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It will be interesting to see how the ID. Buzz will make a mark for itself in a market where people are obsessed with SUVs
by Sidd Dhimaan, onNews about the Volkswagen ID. Buzz has been ‘buzzing’ ever since it was announced back in 2017. More than five years later, the automaker has finally launched it. It isn’t exactly a best-kept secret as the company kept releasing teasers over the years to make sure we didn’t forget about it. We’ve even spotted it in the wild, if the official teasers weren’t enough. Fast forward to the present day, the ID. Buzz is finally here.
The Volkswagen ID. Buzz is an electric people and cargo mover. Volkswagen is trying to create a niche of sorts, it seems, to come up with a vehicle that offers absolute utility. It will be available as a cargo carrier, as well as a passenger mover. It will be available to pre-order from May and will enter production around the same time.
What’s The 2023 Volkswagen ID. Buzz All About?
The ID. Buzz will be offered in two styles – one is the passenger hauler called the ID. Buzz, and the other a cargo hauler called the ID. Buzz Cargo. As you can see, this boxy microbus isn’t something you’d find on the market easily. The ID. Buzz is highly inspired by the iconic T1 from the 1950s. It comes with a V-shaped front panel between the LED headlights. If some of you “volks” find it a little too plain-Jane, you can opt for the optional two-tone paintwork to make things a little more exciting. What’s interesting about the ID. Buzz is its doors.
It comes with just one sliding door as standard. If you want the other one as well, you’ll need to shell out extra moolah.
The T1’s spiritual successor measures 185.5 inches (4,712 mm) in length, 78.1 inches (1,985 mm) in width, and either 76.2- or 7.3 inches (1,937 mm or 1,938 mm) in height, depending on the iteration you pick. The wheelbase measures 117.6 inches (2,988 mm). Don’t be fooled by this boxy vehicle’s shape; its aerodynamics are comparable to a car. The ID. Buzz boasts a drag coefficient of 0.285 in the passenger model and 0.29 in the Cargo model, both of which are very impressive.
The ID. Buzz Cargo can be had either as two- or a three-seater, with a partition wall behind the seats that divides it from the cargo area. You can opt for a window here as an option. The payload capacity is rated at 1,433 pounds (650 kilos). You get a huge cargo space here, which is its selling point. There’s a massive 137.7 cubic feet (3,900 liters) of cargo space available at your disposal. Stuff luggage, hundreds of small items, or kidnap someone – it’s your call. But, we would advise you against using it as the last option. As Volkswagen notes, the cargo version can take two loaded euro pallets, loaded in transversely.
The ID. Buzz passenger version comes with five seats and 39.6 cubic feet (1,121 liters) of cargo space. Flip down the rear seats and you’ll have 77.9 cubic feet (2,205 liters) of space available.
The largest ID. model is based on the MEB architecture.
It is powered by a single electric motor mounted on the rear axle in both models. The motor puts out 201 horsepower and 229 pound-feet of torque.
The ID. Buzz and the ID. Buzz Cargo will come with an 82 kWh battery pack (77 kWh usable). the company hasn’t mentioned how much range it will offer. It supports up to 170 kW DC fast-charging and features bi-directional charging. As for the other charging options, you can charge the ID. Buzz via an 11 kW wall box or public charging station as well. When plugged into a DC fast-charger, the battery can recuperate from 5- to 80-percent in 30 minutes.
As for the safety features, both the ID. Buzz models come with the ‘Car2X’ local warning system, which draws and makes use of signals from other vehicles and transport infrastructure to spot hazards in real-time. Other features include:
- * Front Assist Emergency Braking
- * Lane Assist
- * Travel Assist
- * Memory Function for automated parking on a previously saved route
The Volkswagen ID. Buzz will enter production in the coming months. Bookings will open in May. It will be arriving in the U.S. and Canada as well, but don’t expect that to happen this year.
