width, it can be shared widely across the VW Group and will from 2023 begin to underpin Ford’s new generation of electric cars. It’s the second ground-up EV platform in the VW Group, after the J1 introduced for the Porsche Taycan, also now serving the Audi E-tron GT.

Largely sealed, ‘faired-in’ look of front end is different from that of the Tesla Model 3, but is little less awkward. The dimpled, cartoonish grin of the lower intake didn’t endear the car to our test jury as VW might have hoped.
Richard Lane
Deputy road test editor

The claim is that with the packaging elegance an electric powertrain allows, the MEB can offer the interior space you’d expect to find in the class above the ID 3’s official C-segment. Elsewhere, the ability to receive Tesla-style over-the-air software updates is baked in, and the MEB’s aluminium truss-design battery tray can also house three sizes of water-cooled lithium ion packs for the ID 3 – 77kWh for 336 miles of claimed range, 58kWh for 263 miles and, in due course, an entry-level 48kWh for about 200 miles. However, it’s worth noting that even the medium-sized pack weighs 495kg.

The ID 3’s powertrain layout reverses decades of the hatchback status quo and reverts to the rear-engined, rear-driven format favoured by the original Beetle. The drive unit nestled just above and slightly forward of the rear axle is a 16,000rpm permanently excited AC synchronous motor and drives through a single-speed transmission and an open differential, albeit one aided by VW’s brake-based XDS torque vectoring system. Power output depends on the car’s spec: the ID 3 Pro makes 143bhp, while the Pro Performance and 77kWh Pro S have 201bhp.

Whatever the state of tune, the motor can also generate 0.3g in deceleration while feeding recuperated electrical energy back into the battery.

In broader chassis terms, VW claims almost perfect 50:50 weight distribution for the car, and while the standard ID 3 is equipped with passive dampers for suspension (MacPherson struts up front, multi- link at rear, as with the Volkswagen Golf), a Sport Plus package adds fully adaptive dampers and ‘progressive’ steering.

INTERIOR

15 VW ID 3 2021 road test review infotainment

Despite being roomy and very on-trend with its minimalist design and layout, the Volkswagen ID 3’s cabin doesn’t quite live up to the high standards of perceived material quality for which VW has become a byword over the past 25 years.

Surprisingly hard- and plain-feeling plastics are employed on the dashtop and the doors, almost all of which were finished in various shades of grey in our test car. Save for a few flashes of glossy black plastic on the centre console and a bit of fabric upholstery on the doors, the test car’s cabin was not only slightly dull to look at but also relatively uninviting to touch. A handful of optional colour packs are available – one of which introduces a white steering wheel and instrument binnacle, along with some orange panelling – but these still don’t do much to enrich the ID 3’s plain, monotone material palette.

It’s easy to get in and out, and the front half of the cabin is pleasingly airy. Seats don’t adjust every which way and are on the firm side but are comfortable enough.
Simon Davis
Road tester

From a functionality point of view, the ID 3 is considerably more impressive. There’s a real sense of airiness in the front half of the cabin, aided largely by a low-set and entirely clutter-free centre console. There’s no gear selector or manual handbrake lever taking up room here. Instead, it houses a couple of large storage cubbies and cupholders, with plenty of room for phones, wallets, keys and anything else you might care to rid your pockets of. The transmission selector is grafted on to the side of the instrument display, like in a BMW i3.

With a wheelbase longer than that of a Volkswagen Golf and a Kia e-Niro, second-row space is very good, too. Our tape measured typical rear leg room at a very impressive 760mm – 10mm more than you get from the Kia, and only 10mm less than you’ll find in a BMW 3 Series Touring. Head space isn’t quite as abundant, at 940mm, but average-sized adults will be able to get comfortable easily even when sat behind a taller driver.

Boot space is 385 litres with the rear seats up, which puts it on a par with the Golf but behind the Kia, which has a 451-litre load bay. The boot floor is flat, although there’s a fairly sizable loading lip to negotiate.

VW ID 3 infotainment and sat-nav

Even entry-level Life models come with Volkswagen’s 10.0in Discover Pro Navigation infotainment system as standard. Generally, it works well and is graphically rich. It takes practice to learn how best to navigate and operate it, though, and getting familiar is best done with the car parked. Also, the same reservations we had with the Mk8 Golf in terms of usability (lack of control backlighting, lack of shortcut buttons) apply here, too.

You get Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as standard, both of which can be accessed by either USB or Bluetooth connection. You can pair up to two mobile devices to the system wirelessly.

The system will also respond to voice commands, albeit not as consistently as we would like. It will retune the radio well enough when you ask it to, thanks to recognition of ‘natural’ commands. However, asking it to input an address into the nav system was almost impossible in our test car, and depended on just the right order of ‘town/street/number’ input. This needs improving.

ENGINES & PERFORMANCE

There’s nothing exceptional, groundbreaking or even surprising about the way in which the Volkswagen ID 3 stops and goes; but remember that this is a VW. As such, its mission is very much to redefine the ordinary rather than to be extraordinary in itself.

Throttle response is keen but still feels natural enough, and acceleration from low speeds is as smooth as it is immediate. There’s very little mechanical noise to be heard even when you bury the accelerator.

Steering is light and accurate and quickens off-centre, which makes the ID 3 feel nimble in urban use and easy to place. The car accelerates smoothly from low speeds, too.
Richard Lane
Deputy road test editor

Once you reach open road speeds, the gusto with which the car initially accrued pace begins to gradually taper off. It’s all very predictable and, as such, it proves that VW has no ambition to present the electric car driving experience any differently from so many of its rivals.

Examine the finer details of the ID 3’s motive character and you might begin to appreciate it better. For instance, thanks to its rear-engined, rear-wheel-drive layout, it’s far better at getting its power down than some of the front-driven EVs.

Unlike in the Kia e-Niro, and the Hyundai Kona Electric in particular, suddenly stepping on the ID 3’s throttle doesn’t result in a snatch of wheelspin, as the front tyres scrabble for purchase before they’re reined in by electronic governance. And so what results is a more consistent level of straight-line performance and better low-speed drivability than some EVs offer, even when the conditions are less than perfect.

In near freezing temperatures on a drying mile straight, the VW covered 0-60mph in 7.0sec with no traction-related issues whatsoever. That’s 0.2sec quicker than the torquier e-Niro managed on a dry circuit, and only 0.3sec slower than the Hyundai’s time at the height of summer. Roll-on acceleration is perhaps less strong but still good: the car required 6.5sec to accelerate from 30mph to 70mph, compared with 5.8sec for the Kona and 6.2sec for the e-Niro.

However, one area where the ID 3 differs from its Korean EV rivals is the level of configurability afforded by its regenerative braking system. There are only two settings – regular ‘D’ mode and the slightly more forceful ‘B’ setting – and neither really allows for genuine single- pedal driving.

Nevertheless, brake-pedal feel is decent, as is stopping performance. The ID 3 was able to slow from 70mph to a standstill in 46.5m, only fractionally behind the Kia’s 45.3m effort and well ahead of the Hyundai’s 49.9m. In the test conditions, that’s to be applauded.

RIDE & HANDLING

24 VW ID 3 2021 road test review on road front

The VW ID 3 clearly succeeds in making its mechanical make-up work for it in terms of the way it accelerates. On handling, you might expect to unearth a bit more evidence of the car’s rear-engined, rear-wheel-drive layout, but the funny thing is you won’t.

That’s partly a deliberate dynamic tuning decision on VW’s part, which we’ll expand on shortly. But it’s also because, in any EV, the location of the electric motor is much less significant as a ‘major mass’ than that of the battery; and, being carried evenly between the axles, the ID 3’s drive battery actually gave the car a near-perfect 50:50 weight distribution on the Millbrook scales.

The electronic management of the ID 3’s handling is really sophisticated, but it’s also permanent: there’s no dialling back or switching off the ESC. Would it be more fun if you could? I doubt it.
Matt Saunders
Road test editor

This car handles very much like a normal hatchback, then. It may be rear-wheel drive, but it doesn’t really use that to its dynamic advantage, and nor does it seek to. A rear-engined, rear-wheel-drive layout would, in fact, be more likely than anything to introduce handling compromise to a slightly short, high-sided hatchback like the ID 3, but it doesn’t in this case.

The ID 3 has well-rounded and predictable, although slightly anodyne, handling. Despite running on ‘Eco’-labelled tyres, it hangs on gamely enough when you rush it through a series of bends, resisting steady-state understeer quite well and controlling its body neatly on smoother surfaces. There’s a slightly busy feel to the car’s back-road ride that you wouldn’t call severe or bothersome, but it’s just noticeable enough to betray the car’s weight, and the lateral stiffness that its suspension needs to keep tabs on it.

The ID 3 steers lightly but with decent precision, starting low on pace but quickening off-centre for easy urban manoeuvring. It’s a fairly intuitive car to place and retains decent high-speed stability when you need it, but it isn’t particularly engaging for the driver.

VW ID 3 comfort and isolation

Those seeking reassurance from an electric car will be pleased to find plenty of the maturity and refinement that you might expect from VW about the ID 3’s driving experience. The ride is quiet and there’s a dampening sense of isolation to it. Aside from the ever-so-slightly firm edge to out-of-town cross-country progress, which we’ve already described, both wind and road noise are kept low at motorway speeds. Given that some EVs have the economy tyres needed to eke out electric range, and suffer with a noisier ride as a result, that’s good news.

The front seats of our test car were quite small and simple, rather than large or enveloping, but comfortable enough. There is little need, at any rate, for better lateral support in this car than they already afford; their cushion angle supports longer legs well; and although other options for adjustment are missing, the car’s driving position is sound.

VW ID 3 assisted driving notes

The ID 3 offers quite a lot of the latest driver assistance and ‘semi- autonomous’ technology in its richer trim levels. Opt for Tech trim or above and you’ll get VW’s advanced lane-keeping and traffic-jam easing ‘travel assist’ and ‘side assist’ systems as standard, as well as an ‘augmented reality’ head-up display that actually projects navigation tulips and assisted driving information onto the inside surface of the windscreen.

Being a lower trim level, our ID 3 went without, but it did have ‘Car- to-X’ networked safety systems. Like most modern VWs, it also had a lane- keeping system that defaulted to on each time the car was started. VW doesn’t give you a physical button to deactivate it, so this can be trying for those who don’t like such systems.

It’s not the most intrusive system, however. The car’s standard-fit crash avoidance and mitigation systems, meanwhile, weren’t triggered unnecessarily during our testing and can also be deactivated.

MPG & RUNNING COSTS

Those waiting for a breakthrough on usable range before jumping into EV ownership probably won’t jump too hard at the Volkswagen ID 3, but it does represent progress.

Our test car, with the mid- range 58kWh battery, returned real- world touring-test energy economy of 3.4mpkWh so would put a whisker under 200 miles between charges at a UK-typical 60-70mph cruise. If the 77kWh version got within 10% of the same efficiency, you could expect just under 250 miles at motorway speed, rising no doubt to nearer 300 at a slower cruise. Not bad – especially considering the chilly temperatures in which we tested the car.

The ID 3 performs well against the Kia e-Niro and Peugeot e-2008 for forecasted residual values. Very impressive.
Richard Lane
Deputy road test editor

Many car makers are pruning their trim levels but VW seems to have other ideas. The ID 3 range opens in £31,670 Life spec, then progresses through Business, Family, Tech and Max before culminating in the £42,290 Tour, for which you’re still cheekily expected to pay an extra £219 for a 230V charging cable.

In fairness, equipment levels are high across the board – even for the basic ID 3 Life – and you can subtract the government-funded £2500 from those list prices for all sub-£35,000 versions.

The aim is clearly to offer as broad a spread of forms an ID 3 can take as possible, and thus cannily cater to both those considering a sub-£30,000 Nissan Leaf and those who like the look of the entry-level Tesla Model 3 Standard Range Plus, as well as everybody in between. However, the ID 3 seems better value at the foot of the range, where LED headlights, heated seats (and steering wheel), adaptive cruise control and the 10.0in infotainment system are all standard.

All models are capable of CCS rapid charging at 100kW, which is usefully quick if unexceptional in 2021. (Cars with the biggest battery pack charge at up to 125kW.) For home charging, VW offers either its 7.2kW ID Charger Pro or Pod Point’s equivalent.

VERDICT

Verdict

Model tested:

Rating: 8

Volkswagen ID 3

Good

Strong combination of range, practicality and near-£30k value

Performs well at low speeds and retains plenty of motorway punch

Bad

Notably plain, dry and featureless to drive, even by EV standards

Misses VW’s high standards, in some ways, for material quality

Volkswagen has done a really thorough, objectively commendable job on this, its first and all-important ID-brand electric car, which it would be very easy to underestimate.

Compare it with the last EV we tested only a few weeks ago, the Mazda MX-30, and you’ll see exactly how. For the same money as a much shorter-range electric supermini, this is a more usable ‘proper’ four-seater of superior performance and significantly superior operating autonomy. It’s capable of transporting adult passengers in the rear, and of putting more than 200 miles between charges in the right circumstances.

Bland, but with the substance to further the zero-emissions push
Matt Saunders
Road test editor

That may not sound like emphatic progress for the volume-selling hatchback in a wider sense, but for those ready to step into an electric car of just the right size and with just the right usability credentials, the qualities mentioned above ought to give the VW ID 3 deserved consideration before most other £30,000 options. The car’s slightly unlovely cabin quality and its competent but anodyne driving experience may be barriers to its success at higher price points.

Even so, its eerily slick and slightly clinical dynamic flavouring aside, this Volkswagen ought to be a sound base from which to build an electrified future.