Join Kristen Lee as she dives into all the intricacies of the new ID Buzz EV. How did Volkswagen do with its first production electric minivan? Did Volkswagen nail the retro design it was aiming to capture? Watch along to find out!
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00:00What is old is new again, and nowhere is that more true than with the all-new, all-electric
00:19Volkswagen ID.
00:21Buzz.
00:22Because hell yes, friends, the microbus is back in a fashion.
00:26So join us on this deep dive as we go around, inside, out, drive, and show you everything
00:30that is good, bad, and in between with Volkswagen's electric bus.
00:43The original microbus is perhaps one of the most iconic vehicles ever made.
00:48As a counterculture icon of the 50s and 60s, it represented a resistance movement that
00:52was against the bigger, more powerful, and more complicated cars coming out of Detroit.
00:58The bus was practical and basic, and soon it found itself the unofficial hippie bus.
01:03Officially, the microbus ended final production in Brazil at the end of 2013, but we've
01:09been waiting for a successor here in the US for way longer than that.
01:13Past microbus concepts included the microbus concept in 2001, the bully concept from 2011
01:18which looked more like a minivan than a microbus, the buddy concept from 2016, and finally the
01:24ID Buzz concept from the 2017 Detroit Auto Show.
01:27But it's the ID Buzz that succeeded where those failed, making the leap from concept
01:32to production.
01:33All right, so in Europe, they get the smaller two-row ID Buzz, but here in the US where
01:38everything is bigger and better, we get the larger three-row.
01:41So there's more room for adventures, more room for activities, more room for everything
01:45you could want.
01:46Also, can you imagine this thing fitting on European roads?
01:48It's just like big.
01:50And that's the thing with the new ID Buzz, it's a lot bigger, so set your expectations
01:54there.
01:55However, this is a very exciting time because no one's really spent time with the US ID
01:59Buzz, at least not in production form.
02:01This is something that you can eventually buy, a version of this.
02:04I have personally only spent time with it in a studio, so it is very cool to be able
02:09to see it here and touch it and crawl around it.
02:11So that's exactly what we're going to do.
02:13And the first thing we're going to talk about is the exterior design.
02:15So starting here in the front, you guys will remember the circle motif of the microbus,
02:20that adorable happy face.
02:22That's not really a thing here anymore.
02:24The headlights are sleek and meaner looking now, that's kind of just the way things have
02:28been trending.
02:29However, you still get your giant Volkswagen emblem, that's obviously going to stay, and
02:34the two-tone paint.
02:35It's optional, but you can get it.
02:37But you remember on the microbus, that paint kind of came down in a point, whereas here
02:41it terminates as a line.
02:43There's another visually different thing, is there is a front grill here, and that is
02:48for battery cooling.
02:49Of course, the old microbus didn't have a front grill because it was rear-engined, so
02:54we'll talk about that in a second.
02:55The Volkswagen has put what looks like windshield wiper fluid, among other things, in here.
02:59I sort of wish it would be a front trunk, it would just add to the whimsiness of the
03:03ID Buzz a little more, but I guess I get why they didn't do it, it's just the packaging
03:08thing.
03:10Now, coming down the side, the original microbus was 169 inches long, the ID Buzz is 192.7,
03:17so it's quite a bit longer, more room for packaging everything in there.
03:21Here on the side are 20-inch aerodynamic wheels that are also retro-looking.
03:26I happen to really like these wheels, and as a fun fact, the 1950 T2 had 16-inch wheels,
03:32so it's much smaller.
03:34Of course, you have sliding doors, which is a van staple, and as well as this sliding
03:38window, which we'll explore later.
03:40You remember all of those nice windows in the original microbus, that's not a thing
03:43here anymore either, but I think this wraparound pane of glass will fulfill that requirement.
03:52And finally, I'd like to draw your attention to these little designs here on the D-pillar.
03:56On the original microbus, there were D-pillar vents to help cool the rear-mounted engine.
04:01However, as there is no engine here, we have these little design accents to kind of tell
04:05people where we came from.
04:07It's like a hark back to the van's heritage, so that's nice.
04:11And finally, coming to the rear, where there is a lot of sheet metal, I'm kind of glad
04:14to see there's not a whole lot of just stuff littering this.
04:19They had the opportunity to really fill this space up with all kinds of logos and emblems
04:24and everything, and they didn't.
04:25They kept it simple.
04:26It was just, here's your taillight, and here's your big logo in case someone coming behind
04:30you needs to know it's a Volkswagen, and here's its name in case you need to know what it's
04:33called.
04:34And lastly, no tailpipe because electric vehicle, and that's it for your rear.
04:39It's nice.
04:40I kind of wish this rear glass would pop out.
04:43Maybe in future versions it will, but for now, you just have your lifting tailgate.
04:48So that's the outside.
04:50Let's go inside because actually the most exciting and fun parts of this thing are within.
05:05Okay.
05:06Hello from the inside of the ID.
05:07Buzz, which is arguably even more fascinating than the outside.
05:10I am so stoked about this thing because it is a masterclass in packaging and cubbies.
05:15And if you've been following my work at all for these years, you'll know that I love good
05:19packaging and cubbies.
05:21So I'm going to show you around.
05:22We're going to start in the front row, and then we're going to move back and then back,
05:24and then I'll show you everything there is to see.
05:26So without further ado, this is your driving position, and it is quite lovely from where
05:34I'm seated.
05:35You get all of this visual real estate and extra windows there so you can see around
05:40the pillars.
05:41I think that's very helpful.
05:42And because the overhangs are so short, you know, that's where the van ends, which theoretically
05:47should mean it's pretty easy to maneuver, but we'll see.
05:50Your driver information cluster is right here.
05:52I know.
05:53Screen, screen, screens.
05:54It is.
05:55It is what it is.
05:56The old one didn't have screens.
05:57This one does.
05:58It's just what it is.
05:59But this is your driver information cluster.
06:01It's pretty basic.
06:02It shows you your speedometer and your battery level, things like that.
06:05And it is fixed to the wheel.
06:07So if you move the wheel, the screen moves too.
06:10Just note that.
06:11Now, this screen right here, this is your main control center.
06:16And despite it being very clear, easy to read, one thing I immediately don't like about this
06:20is there are no physical controls for the climate and no physical volume knob.
06:26So I'll give you an example, right?
06:27So you're listening to the radio and you want to turn it up or down, you got to give
06:32it one of these.
06:35And if you run out of real estate, you got to start at the beginning.
06:38So yeah, it's a dial would have not made this a problem.
06:48Similarly, with the climate, you have these quick functions here that you can turn the
06:51vent and things like that.
06:52And thankfully, these are physical.
06:54But the actual vent speed, you have to do this.
06:57And if you want to get a little more specific, then you can go in here and then you can change
07:02all your stuff that way.
07:04So I don't love this.
07:06It's distracting.
07:07I feel it's just the way things are.
07:09But on to the actual cubbies, we're going to start here with this nice flat floor that
07:15you can put bags, purses, backpacks, whatever you want.
07:19But if you want some extra cup holders, they fold out right here.
07:23And your passenger gets this nice rubber line cubby right here.
07:27So things don't roll around and there's this lip here.
07:30So nothing rolls out.
07:32It's really nice.
07:33And this whole thing just got that nice terracotta white motif.
07:36Really charming.
07:37The center console here, also very fun.
07:40You have this little drawer here if you need to put anything down there.
07:44And the separators can move.
07:47However, if you take it out, this one is a bottle opener.
07:52And this one is a little ice scraper for, you know, when there's inclement weather.
07:57That's kind of fun.
07:58Oh, and down here, I know this isn't news to you guys if you've been watching all of
08:03our ID Buzz stuff, but the brake pedal has that pause button and the accelerator has
08:07the play button.
08:08And it's kind of fun.
08:10Over here, this is definitely a cubby for your smartphone because you have all those
08:15charging ports.
08:17So you can plug in up to two devices and just leave them here.
08:20That's really nice.
08:21And over here, this cubby, perfect for the key.
08:25Now, this is the case with both front doors, but instead of resting your elbow up here,
08:31it might be a little high.
08:32You can rest it over here.
08:33It's a little more comfortable.
08:35And then under here, you have also more rubber line storage, maybe for chapstick or easy
08:43pass, things like that.
08:44And down here, this deeper one for those nice, bigger water bottles that maybe don't
08:48fit in the other cubby.
08:51Oh, and another thing that's cool about the ID Buzz, this is an option, it's like $1,500,
08:58is this big piece of panoramic glass.
09:00It's more than 67 inches, which is like bigger than anything else offered in the entire Volkswagen
09:06Group portfolio.
09:07Very impressive.
09:08And more than that, it changes opacity.
09:11So right now it's completely opaque.
09:13It's only letting in daytime ambience.
09:17But if you go into the car's menus, which I'll show you right here, the car controls,
09:22and you can set the roof as a quick access button there, which I've done.
09:26You hit roof, and then you hit smart glass.
09:29And as you can see, it changes opacity.
09:32So smart glass, right, isn't that cool?
09:36It's not like completely transparent, like our windows are, it would let in way too much
09:40heat and sunlight.
09:43It changes the opacity.
09:44So this one, it's kind of translucent, you can still see that it's sunny out.
09:49But if that becomes too hot, all you have to do is hit this button, and it becomes opaque.
09:53And I've been sitting here, it's hot, I'm not gonna sugarcoat it, but the energy is
09:58not coming from down here.
10:00It's very cool.
10:01I like it a lot.
10:02It's an expensive option, but I think as a party trick, it's pretty neat.
10:06Now, onto the second row.
10:10You can get the ID Buzz with either captain's chairs or this three-row bench, as you can
10:15count.
10:16This is the three-row bench.
10:17Oh, and also, this little visual thing, so cute, they're all over.
10:22So flat floor here, really easy to load stuff if you need just to slide it in.
10:27So we're gonna hop in here.
10:30Powered rear doors, very nice touch.
10:32Also, this is a sliding window.
10:35So instead of going up and down, it goes from side to side, which we'll show you in a little
10:38bit.
10:39I can't do it at this moment because the car is off, but that is a sliding window.
10:43Yeah, so same deal.
10:44You got a nice armrest here, cubby here with power, here's your window control, and here's
10:51your deeper low-down cubby for water bottles and things like that.
10:56It doesn't look like there are other water bottle holders back here.
10:59You have this cubby, but that's not exactly a water bottle holder.
11:03This is the floor to the cubby.
11:05Yeah, if you're in the second row, the door cubby is what you have.
11:09But you have a backseat pouch here, backseat pouch here, and this is the part where I tell
11:18you that something that you saw earlier is not really the case, because if you remember,
11:22the earlier video we did, there was a backseat fold-out desk for the second row on the Concept.
11:29That's not really a thing here.
11:31Very sorry to see it.
11:32Again, it is what it is.
11:34But there's plenty of other good stuff back here for the second row, for example.
11:39There's its own climate, which is nice, so you can control your climate back here.
11:45You got a nice door pull over there, so you can kind of like hoist yourself up.
11:51And also, this seat slides really easily, so you just pull that and it slides back and
11:56forth.
11:57It's super simple.
12:01So if you wanted to get into the third row, it'd be very easy.
12:04All you have to do is pull this, and the whole thing tilts and slides forward, making this
12:09entryway quite accommodating.
12:13That's where that extra wheelbase comes in, so you can access this third row.
12:17So let's get back here, see what it's like.
12:20There's seating for two instead of three, so making this a seven-seater van.
12:25So once back here, this is how much legroom you're working with, which is a lot.
12:31Look at how much this is.
12:32And there was still decent space up there.
12:34And this is nice to see, because I'm sure you've experienced with so many other so-called
12:39three-row vehicles, that third row is so much of an afterthought.
12:44You're not really supposed to put actual adults back here.
12:47And this is not to say I'm winning Olympics in my height, but I think someone easily six-foot
12:52could sit back here and be quite comfortable.
12:55So it is very spacious.
12:57And while you're back here, you have a cubby, another USB port, cubby for miscellaneous
13:04other things, another cubby in here.
13:09One thing I'm missing, though, I wish this had that pop-out glass that so many minivans
13:15had.
13:16You know, you remember that little arm where you could pop this out and it let in a little
13:19air, and you were like, I'm king of this glass.
13:21That's not a thing here.
13:22Kind of sad.
13:23Oh, and then you have this little motif right here, which is adorable.
13:27This car is full of this stuff.
13:28And then down here, there is another cubby hole for another water bottle.
13:34And as you can see, flat floor throughout.
13:39And also, these rests back here, they raise if there's someone here.
13:45And if there's not, and you want visibility back through the back window, drops down too.
13:50Finally, let's go look at that trunk.
13:58All right.
13:59Power door.
14:00There's your trunk.
14:04It's not giant.
14:05It's good enough for, I think, small suitcases, couple bags of groceries.
14:10You get these cute storage pouches here.
14:14However, if you drive minivans regularly, you'll note that the underfloor storage is
14:18missing because that's where the motor is, so they needed to package that space for something
14:22else.
14:23I liked that storage, but this is an electric van.
14:26It makes up for the packaging in other ways.
14:28But if you wanted to fold down these rear seats, all you had to do is pull this.
14:34Folds down just like that.
14:35Flat floor, plenty of room there.
14:39Fold it again.
14:40Give it a push.
14:42There it is.
14:43Let's climb in and see what happens.
14:46If you were to sit down here, I don't think you could recline.
14:52There's not quite enough room to recline.
14:54Once these fold down, this floor stays here.
14:58But if you wanted to put a mattress on it or something, that's definitely doable.
15:04Let's see what it's like to pull it back up.
15:06Let's try it.
15:07You would pull this, hold on to this anchor point, and pull it up.
15:12It's not the most difficult thing in the whole world, but this is where I would argue
15:16having a little motorized thing would be useful.
15:19But yeah, this is the inside of the ID.Buzz.
15:24Now let's go to drive it.
15:31Volkswagen's MEB skateboard layout electric architecture almost seems like it was designed
15:36with a van in mind.
15:38Europe's short wheelbase Buzz gets an 82 kilowatt hour battery.
15:42Our bigger, longer wheelbase one gets a 91 kilowatt hour battery.
15:46The US ID.Buzz will be offered as either a rear drive single motor or an all wheel drive
15:51dual motor, with the former making 282 horsepower and the latter 335.
15:57The Buzz we have here today is the Pro S Plus rear wheel drive, and it has a projected range
16:02of 234 miles.
16:06For something that touts itself as an adventure-ready road tripping van, that's not an incredible
16:10number, but it's also not terrible either.
16:14At launch, the ID.Buzz will be available in three different trims.
16:18The base Pro S will start at $61,545.
16:22It's rear drive only, with a second row bench that means you can seat up to seven passengers.
16:27The mid-tier Pro S Plus will start at $65,045 for the rear drive version and $69,545 for
16:35the all wheel drive version.
16:37The standard features include a head-up display, a 700 watt Harman Kardon sound system, and
16:41dual power sliding rear doors and tailgate.
16:44This is the trim we bet most people will get, as it seems to be the best deal with the most
16:49features.
16:50Finally, there's the first edition, which is the launch-only trim based on the Pro S.
16:56Starting at $67,045 for the rear drive and $71,545 for the all, two-tone paint is standard,
17:04as are roof rail crossbars, the sliding rear doors, parking cameras, and the electrochromic
17:08panoramic glass roof, which by itself is a $1,495 option on lower trims.
17:15You also get first edition badging and special wheels for further differentiation.
17:20Behind the wheel of the ID.Buzz, things are extremely pleasant.
17:25It drives exactly the way it looks, which is in a really friendly way.
17:32The steering, first of all, is nice and accurate, and the turning radius is quite tight for
17:38how big the car is.
17:40So those little maneuvers out of parking lots and down small streets, all that stuff comes
17:46so easily.
17:48And the old microbus didn't have a very powerful engine, so taking off from stoplights might
17:54have been a problem.
17:55That is not the case here with the electric powertrain.
17:57There's instant torque down low.
18:00However, we're not going to win any drag races in this.
18:03We'll see right now.
18:06From a stop, let's see.
18:09Vibes test.
18:10Right, there's good off-the-line pickup, and that's 60.
18:20It's not fast.
18:22That aspect of the microbus remains.
18:26But who cares?
18:27We're getting there in a two-tone blue electric bus.
18:31Who cares how fast we go?
18:33It's so fun.
18:34I love this driving position.
18:36You sit so high up.
18:38It's actually higher up than other minivans in its class.
18:41You can see right over the nose, and these big windows let in so much visibility.
18:46You can see exactly what's going on in front of you.
18:49Rear visibility, that's kind of a different story.
18:52If I wanted to do an over-the-shoulder peak, those headrests are perfectly within my line
18:59of vision.
19:00I can't really see the right lane if I wanted to, so I have to rely on the mirrors.
19:05No big deal.
19:06I just like to look backwards because that's why God gave us Nex.
19:10So there is regenerative braking.
19:12If you start it up, you can find it on the stalk here, which is the transmission selection
19:18lever.
19:19If you toggle up, you can toggle between no regenerative braking, regenerative braking.
19:25D is your normal mode, and then B, you get regenerative braking.
19:29It's not as powerful as in other cars, and as I want it to be.
19:35I like really aggressive regenerative braking, some people don't like it as much.
19:40They find it a little distracting.
19:41To each their own.
19:42It actually rides pretty comfortably, too.
19:45The low center of gravity, thanks to the skateboard chassis design, means that the handling is
19:53pretty good.
19:54Of course, there's lean in the corners.
19:56Nobody expected there not to be, but for something this long and this tall, especially this tall
20:04and this big, it's decent.
20:06You feel like you can take the turns and nothing is going to tip over because the weight is
20:10all underneath, and that's very nice.
20:13Something that tickles me, though, is there's a sport mode.
20:19Let's see what that's about.
20:20To get to sport mode, you have to interact with the touch screen.
20:24It's not just a button on the steering wheel or anything.
20:27We're going to go into car settings, and then we can go into driving mode.
20:33We're in comfort before, there's eco, and then now we can do sport.
20:36Oh, God, everything lights up red.
20:39Let's see how sport feels.
20:41I think the steering gets a little more direct.
20:44I wonder if there's a change in acceleration.
20:47Let's find that out.
20:49We stop here.
20:57I mean, it feels exactly the same.
21:03I don't know.
21:05It feels exactly the same to me, sport mode or not.
21:09Truthfully, if I owned this car, I'd be driving around in eco mode just to conserve as much
21:15battery as possible.
21:17And that's fine because it's a very relaxed driving mode.
21:20This is a very relaxed car.
21:22If you want to drive it aggressively, it'll do it.
21:25It doesn't feel the most happy doing it.
21:28And therefore, you won't be the most happy doing it because that's not what this is about.
21:33You know, it's it's kind of a cruiser, you know, it's a cruiser and it's for seven people.
21:38You don't want to be throwing them around anyway.
21:40So of course, driving this car and the driving experience we just talked about, it's not
21:47a driving experience that truthfully is something that we would headline something with.
21:54But to look for something like that is to misunderstand what the ID Buzz is about.
22:00We don't evaluate minivans in their drag race abilities, and we shouldn't look at it this
22:05way either.
22:07Instead, we have to ask, what does the ID Buzz do that other minivans, the Odyssey,
22:15the Sienna, Carnival, Pacifica, all those guys, what does this do that they don't?
22:21Besides having an electric powertrain, although that is a very standout feature, it's cool
22:25that this has an electric powertrain because those other ones don't offer it.
22:28The best they do is hybrid or plug in hybrid setup.
22:30This is all electric.
22:32But besides that, we just talked about all of the nooks and crannies in here, how usable
22:38it is, how spacious it is.
22:40This skateboard platform that the ID Buzz uses, it frees up so much more usable interior
22:47room for things like storage.
22:50And this is just the beginning.
22:52This is the very first iteration of this vehicle that Volkswagen will offer.
22:56Who is to say that there won't be some camping version, adventure version, surf version,
23:02special editions that they come out with because they do that all the time.
23:05And furthermore, the aftermarket is going to respond to this thing in a crazy way.
23:11I can just see it.
23:13There will be full kitchen builds and house builds and tiny house builds because this
23:19platform is frankly so versatile and this whole architecture is just begging for someone
23:24to come and take it apart and make it something really nice and cool.
23:29That's why this car is different than the other minivans.
23:33The potential for what it can be is so much greater already.
23:38That's what's cool about it.
23:40I mean, already as a driving experience, it's good.
23:43It's fair.
23:44It'll do all the things you want it to do.
23:46It'll merge.
23:47It is a little bit on the slow side, it must be said.
23:48But again, nobody expected the micro bus successor to win drag races.
23:53That is not what this is about.
23:54And honestly, good riddance.
23:57I am getting a little tired of all these new EVs that are touting 1,500, 2,000 horsepower,
24:050 to 60 in 1.8 seconds.
24:08It's like faster than reason can travel.
24:10Like cool.
24:12What else can you do with this new technology?
24:14This, this apparently you can make this.
24:19This is cool.
24:20This is different.
24:22It is enjoyable to drive.
24:23It's cheerful to be in.
24:25I'm enjoying my time.
24:26And I think a lot of people will too.
24:28What the ID Buzz will do for the minivan space, I imagine, is what Rivian has already done
24:34for the pickup truck and SUV space, which is it's making an adventure-focused accessory.
24:40So where people take their Rivians and have all those accessories and Rivian catalog,
24:44the tents, the kitchen sets and things like that, that is straight up going to happen
24:49with this van, like very soon.
24:51So be on the lookout.
24:52They're probably going to come in really fun colors because that's just the vibe here.
24:56I can't wait.
24:57You know, it's time that we use these electric platforms to do something different and offer
25:02people something that they haven't seen before.
25:05It's great.
25:06And you, you know, you rock up to the campsite in this, no emissions, no noise.
25:10If you need to let it run for a little while, if it's a little cold, doesn't fill the campsite
25:16with toxic gases, I think that's a win.
25:22Without a doubt, the ID.Buzz is one of the coolest and most interesting things to come
25:28out of Volkswagen in a really, really, really long time.
25:32It's not exactly a dead ringer for the original microbus, and you shouldn't think about it
25:35that way because what Volkswagen has done here is made an all-electric minivan for the
25:40modern age.
25:41There's no one else that's doing that right now.
25:42I have that on really good authority, by the way, because all the other minivans we have
25:46here for our Car of the Year event, the Kia Carnival, the Chrysler Pacifica, the Toyota
25:51Sienna, Honda Odyssey, none of those is electric.
25:55So in a way, if you think about it, the ID.Buzz is still the counterculture icon that the
26:00original microbus was all those years ago, just in a much, much, much bigger way.
26:06For more about the ID.Buzz, review, specs, information, photos, head on over to MotorTrend.com.
26:11And thank you so much for watching.
26:13I will see you next time.