Volkswagen ID BUZZ on first drive: retro electro

For 20 years now, Volkswagen has revolved around the story of turning its transporter icon into a cash machine.

Now is the time to do it, and the result?

Kenan Cohen

13/09/2022

Tuesday, September 13, 2022, 11:25 a.m. Updated: 11:45 a.m.

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First drive: Volkswagen ID BUZZ (photo: manufacturer, editing: Nir Chen)

With all the aura around it, retro in the automotive industry is a very tricky thing.

It's an industry that embraces heritage, but doesn't really like to "go retro."

Because to tell the truth, retro is mainly reflected in the exterior design.

No one will put old assemblies in a new car, it's not called retro it's called Lada production line.

And since it's just a design and it has to be very specific, it starts to pose quite a challenge to the engineers.

Designers hate it too, designers don't like to design something that already existed, just like a writer wouldn't like to be asked to rewrite someone else's book, or a musician to be asked to compose someone else's song again.

For reference, you can count on one hand retro cases that were both successful and successful, that is - a vehicle that was, became extinct and came back to life.

The Fiat 500, the Mini (which had to grow into a model family to survive), the Beetle to some extent, here and there the Challenger and the Charger and that's more or less.

Because retro, it's a bit like gefilte fish - 70% nostalgia and 30% taste, which also if I may - can be argued about.

And there is one more very big retro catch, but for that you will wait until the end of the article.

Source: Volkswagen Type 2 T1 (photo: Keinan Cohen)

We are in front of Volkswagen's ID BUZZ.

This event has been unfolding since 2001 through four different concepts on the same idea, a series of concepts in the form of electric taxis in 2010, two more concepts of electric commercial vehicles and two more that were actually T1 in an electrified version.

Beauty is a matter of taste, design is a binary matter 1 or 0, yes or no - and ID BUZZ has a lot of it.

I know this because of the amount of attention and curiosity this vehicle attracts and it is enormous.

Passers-by stop, look, shamelessly point, children stand still and are not ready to go, people take pictures as if it were a fight about plastic crown chairs.

Anyway, I suspect that the Swedish policeman stopped us not because I dared to accelerate to the dizzying speed of 40 km/h at the border crossing, but to see the vehicle up close. There is a possibility that it also has to do with someone of my complexion, not very clean-shaven in a commercial vehicle at the checkpoint... but Nonsense, it also happens to me in Israel.

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At its best in two-tone painting (photo: manufacturer's website)

The homage to the transporter is concentrated mainly on the front and that too mainly in two-tone painting, in a solid color it loses a lot of its uniqueness.

On the seam between design and planning is its front camera above the license plate.

It is used by its sophisticated parking system, which "records" a complex parking maneuver and then knows how to reproduce it by itself.

But the rest of the time it's just an electronic component that's right at the critical point where someone might drive backwards and knock it over.

The answer from the Volkswagen people was that indeed, the location is not optimal and in the future the plan is to move it from there, probably to integrate it into the emblem on the front.

The colors are amazing, the appearance is nice, but the operation is still problematic (photo: Keinan Cohen)

The cabin of the BUZZ is a feast for the eyes.

For a second there is something of the minimalist spirit of the T1 (for whom I work, it wasn't "minimalist", it was simply unequipped), and only then do you notice that underneath this clean design are actually the appearance characteristics of the entire family of ID in Volkswagen.

A small and efficient digital dashboard with alternating displays and next to it a large multimedia screen that controls all the other functions in the car.

From the navigation to the air conditioning system, from the audio to the driving modes.

As a product of the current generation of Volkswagen's control systems, it also suffers from some basic shortcomings in operation, such as control using unintuitive touch surfaces that are also not illuminated at night under the multimedia screen and overly sensitive touch buttons on the steering wheel.

The driver's environment in the commercial version is less spectacular and much more useful (photo: Keinan Cohen)

The rest of the driver's environment is stylish and designed, with a lot of play between the bright colors (good luck keeping them like that for a long time with the family), storage compartments (of which we expected to see much more), patents such as a removable central console and an indicator in the form of blue stripes that "run" across the width of the blue flap and signal where to turn according to the navigation system.

At least in the launch versions, it presents a lot of accessories, but the quality of the materials themselves does not receive the high score that the manufacturer's cars are used to picking easily.

This is the place to mention that ID BUZZ also has a commercial sibling.

Identical to it in terms of the mechanical infrastructure, but with a different cabin - less "designed", much more versatile and, in my opinion, much better, with lots of storage spaces that make good use of the football field that stretches between the steering wheel and the windshield.

At dinner I mention this to Mike Krause, the technical director of the BUZZ project and his response was simple "Really? I told them that too!".

In other words,

Want to light a German?

Talk to him about functionality.

Rear row of seats very spacious in every direction (photo: manufacturer's website)

You read that right, the ID BUZZ is not a 7 seater, definitely a card that could have been a serious ace in its serving bid

Pressing a button on the center console or on the rear door opens it electrically to the second row of seats.

The first thing my eyes look for is air conditioning ports, I can't find them the first and second time so I go to find out - there are none.

Well, of course the windows open, I look for the switch and can't find it the first and second time, so I go to find out - there is none.

And to this the Sages said "Houston, we have a problem" because the thought of a vehicle like this, with such window area and the size of a space like his without air conditioning outlets... Volkswagen is aware that this is a problem, the only answer was that a climate control system with rear exits exists Only the long version with 7 seats and a solution that can be and will enter the 2024 model year will have small sliding windows inside the side windows.

Oh yes, you read that right, the ID BUZZ is not a 7-seater, definitely a card that could have been a serious ace in its submission bid, but won't happen in the short version as far as we've been told.

What are you thinking about?

On the possibility of turning it into one with a 3-3 seating arrangement, that is, three seats in the front and three in the back.

What there is here is dizzying space in all directions, entry and exit that is done comfortably and easily, solutions such as pockets of all kinds of sizes on the back of the seat, folding airplane trays, an adjustable backrest and a whole row that moves on a rail, and lots and lots of USB C sockets.

A small dance floor as a trunk - excellent (photo: manufacturer's website)

The story about the row of seats moving on a rail?

This is to allow playing with the volume of the trunk.

Although I don't see why anyone with reasonable uses would need more volume than is found here.

The space that opens up when the trunk door is opened is huge.

Suddenly you realize how smart its construction is as a "cube" with an excellent use of interior space.

The floor can be obtained in several configurations.

From completely flat to a variety of devices that will be offered as an option.

At the launch there was also one BUZZ with a type of conversion to a touring car, where the top part turns into a double bed and the lower level has pull-out drawers for a mobile kitchen.

That's all the magic, the tiny electric motor the size of two and a half pints of beer (Photo: Keinan Cohen)

It's not as intentional as the design elements, but another point of similarity between the T1 and the ID BUZZ lies beneath the surface.

Both have the same drive arrangement - a rear engine that is connected to the rear wheels, but here it is not a boxer 4 cylinder 1.2 liter fed by evaporators and with 36 horses, but an electric motor with 204 hp and 31.6 kg which is between the rear wheels.

Its MEB platform, which it shares with the rest of the ID family at Volkswagen is, as electric platforms are, very flexible in the way it allows the wheels to be arranged in relation to the chassis.

Here they are right at the corners of its 471cm and stretch the wheelbase to 299cm.

And yet, the use of rear-wheel drive, narrower front tires and large wheel arches allowed Volkswagen to give it an outstanding side angle for the front wheels, resulting in a turning radius of only 11 meters.

It doesn't go through the numbers as much as it goes through in the field.

There are some moments where the mind digests that even though we are sitting very high on the road and knowing that it is ultimately a type of transporter - in practice it moves and maneuvers like a regular compact family car.

In addition to the high view of what is happening below us on the road, the large window area and the seating very close to the front wheels, this is a vehicle that really has nothing to hesitate to enter even in crowded places.

Konz-patent that allows the front wheels to reach an excellent side angle (photo: Keinan Cohen)

204 hp on a curb weight of 2,471 kg is not a recipe for spectacular stopper jumps, the ID BUZZ does not have, nor should nor essentially have such.

So 10.2 seconds to 100 is a number that you can definitely live with in peace, what's more, at least where it matters - when leaving the place and at intermediate speeds - the engine responses are fast and the power supply is very pleasant.

Its 77 kWh batteries should at least according to the manufacturer's official power consumption carry it for a distance of 423 km between charges.

The driving conditions at launch which were mostly urban did not allow it to be used even close to giving a real power consumption reading.

But what can be said is that at least here and in these conditions the consumption signaled a good chance of reaching 400 km.

Wheels that are pushed to the ends of the chassis allow a generous interior space (photo: manufacturer's website)

As far as comfort is concerned, the choice to put it on 20 inch rims in the 50 section was a mistake.

They take great photos, that's for sure, but for travel they are simply a mistake.

Small and large disruptions enter the passenger compartment, and these join the initially rigid suspension calibration designed to support the not low weight of the vehicle.

Add to that 235 front and 265 rear tires and you got, at least in this aspect, a true homage to the original T1 of the 1950s - a noisy cabin at intercity speed.

The BUZZ can also be had with an 18-inch rim suitable for human consumption, also in the passenger version, this is the right thing to do.

The cargo version, who said a work vehicle can't be cool? (Photo: Keinan Cohen)

Summary

I had very high expectations for driving the ID BUZZ, however, it's not every day that one gets to witness a shift change in the automotive industry where an iconic car gives way to another car.

In the annals of the Transporter, the closest thing to this was the switch from rear-wheel drive to front-wheel drive in 1990, and now the change is two-fold, both going backwards and going forward.

It is absolutely stunning in its appearance, the passenger compartment is interesting and full of life, the space is excellent, the usability is very high, there is an excellent driving position and outstanding maneuverability.

But on second and third glance, after the enthusiasm of "Hey, it's the electric transporter!"

going down

The reality is a little less sweet.

It has some performance gaps that not only should not be found in a modern car, but that are really not expected to be found in a Volkswagen car, this is the popular manufacturer that has set a benchmark in almost every category it is in.

It's the plastic, the story with the air conditioning system, the comfort of the ride, the noise isolation.

These are puzzle pieces that connect to a picture where it looks like someone rushed to get this product out of the oven and onto the market before they finished polishing all the corners.

Remember the last retro catch I talked about at the beginning of the article?

Maybe this is it.

The belief in the power of the nostalgic effect and the buzz of the BUZZ to pass the first hurdle of market penetration.

The engine and drive went back (photo: manufacturer's website)

The data, as presented to us by Volkswagen - quite supports this concept.

The initial order backlog for ID BUZZ, which encompasses "more than 10,000 tools" according to them, is already full and they are closed for production a year ahead and that is before entering the United States.

Its high price - starting at 65 thousand euros in Germany didn't really deter them.

The ID BUZZ is expected to arrive in Israel in about a year, around the last quarter of 2023, and as far as we were able to find out it will already be in the production series which will include some changes and improvements compared to the one that was presented to us.

On the one hand, it will not be cheap here, if you rely on the price in Germany and if there are no more surprises, it should be around the 400 thousand shekels range.

On the other hand, there is a chance that he will also find here those who will put everything aside and just want to be seen in it - this is also his target audience, people who are not looking for the experience of driving it but the experience of traveling, those graduates of the (modern) Beetle or Mini who should already take the family from place to place.

The generation gap (photo: Kenan Cohen)

On the technical side: Volkswagen ID BUZZ

Engine, drive:

electric, single engine, rear

87.2 kWh

204

31.6

automatic single ratio

471

199

190

299

1,212

10.2 seconds

145 km

423 km

None

Not yet determined

• vehicle

Tags

• Volkswagen

• id

• buzz

• electric car

• electric car