Thanks for watching everyone! Today is Black Friday, you can get the biggest discount of the year and the lowest price on the Soocas NEOS II. Use the code SOOCASNEOSII for an additional 5% off from 11/21 to 12/17. Check out the link to grab yours! bit.ly/3ALr2GN
I miss a commentary to the ultra thin metal sheet reminding to a bag and most importantly: Most VW Buses are used for camping. The best campsites are only to reach via dirt tracks. The harder the track, the better the site. The VW bus was superb for that. The new things (Buzz, T7) dont have the clearence for that task. VW forgot what was the asset of the Bus. A pity.
Jason, you sound more like the journalist Mat Watson than an engineer. Please do it from an engineering point of view rather than a journalist. I don't hear you much complaining about the Tesla? 😉
On the climate controls, I don’t think the setting are a big issue at all. Once you set climate controls in a vehicle you rarely go in and change them. The only setting you adjust on a more frequent basis is temp. When looking at infotainment systems I judge them on the frequency a setting is accessed, once you take that into account it can provide a different perspective.
Thx as always. One suggestion: Pls drop the "10-80%" charging time comment. It doesnt make any sense to compare different sized batteries by their 10-80% charging time. Numerous car tester fall prey to this marketing comparison by the companies. Instead, simply give the average charging speed in that charging window, especially when you had done a real world testing of it anyway already (highly appreciated). Ev database goes one step further providing a "km/hr" charging rate taking into account the consumption as well, making it even more practically relevant. But average charging speed would be great to have next time. Ty!
My friends who view cars as nothing more than appliances were getting excited about this car. As a car guy, that got me excited. Then the price came out and they all forgot about the car.
Definitely don't think this thing is going to be the savior of Volkswagen, but hopefully it can push them back towards their quirky side, which, in my opinion, was a huge part of their overall success.
Their overall success was based on price/performance models where you'd get almost premium quality for affordable prices. Quirkyness has little to do with it. The Golf was never quirky. The New Beetle was and it sold like ass
The whole driving community: Yeah, its a pretty bad idea to use your phone while driving. It takes to much of your attention away from the road. Car manufracturers: Hey! I got a million dollar idea! Lets put ALL the controls for the vehicle into a giant tablet mounted on the center console! People will love it!
Then lock people out of being able to do certain things which will cause them to do dangerous things on the road and cause an accident potentially. We need "new" old cars. Cars that are new in production and build quality like crumple zones, but have zero of the "modern" amenities maybe besides bluetooth.
@@ReDiiKuLuS Amen to that! Give me dedicated buttons that do not change function and prove that a car can function normally without access to the manufacturers servers.
You're talking about the same people that didn't put AUX IN on their cars until iPods had been around for a decade and portable CD players for two decades. And then they were all gone in a few years because no one had iPods anymore.
It's not a thing outside the US. Besides, these crapboxes will be sitting in the dealerships, because they'll be forced to have one by VW, no one buys this crap anyway.
EXACTLY! VW just crushed our testicles buying a Jetta with all the mandatory LoJack and stuff that’s already done and you can’t even decline. We declined EVERYTHING that we could and saved 22% of the dang car price.
It's always about cost. It's cheaper to bundle as many functions as possible into screens, instead of having dedicated buttons. Less parts to manufacture.
It's not about pushing those ideas. Most of the time it's about getting those ideas very soon, so you might be able to force them into the streamlined process that pushes out model after model nowadays. And with the updates the "we can fix it later" mentality comes. Guess what you will never ever in your working livespan get that later they love to talk about. There is always more work for the next model on the table, so you usually don't think of later either.
Almost all current car manufacturers especially EV manufacturers seem to think that "MOAR GIANT TOUCHSCREEN IS GOOD, PHYSICAL BUTTON BAD" and that just flies in the face of the very fundamentals of good, usable and safe UX design. I personally hate the button-less trend of doing every damn operation through the touchscreen. I would rather have physical buttons and knobs and NO screen than a giant Ipad stuck stupidly in the middle of the dashboard and not a button in sight. To me this reduction in physical controls is a clear cost-saving exercise from the manufacturers, started by the ultimate "tech-bro" company Tesla, and now permeating across all car product lines. And ironically the cost savings don't percolate down to us customers, with car prices spirallng semingly out of control in recent years. I always say if a manufacturer such as Audi or Mercedes wants to differentiate itself as "premier" and "luxury" they should do that by means building the controls from premium materials - aluminum, steel, brass etc - finished nicely. A giant touchscreen is NOT the pinnacle of design and coolness. Exhibit A for me on this would be lovely interior design of the upcoming Bugatti Tourbillon. Thankfully the EU has recognized this and mandated physical controls for the most important functionality.
I'm with you! I prefer physical controls for certain functions (wipers, climate control, volume, etc). But, to be fair, companies like Tesla (or is it just Tesla?) have figured out ways to make touch screens much less painful than you'll see from other manufacturers. For example, I really don't mind Tesla's climate control, all via touch screen, because the auto settings are really really good. BUT - the wipers are a disaster, and doing that with the screen is awful (they've updated it now, so you can use steering controls for wipers, but still would be better to have stalk switches).
@@EngineeringExplained 🤝 agreed bro! I hope at least some of the manufacturers finally figure out the now-forgotten ancient art of good UX! For me this is so important that for choosing our next family EV I have narrowed down to the Kia EV6 or Nissan Ariya, which have both some controls physically. Honestly just do the controls in plastic if you must, or aluminum or brass if you are a luxury brand. Don't shove everything on the touchscreen. It is ridiculous that while we should avoid using a phone but it is considered perfectly legal and OK to fiddle around with finicky touchscreen controls instead of simply twisting a knob or flicking a switch!
I agree with you completely! You should check how Chinese do this. I had a pleasure of riding Li Auto L8 and few other Chinese cars recently. L8 impressed me the most, ngl. The car seems a great example of the right mix of physical controls and good UX design for touch screens. All of most important car functions have physical buttons, knobs, etc. For climate control, seat heating and ventilation just touch a big icon on a massive screen and slide, no looking around required, no going through 30 menus and sub-menus, no quitting any app you have open currently. It's really intuitive and doesn't require more attention than in older cars. BTW the L8 weights something like 3 tones as well, but it's a big SUV, with seats for 6, with electric range not much shorter than Buzz AND a range extender on top of that. Overall range is something like 900 km or 550 miles or thereabouts. Quality also seemed good, owner did not complain. I really do wonder why Chinese car manufacturers are so competitive in European market, even after all of the tariffs put on them. I really wonder why /sarcasm, it's pretty obvious why.
@@EngineeringExplained The wiper controls in the older Model 3 with the stalks are fine. Push the button on the stalk to enable them, and then use the left track ball on the steering wheel to adjust wiper speed. It works well and is intuitive. I'm not sure if it's as intuitive in the new stalk-less Model 3s that they're now selling, though.
Despite this touch screen being one of the best? Easy to control sliders, simply climate bar down at the bottom which you can customise yourself, same for most of the system. It reacts fast and has all the EV features you need. It is not as bad as many American reviewers been saying IMO. No I do not drive a VW but I can see that this system is actually one of the better executed ones.
0:21 I really wish they had gone more retro with the styling and gave it circular lights. That seems like a no-brainer to me. It looks like they took the original design and sprinkled in a whole lot of modern bland soullessness. I don't mind that they made it a little more streamlined or added wheel covers to eke out more battery range, but those headlights were iconic.
long term owner here, great review, you pretty much summed it up, I agree with ALL the points - good and bad (except controlling cruise control - you will get use to it).
Yes. The 2024 Id4 has identical controls. If the interface misses the speed, just hit set when you are at your target. The rear button control is annoying long term. Most other complaints are not an issue.
it's like in the indiana jones movie, as you get up from the seat you have to put something of equal weight on the seat and you have to be incredible quick about it. It's a free game.
In real life it’s not an issue and you have the bonus of never actually having to turn the car on or off. You get in, hit the brake and it turns on. You stop and get out and it turns off. After driving this for a few months I more than once exited our holiday rental car with the engine still running.
cars are for the elite today, that is the difference, i never imagined the prices soar to the skies for such basic cars, a colleague bought a 3 year old golf wagon for 30k €, that is just horrible, 20+ for a new vw up which is not car but a tin can, the original twingo which the vw up is replacing now wasnt even close, but the wages? Sure, they got higher but they for sure didnt double in cost, like cars, houses, apartments, groceries, basically everything
I drive a base model Corolla. It was relatively cheap to buy, cheap to maintain, cheap to insure and cheap to feed. Could be that one day affordable cars will make a come back but in the meantime I'll be cruising around in my Corolla saving tons of money and waiting for that day.
I'm so glad you mentioned the window controls. Volkswagen took something that has been simple and intuitive for generations and made it frustrating. Why?
@@whette_fahrtzjust one switch I think Need a switch to toggle between front and rear windows Dummest idea ever. I’m sure it was designed by accountants
This is what Germans do. Make things more complicated than it has to be. I'm a mechanic who owns German vehicles, and this is just the way they do things. They make solutions to problems that don't exist.
This is an excellent review. Giving us what it’s really like to live with and explanation of some of the technicalities. Very professionally giving negatives of the interior features without slamming VW. Hopefully they look at this and realise that everything on a screen/haptic buttons is not the way to go for a task like driving which requires multitasking and concentration. I’m excited to see more reviews from you in the future
They don't care about the US market for this. The base model was designed for cargo purposes in european cities.The cargo version of this fits two euro-pallets inside and can park anywhere you can park a Passat. European delivery and services (electricians, plumbers, ect) firms goddamn love this thing, because it is a great way to move stuff about town. So you see the cargo version all the time, the people mover much less frequently. The Chicken tax means they can't sell that version in the US, so the entire US market became an aftertought they only bother with at very high prices.
I desperately want an electric minivan in the United states, and this thing just doesn't cut it. We ended up buying a honda odyssey earlier this year for our growing family because there just are not any options for an electric minivan here. I wanted this to be the answer, but it isn't. $60k+ for a vehicle with around 200 miles of range is just not competitive in today's market. In addition, we should not be getting half baked software experiences when we're paying this much for a car. In day to day driving the user experience is far more important than the 0-60 time, but it seems like UX designers at automotive manufacturers are either high on paint fumes or are getting overridden by poor quality management. It's frustrating to turn a car down for software when it's relatively easy to fix compared to designing a new vehicle from the ground up.
Really love the picky engineer reviews you put out, pointing at really specific things everyone else completely miss. Very detailed, and helpful considering some of those details could be deal breakers (I know they would be for me). Keep that work ethics, love it!
The controls for modern vehicles have gone off the rails. There was nothing wrong with analog buttons, knobs, and sliders. They were fast, intuitive, one step. These new touch screen apps are a deliberate increase in danger that costs us on the insurance side and when we have to go repair a defective touch screen, it can be in the thousands of dollars instead of less than $100. I weep for drivers.
Sadly, janky software is much cheaper than hardware so manufacturers are probably going to keep pushing "futuristic" touch screens unless there's massive backlash.
I've been a VW fan for basically ever, and it seems like they're going out of their way to make their cars infuriating to operate. The non volume knob, the haptic buttons on the wheel, all of it is madness, but the window button thing is pure insanity. Say you have all 4 windows down, and it starts pouring, you have to do 1 pair at a time???? Then the seat thing turning the car off all the time, would 100% be a deal breaker for me. crazy. I really want to love this thing but VW's current
The software is a PITA At work, we circumvent the seat-detection when stopping by braking then inserting the pax seat belt at the driver's seat Then you can release the brake and get out You can drive it like that, but it's unsafe Or you can put the driver's seatbelt in the pax seat = better but not OK If you get in, don't shift your a$$ but push the brake right away, release pax seatbelt, insert driver's seatbelt the normal way, and off you go ...
You can close/open them all at once. Hold the Rear button for a few seconds until the light starts blinking, and you can control all of the windows. Not the best solution, but unlike having 4 switches, you can do this with one button
Yeah, it's sad story of VW, especially if recalling how good their cars were before dieselgate. In result some legacy still remains, like drivetrain quality, physical comfort, but the innovations that required investment, like EV and infotainment got a severe hit.
Agreed. My base mk7.5 GTI is so good in every way. A useful screen combined with physical buttons for sound and climate control. I'm not buying another VW until the user interface team is collectively fired and replaced...
The video itself stated that it is very good to drive, it has great power (since when exactly count a 7-second 0-60 "slow" for a van?! - just to be clear: the original VW type2 couldn't reach 60mph!), it looks fantastic and has basically the biggest cargo of any EV bar full-size vans. Yeah, it's a bit pricy, but not much more than a Model Y and the size is incomparable. The Model Y is tiny compared to this thing. The range is a non-issue-as long as it can charge relatively quickly, it won't really affect you: you'll stop on a trip every so often anyway. I think anything that can go 250km in any condition on a highway is enough-and this can do it easily.
Looks? They should have made the T1 chassis (exterior design) just a bit bigger and work from there on the EV version. The marketing department at VAG, again, destroyed the original concept of this car...
@@stefan2796 I think they captured the style pretty well. The type 2 was an amazing van, but it's 75 years old now - it's nowhere near the expected comfort or practicality of today's vans. And it was tiny - and some folks feels like the new Buzz is still too small...
I live near a VW distribution center in Poland and they have literally one on a spot in front of the dealership. Never seen one driving. Price puts it against Audis and BMWs while offering quirky looks and not much else.
80,000 views in the first 15 hours! Jason, loved that final shot starting from inside the car and exits out the passenger slider window, the shows the whole car.
In Norway these are incredibly popular when reconfigured as small vans for businesses. I see so many of these in comparison to other EV utility vehicles.
Last time I heard, it's the best selling van in Norway. I've driven one myself, and if I needed a vehicle of that type and size, I would love to own one.
@@marce8760 I dont think its reconfigured, there's a stock cargo version of it. Our buisness is actually going to need a new van to run around our region soon, and the basic cargo version of this is being considered, really cheap to run compared to any diesel van, no oil changes and stuff like that, and probably just big enough.
@Filip-uw9jp I think you're right. Evs in general should be very low maintenance. Personally I have my doubt about vw and would rather choose Hyundai, Kia, Tesla or Byd, Geely, because of better financial outlook and commitment to ev and software updates. And that from a current vw driver...enough said
A lot of the UI problems comes down to the simple fact that they rely on a touch panel for so much of the controls. It sucks with touch panels when driving. You have to look at the screen to see that it is showing the controls you want to access, you might have to switch the screen to another use to get what you want, and you have to look where you touch to see that you hit the right control or a control at all. That lockout of the audio settings when you touch the volume control is because the driver is likely to slide the finger off the control if trying to change volume while driving and looking at the road. So it's better to lock out that button for three seconds rather than having the driver start messing and looking at the screen because suddenly the finger is sliding over other controls than the volume. It even applies to the passenger trying to change the volume. A car moves. It's kind of what it's supposed to do, and that means that it sometimes get a bit bumpy when hitting a pothole or just a bump in the road. If you are sliding your finger over a touch screen at the time chances are you will slide it around a bit over areas you were not planing on touching. So locking the controls immediately near the slider makes sense. So the best thing they could do for usability would be to remove a lot of the controls from the touch screen and have normal buttons and volume controls instead. Now I don't hate touch screens, but they should not be used for thing you regularly fiddle with when driving. I like buttons I can feel with my fingers so I know when I touch them without having to look at a screen that can contain all kinds of things I'm not currently interested in when trying to change the setting of the air condition, radio volume or channel, or a number of other things. Give us back the buttons!
I live in Canada and this thing starts at 80 000$... The AWD with taxes (no discount available since it is considered a luxury vehicle at this price) gets over 100 000$ for a VW minivan? It is ridiculous. Being a car guy I will always have a car with an ICE, but I do want an EV and since I don't like SUVs, I was really hyped for this minivan! But the price, controls and the range are a deal breaker for me... But hey, one day I am sure, a similar vehicle will be offered at a decent price and with real knobs and buttons! Also, great video as always, really like the way you present cars!
@@Mtematiks All new cars seem to be 10-20% more expensive than the previous model. The Civic type R is the same, from 45 to 60+, it's just too expensive. The GR Yaris is another very nice car, 4x4, fast but have no idea about the prices here in Switzerland. Cheers to Bulgaria!
In my 39 year old truck, all functions are available at all times with no gimcrackery, no frustration: Ignition, gearshift, horn, turn signals, hazard flasher, lights, dimmer switch, wipers, HVAC, audio, cruise control, windows, locks, seat adjustment, fuel tank selector, and transfer case shifter... Only the last one is a bit of a reach, but it's still operable without taking your eyes off the road. How far we've come!
Kudos for the word 'gimcrackery' !! I'm an old, running a car about 5k miles/year. The thing I drive is also old, but all its interfaces and buttons still work. I don't particularly love it, but I do trust it ("Panther" chassis Ford). Parts aplenty. It has never spent more'n a half-day in the shop, and that, not often. It gets me 'round, and in turn I try to keep it out of the landfill. I look forward to seeing this vehicle on US roads. But, I won't be driving it.
Too expensive *and* inadequate range? Heavy and huge, too? Plus that short range forces you to deal with the lame reality of non-Tesla charging infrastructure repeatedly if you want to take a trip? I guess it's not surprising that VW has managed to fumble one of the most anticipated car launches of the past 20 years, but damn. And we haven't even gotten into the decision not to bring the SWB version to the US. The whole thing is bewildering. ETA: Every time I actually need to charge on a longer journey, I encounter broken chargers or inaccurate data in the apps of both Electrify America and EVGo. Last weekend it took going to three locations to find an available charger which worked. This is why range is such a huge deal for even experienced EV owners.
Things are changing. Volkswagen will be on Tesla Supercharger network sometime in 2025, so that compliant will go away soon enough. I do agree that I would've liked to see the short wheelbase version come here. I like that one more. That said, this is currently the passenger transport king of personal EVs in the US. Nothing else can seat seven 6'2" adults in sheer comfort.
All hybrids are too complex, intermediate solutions until battery prices come down and your local and regional charging options are in place. In my end of the world (Northern EU), they're obsolete, IMO.
The UX is quirky until you have set up your account and confirmed all contracts. It takes some days until the whole system settles down. Then it runs very smoothly.
the real question is why are people asking for touch screens in cars when they want actual feely buttons to touch so they don't have to look away from driving
Regarding 9:15 yeah the range is super disappointing. I'm pretty seriously considering an electric car for my next vehicle and was really excited with the idea of this car but the combo of poor range and too expensive means this is not a feasible option (even once used) for me.
It's a brick. That would take a 140kW battery. More expensive and super heavy. I don't know who this vehicle is for. It's niche and I don't know who would want a van for mostly local use. Solid range would have made this vehicle a lot more popular.
My 2001 Toyota sienna has about the same space and functionality of this except it has about 400 miles of range. They designed this VW for the European market where range isn't as important.
@mathehack1 i respect your opinion but disagree with "it has low range because it's made for Europe " You don't think Europe families will dislike how often they have to charge and more importantly they will dislike how slowly it charges. If it was a good product made for human use regardless of region, the charge speed would have been competitive imho. Just seems like a typical vw ev. Lacking.
Great review and very informative. Regarding range, if you are someone who does the occasional long distance trip for pleasure the range is fine. Stopping to recharge after 2 hours of driving is perfect and gives you as driver a chance to shake the cobwebs off as well. If you are a regular long distance driver, then it’s probably not the car for you, so don’t complain about range, buy a hybrid or stay with your ICE for now.
I live in Serbia and my neighbout bought this second hand and uses it as both cargo van and family vehicle. Trick is not to drive it over 100km/h, which is about top speed of old VW vans.
@eotikurac Serbia is a small country, outside EU and not many motorways or other roads where speed limit is over 100km/h - most of local traffic is at 60-80km/h. So acceleration at these speeds is very good with this van, and also the range does not seem so low, as you would fill your bladder before you drain your battery. Or, to put simply, there are use cases where this car has practical range and is truly useful, not just pretty.
This vehicle had such potential. The utility portion of it is really good. But low range and a really terrible UX makes for a crappy drive. I just hope VW doesn't stop manufacturing it but rather just refreshes the vehicle. Btw thank you for giving a comprehensive review in a reasonable amount of time!
i think it is a good starting point and in the next version they will fix a lot of the problems. VW sadly is a bit slow regarding the EV tech development, but they will get there. right now in the middle of the transition to EVs, that tech is developing fast and the difference of 3 years is visible. but this tech also converges to a point where improvements are slower and then being 3 years behind does not mean much anymore. and then other core values of a car get more important again.
They certainly won't stop manufacturing it. Midcycle battery/motor improvements will happen. Range is going nowhere but up on same-for-same EVs every few years. This thing is a brick with a high frontal area, range was always going to hurt.
I would be a lot more critical if I were you. I was an engineer at Toyota North America until I voluntarily left for family. LOVED it. I had a newfound respect for what goes into a new platform development and got to participate in it at every level. All I can say is, VW should know better.
Drove the six-seater exact color one today briefly...(72 K plus tax and fees, nearly 80K out the door)... Very comfortable seats.... great visibility....totally cool interior.... really loved it....but the mileage range is a total id Buzz-kill. 190 miles of highway speed range is a real deal breaker....but great vehicle if you live on an island....
it can't handle a 4*8 sheet of plywood, for the suburban minivan buyer, that is a basic function, and without that capability, it's a poor design for the North American market. no matter how good it looks, lacking that ability will let people download immensely.
@@aerialbugsmasher gotta ask if you're being paid by VW to do a social media press, your other comments on this video are pretty much, "guys believe me this van doesn't suck, please..." and as for the average soccer mom, probably not, but the average suburban dad, yeah it's a pretty foundational capability a van needs to have. this was a use case identified by Honda in its 1998 redesign and Toyota in its 2003 redesign, it wasn't even needed in a Hyundai/kia redesign, their launch model for north america could handle it in the lwb version.
@@aerialbugsmasherI’m an EV owner. But just stop with the BS about a family needing to stop for lunch and a charge. I don’t want to stop with kids at most of the on road charging stations. I’ll take my gas car on long trips and refuel at practically any street corner - we’ll stop for food at real restaurants. Not where we’re are forced to stop.
@@saeedhossain6099 Aerial is a typical EV Stalanist who believes everyone must think, drive, live and believe as he does. I’m an EV owner and they are great for local driving and charging at home. I’m just not a liar like most of these EV cultists.
Thank you Thank you. I love your passion on telling it like it is. All these other “reviewers” get the car for a couple hours and give glowing reviews, because they are AFRAID of that manufacturer not allowing them to be first on new vehicles coming out.
"Who is asking for these features?!?" It's insane VW learned nothing from the Golf R haptic control catastrophe. I'm not a minivan or SUV consumer but VW's lack of reasoning on simple, basic functions of a freaking car turns me away hard from anything VW. I do actually want to own a MK6(?) Golf R! Can't see it happening atm. Not the way this show is playing out tho.
Thanks for this Jason. This is by far the best and most thorough review of the ID Buzz I have seen yet. You've covered the things I had questions about including the interior size, seat removal, range etc. A very interesting vehicle but I personally cannot afford the $70,000 price tag (close to $100,000 here in Canada!).
I wish automakers didn't use screens as an excuse to eliminate physical buttons. I look forward to seeing these on the road. Hopefully VW will work out some deficiencies next year.
It looks great, and super functional size. Sounds quick enough, even RWD. I was thinking of getting one, but the interface with touchscreen and poor range means I’d wait for improvements in both areas.
Today this car just wouldn't possibly cost 35k. That's actually what a eurovan cost 20 plus years ago! But at 45 to 55k it would be pretty tempting. I actually think VW doesn't want to sell very many of these at all. They just want it as a halo car. They'll sell very few and make very little money off of them. Another strange decision from the VW group but not exactly the first.
@@EPeltzer I think you're right, or at least at first. They know it doesn't have to be competitive, people will buy it because of what it looks like, and the early adopters are willing to pay because they're the kind who want to be the first ones seen in the new cool thing. After a year or two, if it sells enough, I bet the price will drop a bit and we'll see some refinement. Gotta cash in first.
9:57 “That’s not that fast by today’s standards” I totally disagree. The only car that can do 10-80% in 16 minutes is the Porsche Taycan and that’s a $100k+ vehicle, and cars that do it in 18 minutes like an IONIQ 5 is a physically smaller car and in turn has a considerably smaller battery than the Buzz, so charging 10-80% is putting significantly less energy into the battery than the Buzz does. The EV9, which is this cars competitor and has a somewhat similarly sized battery, and is on the same platform as the IONIQ 5, takes basically the same 26 minutes to go to 10-80%, and ppl praise that car for having fast charging, the Buzz’s charging rate is good and competitive for the segment and battery size it has. Acting like the charging isn’t good because the 10-80% doesn’t compare favorably to a $100k+ Porsche or a car with a battery that is physically smaller by a significant amount instead of comparing it to competitors with similar sized batteries makes no sense at all to me.
@@EngineeringExplained Huh? I’m unsure if I’m understanding you right… If you are comparing 10-80% on cars with different battery sizes I think it’s only fair to consider the difference in battery size if it is significant. Ioniq 5 has an around 74kwh usable battery, 10-80% or 70% is recharging around 51kwh. Buzz is a 86kWh usable battery, 10-80% is recharging 60kwh, the Buzz is recharging about 9 more kwh than the Ioniq 5 in the same 10-80% window, of course it will take longer than the Ioniq, it is putting more energy into the battery.
@@pine111you would need to compare the range that it charges in a given time or the time it takes to charge 100/200 km, so that the efficiency plays a role.
@@денисбаженов-щ1бTime is money, and you can never get that back. The argument of how you spend that time is moot. I loathe waiting for my EV to charge. It’s awful. Range anxiety is real and waiting to charge is real. Anyone who says that isn’t a problem is out of touch.
@@денисбаженов-щ1б Fair point. I own an EV already, but still, I prefer a higher battery capacity. Hence why I purchase a 402 mile epa range EV so I don’t have to worry about when I’m away from home. I will still advise new buyers in the EV market to find something with good range. I have friends with teslas and the battery degradation is awful. Have to charge frequently and delay their life due to it. No thank you.
Just like Toyota/Lexus, weight capacities dictate removing the center seat for AWD. Funny thing is I would much rather just remove the 3rd row and have a massive trunk that can carry 5 passengers in comfort. Rear captain chairs just reduce versatility to me. I wish it were cheaper and charged faster, but it is what it is.
@oerthling yes, but I want it with AWD (no reason with electric not to) and a 2nd row bench. I definitely would remove the 3rd row for until needed if I bought one as I rarely need to carry more than 5 people, but I carry a lot of stuff in my current minivan.
I would argue that it is likely that 2 captains chairs would weigh more than a single bench seat, which, while being bigger, has half as much hardware, if not even less than half.
@jeremyspecce I am sure you are right, but the GVWR is probably the same, so they don't want to give you the 7th seat belt and make you think you can carry 7 people without thinking about the weight. Even though I doubt anyone will really ever put 7 big people together in this for long enough or often enough to ever be an issue
I’ve owned 3 EVs and actually had an EV company car assigned to me when I worked in public relations for a large electric public utility holding company. My local cost at home is 12 cent per kilowatt hours. Newbies to EVs need to do the math as “COST PER MILE” to drive an EV (my current EV can go 4 miles using 1 kilowatt for 12 cents.) Then for “newbies” calculate how far you can go on 12 cents on gasoline in your current gas powered car. I doubt not many gasoline vehicles could “dream” of going 4 miles on 12 cents of gas. Most “newbies” also need to factor in the expense of oil changes, fuel filters and air filter expense. EVs don’t get burdened by those hidden costs. The “downsize” of owning an EV is having to charge away from home at charging stations such as Electrify America, EV Go and others where the cost can be 48 cents per kilowatt hours. Electrify America has a really - REALLY bad track record in regard to chargers that are frequently out of order. Owning an EV for use on road trips requires more planning, but you get used to it quickly. The big plus for me is how easy, quick and simple it is to plug in at home and not mess with wasting time at a gas station. As for me, I’m planning on buying an ID Buzz soon and using it mostly for local driving.
No one should charge a BEV 10 to 80% SoC doing a road trip. As Bjørn Nyland has shown with the Buzz (short wheel base I assume), you can drive a thousand km in 10 hours and 30 minutes, making the Buzz still a solid BEV for longer trips - especially because of the more aggressive low end charging curve. Btw, 1000km took the Buzz the same time as the 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E LR RWD...
The buzz is more for the european market where we have weird people who want to induldge in EV road trips around europe because they have nothing better to do in life, its not a necessity, for getting around town the people that buy these usually also have a small car and the car enthusiasts will also have a gad guzzling monster in their household, its a mere form of showing off like it is for basically anything in europe, very shallow and meant for the people with money, reminds me of a certain scene with business cards
And yes, the short wheel base version that should be all over europe just isnt, teslas and their owners however are everywhere, just waiting for their next road rage, why dont people just buy minivans for roadtrips??
Exactly, RANGE ISNT EVEN CLOSE TO BEING THE WHOLE PICTURE!! The Buzz Bjorn tested had even less range than the American model. People need to stop seeing the range and then throwing a fit while not looking at any other aspects of the vehicle. People will see the ID. Buzz get 230 miles of EPA range and complain about it but see the Mach-E get 300 miles of EPA range and be impressed by it, but in reality the Buzz charges great and the Mach-E charges pretty crap, so the Buzz is a better roadtripper despite it having less range, but people refuse to look at that aspect, they just see the range and throw a fit.
@@pine111Range is important for people who do have regularly scheduled trips. I have business trips, family who don’t live close by and many other use cases for that range. Mach E is a bad example… My model s is a godsend for long distances and I don’t have to think about charging unless I do my annual 380 mile trip. For that, I only stop once. With the buzz, it would be 2 stops or 3. Hell no. I just looked at the buzz in person and was considering buying, but range, and battery degradation is a huge concern. In 3 years that 190 will be around 150 miles. That is absurd. Hell no am I buying this.
@@денисбаженов-щ1б It's not just the problem of range. Vehicles like this usually last decades on the road. A 10y old car of this size is still very much valuable and requested by the market. You know how much this will be worth in 10 years? Zero, because the battery could go out any day, and buying a new one, costs more than the vehicle. I already see this with eBikes, but at least those are relatively cheap. Hell, i have a 20y old car because i don't drive much, walk to work. I could never have a 20y/o electric car, the battery would long be unusable. Mine ICE? 65k kms, still as good as new.
We have a '23 MB EQE350+, and recently took it to Key West, 190 miles from home. When we got there, we were down to 46% from 98% at home. We found the Electrify America station in Key West, and managed to get the car up to 95% in about 35 minutes. Electrify America SUCKS!!! We have a two year free charge pass from Mercedes Benz, but we needed to go to the EA station here in Fort Lauderdale THREE TIMES in order to finally get it to work! We normally charge at home, but wanted to learn how to use EA, and I'm glad we did before launching on a road trip.
Charging beyond 80% on any EV is not an ideal time investment. Also charge at the end of the drive rather than first thing in the morning, even if you can precondition the battery.
@@subbiahpalani Yes. Normally we do 80%/40% with home charging via installed 19KW charger, which adds 10% per hour. But for this long drive, we "topped it up" so that we could be assured to reach Key West and have plenty of reserve.
I was so annoyed by the "NOT one pedal driving" experience that I actually wrote Volkswagen a detailed EMail about it! Lo and behold, I got a call from their car configuration Team in germany, which I explained to that, they must include the option to disable the auto creep below 3mph, if they want to compete and not go down on the elctric market, as this behavior is present in the complete ID line. They told me that they apprechiate the note and will look into this, if they can bring it in a future update! I beg all of you interested in the car: write them an EMail as well, so that they will hear from all corners that they could make a lot of people happy, with just a small software change! The car can already do it, but will only do it when cruise control is active.
i work in a industrial area and several companies have and are getting more of these and is a very popular choice. the downsides of things like range and navigation just doesn't exist. having a roomy seat for 7 big industrial blokes while being a electrical car means you are swapping 2 maybe even 3 electrical cars to haul these people around. you make a good point about the KIA EV9 but leg space is king for this application. but more than that the discounts companies are getting the buzz here since they are already buying transporters from VW for short range goods transport makes it a cheaper offer than a EV9 as well. but outside that niche situation i never see them it is just a bunch of kia EV9 instead that private people are getting. have a co-worker with a large family he was talking a lot about wanting a buzz still ended up with a EV9 just too expensive for what you are getting as you said. overall i feel like people really want to buy the car but it just priced slight too high for people to ignore that it is a bad deal for them.
Really appreciate the graphs you put together. I find it cool collecting data and have a visual representation of the data. Wish they created this scenario when in highschool learning about graphs/slopes/X=Y+Z etc. It would’ve help have a better understanding on how to use this information in a real life scenario. Thank you!
I was really excited about this vehicle, I really want an electric minivan, but this one has lots of compromises compared to the best ICE minivans. Would love to see an electric Kia Carnival on the E-GMP platform.
What's worse is that they seem convinced this vehicle is going to save the company. They're doomed if they can't even see that a well-styled but overpriced electric minivan with terrible range has basically zero mass appeal.
We were super excited about this car for our growing family and we were planning on it being our first EV. I was even willing to overlook the price and range issues just cause of the cool factor…but the roll out has been fumbled sooo badly we’re now considering getting something else and coming back to this car in a couple years when, I hope, there’s a longer range version. Our local dealers are getting a handful at a time and most are charging sizable markups on an already expensive car. I don’t have the patience and money for that crap.
Except the rivian has annoyances too which is so funny. Lift your rear off the seat and shifts into park while trying look out the side window backing up or the tow truck driver trying to flat bed it. A screen volume slider and other controls that's tough to modulate on bumpy roads. And of course massive vampire drain of 4 miles per day. It's better software and can get updates but it's not ideal compared to ice cars where things work right.
Thank you for an honest review. I have seen a handful of reviews by people in Europe and none of them mentioned the on/off switch embedded in the seat, or the range for price issue, which are both really problematic for this van and the brand reputation.
100% brutal honesty in this review. When I first saw this a few years ago I really really really wanted one. It looks like, in the time since, VW basically didn't do/hasn't done anything with it except maybe drag it to a few motor shows. It also seems to reveal something else about VW - they got left behind by the speed of development of EVs in Asian markets. I still love the styling but sadly that's about all it has going for it.
I live in the US. I’m used to imperial measurements. If I watch a European video and they use metric units and I don’t know what it means, I look it up. It would NEVER occur to me to tell the video creator that they should cater to my preference.
THANK YOU! I hate when youtubers don't use the metric system. I'm even American and I switched over to using metric for most things (aside from cooking). Why use a measurement system that relatively few people actually use? Especially an engineering channel.
@@garyandtricia1 Most of the planet loves kgs, so why in the world is the U.S. so backwards? They are using the kings old system, it makes no sense whatsoever.
@@ientwistle1 If only there was some sort of device, let's call it a Smart Device, that would allow you to convert units of measurement to whatever YOUR country uses. Boy, wouldn't that just be handy?
Whenever I watch modern car UI it makes me want to go full crazy uncle and build a mad max car with super boring specs but controls that work and are easy and make sense
You talked about an average EV for 26 mins and I was surprised when the video was over. It Really felt like I was watching for a lot less time. been watching for years but your hosting voodoo magic is top tier.
More like I paid a ton and I'm not going far from my Mc mansion. Taking the kids to school, grocery shopping, going to my country club. Charging at home yes. Sitting in a deserted charging station no.
Original anticipated msrp under $40k, now you’re looking at minimum $60k, before any options (NOT eligible for $7500 federal tax credit). Range is quite disappointing as well.
Why can't designers get through their thick heads that a DEDICATED nob for a/c and radio is the very best way to adjust them. Easy and fast. If I want to play around with a screen I can do it at home or the back seat. Is it really that difficult?
I enjoyed this review! I think you could have mentioned that most of those interface issues you raised could be updated in the future, like you did in the Cybertruck review I believe!
I enjoyed this review a lot, especially the doggo's participation; how does this compare to the Canoo vans (in case those are still available in the US)?
190 range!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!???? and you THINK it could have been better?????? horrible. nobody will buy one and most hippies don't have this cash these days.
While I'll never buy a VW due to diesel gate, or a Tesla due to racist narcissist, I hope another company takes a lot of these ideas and makes something great. I'm happy with my old Chevy Bolt so I'm excited where EVs are going.
Somebody, somewhere, is going to buy one of these and do a "hippie flower-power" 1960s paint job. And it's going to get LOTS of media coverage. I can't wait to see the art people will put on the updated microbus.
7 seconds in a minivan is absolutely fine. accelerating a brick that fast wow. My 2008 Prius with 110 hp does about 10.2 and weights half that at just under 3,000lbs. 18:36 my Prius locks you out of most settings when above 4 mph.(It doesn't even show the message from a radio broadcast, it will say "No message displayed for your safety").
If you don’t need as much space and a third row of seats, and have a limited budget, you can get nearly 300 miles range in a Hyundai Kona EV for just $38k and have enough left over for a second car. We’ve had our Kona EV for 6 months now and absolutely love it! And the home charging cord came free!🙌
The screen lockout function qualifies as one of the things that make me feel like this is not reality but a weird dream. They have correctly identified the problem with having the driver fiddling with the screen while driving, but then choose that to be the solution. At this point, the screen is the customer and the driver is an appliance.
The lock-outs in interfaces drive me nuts. On the road, I have no problem with having my passenger make changes, but there are a lot of functions in many of these systems that lock you out if the car's in motion. The assumption is that the driver is doing it. But they can't do anything to lock drivers out of their cell phones or other devices. I got rear ended a while back by a guy texting. And almost sideswiped by a guy reading a newspaper spread across his steering wheel. And I saw a teen playing with a smart watch nearly drive off the road recently. We'll just continue to be annoyed by these kinds of interface decisions by companies not wanting to be part of liability lawsuits, while idiots continue to drive while finding other ways to distract themselves.
Thanks for watching everyone! Today is Black Friday, you can get the biggest discount of the year and the lowest price on the Soocas NEOS II. Use the code SOOCASNEOSII for an additional 5% off from 11/21 to 12/17. Check out the link to grab yours! bit.ly/3ALr2GN
Over looked, nice!
I miss a commentary to the ultra thin metal sheet reminding to a bag and most importantly: Most VW Buses are used for camping. The best campsites are only to reach via dirt tracks. The harder the track, the better the site. The VW bus was superb for that. The new things (Buzz, T7) dont have the clearence for that task. VW forgot what was the asset of the Bus. A pity.
Jason, you sound more like the journalist Mat Watson than an engineer. Please do it from an engineering point of view rather than a journalist. I don't hear you much complaining about the Tesla? 😉
On the climate controls, I don’t think the setting are a big issue at all. Once you set climate controls in a vehicle you rarely go in and change them. The only setting you adjust on a more frequent basis is temp. When looking at infotainment systems I judge them on the frequency a setting is accessed, once you take that into account it can provide a different perspective.
Thx as always. One suggestion: Pls drop the "10-80%" charging time comment. It doesnt make any sense to compare different sized batteries by their 10-80% charging time. Numerous car tester fall prey to this marketing comparison by the companies. Instead, simply give the average charging speed in that charging window, especially when you had done a real world testing of it anyway already (highly appreciated).
Ev database goes one step further providing a "km/hr" charging rate taking into account the consumption as well, making it even more practically relevant. But average charging speed would be great to have next time. Ty!
My friends who view cars as nothing more than appliances were getting excited about this car. As a car guy, that got me excited. Then the price came out and they all forgot about the car.
Haha, what a shame! It looks awesome. Interior's awesome. Drives awesome. Price isn't awesome.
So true😂
@@KarmaCorner A lot of EV's drop like that.
I don't know for an full-size SUV style vehicle it's hard to find one for less than $60,000.
@@davidhumeston5292 In Canada, the ID Buzz base model is $33k more than a Toyota Sienna.
"Aerodynamic covers". I love how we have come full circle back to hub caps.
Yeah, quite a lot of things are coming back, both in good ways and bad ways.
Is that futuristic, like thermal bandages?
Definitely don't think this thing is going to be the savior of Volkswagen, but hopefully it can push them back towards their quirky side, which, in my opinion, was a huge part of their overall success.
I'm with ya, it's quite different from what's on the market and that's a great thing!
in america that is, more functional vws sell better in europe
@@araylaurence6220functional cars used to sell well here, now it's only giant trucks and SUVs blighting the landscape
@@araylaurence6220 Here in america it seems like VW are all junk after 2 years because electrical issues start to happen. Same with Audi too.
Their overall success was based on price/performance models where you'd get almost premium quality for affordable prices. Quirkyness has little to do with it. The Golf was never quirky. The New Beetle was and it sold like ass
The whole driving community:
Yeah, its a pretty bad idea to use your phone while driving. It takes to much of your attention away from the road.
Car manufracturers:
Hey! I got a million dollar idea! Lets put ALL the controls for the vehicle into a giant tablet mounted on the center console! People will love it!
but because it's dangerous to use a screen we lock you out of the screen while driving so you can't use the functions of the car....
Then lock people out of being able to do certain things which will cause them to do dangerous things on the road and cause an accident potentially. We need "new" old cars. Cars that are new in production and build quality like crumple zones, but have zero of the "modern" amenities maybe besides bluetooth.
@@ReDiiKuLuS Amen to that! Give me dedicated buttons that do not change function and prove that a car can function normally without access to the manufacturers servers.
You're talking about the same people that didn't put AUX IN on their cars until iPods had been around for a decade and portable CD players for two decades. And then they were all gone in a few years because no one had iPods anymore.
Its cheaper for them to implement so it is a they win you lose situation
If you hate the MSRP, you’re going to love the dealer markups!
Or buy a used one for half off.
It's not a thing outside the US. Besides, these crapboxes will be sitting in the dealerships, because they'll be forced to have one by VW, no one buys this crap anyway.
EXACTLY! VW just crushed our testicles buying a Jetta with all the mandatory LoJack and stuff that’s already done and you can’t even decline. We declined EVERYTHING that we could and saved 22% of the dang car price.
The price of these have dropped through the floor in the UK. They just ain't very good
They should make a cheap petrol version. Will sell much better.
Best ID Buzz review on TH-cam! I have watched dozens of these reviews, but I learned more from this one than all the others combined.
I really appreciate that, happy to hear it was helpful!
This is such a good review. I often wonder who the hell pushes these "innovative ideas" that are just frustrating for a normal person..
It's always about cost. It's cheaper to bundle as many functions as possible into screens, instead of having dedicated buttons. Less parts to manufacture.
@@OsaculnenolajO But the price isn't cheap at all...
@@STIGRS Less cost to VW = more profit!
It's not about pushing those ideas. Most of the time it's about getting those ideas very soon, so you might be able to force them into the streamlined process that pushes out model after model nowadays.
And with the updates the "we can fix it later" mentality comes. Guess what you will never ever in your working livespan get that later they love to talk about. There is always more work for the next model on the table, so you usually don't think of later either.
I want to invite to Germany and will understand. There is nothing easy and simple there 😂
Almost all current car manufacturers especially EV manufacturers seem to think that "MOAR GIANT TOUCHSCREEN IS GOOD, PHYSICAL BUTTON BAD" and that just flies in the face of the very fundamentals of good, usable and safe UX design. I personally hate the button-less trend of doing every damn operation through the touchscreen. I would rather have physical buttons and knobs and NO screen than a giant Ipad stuck stupidly in the middle of the dashboard and not a button in sight.
To me this reduction in physical controls is a clear cost-saving exercise from the manufacturers, started by the ultimate "tech-bro" company Tesla, and now permeating across all car product lines. And ironically the cost savings don't percolate down to us customers, with car prices spirallng semingly out of control in recent years. I always say if a manufacturer such as Audi or Mercedes wants to differentiate itself as "premier" and "luxury" they should do that by means building the controls from premium materials - aluminum, steel, brass etc - finished nicely. A giant touchscreen is NOT the pinnacle of design and coolness. Exhibit A for me on this would be lovely interior design of the upcoming Bugatti Tourbillon.
Thankfully the EU has recognized this and mandated physical controls for the most important functionality.
I'm with you! I prefer physical controls for certain functions (wipers, climate control, volume, etc). But, to be fair, companies like Tesla (or is it just Tesla?) have figured out ways to make touch screens much less painful than you'll see from other manufacturers. For example, I really don't mind Tesla's climate control, all via touch screen, because the auto settings are really really good. BUT - the wipers are a disaster, and doing that with the screen is awful (they've updated it now, so you can use steering controls for wipers, but still would be better to have stalk switches).
@@EngineeringExplained 🤝 agreed bro! I hope at least some of the manufacturers finally figure out the now-forgotten ancient art of good UX! For me this is so important that for choosing our next family EV I have narrowed down to the Kia EV6 or Nissan Ariya, which have both some controls physically.
Honestly just do the controls in plastic if you must, or aluminum or brass if you are a luxury brand. Don't shove everything on the touchscreen. It is ridiculous that while we should avoid using a phone but it is considered perfectly legal and OK to fiddle around with finicky touchscreen controls instead of simply twisting a knob or flicking a switch!
I agree with you completely! You should check how Chinese do this. I had a pleasure of riding Li Auto L8 and few other Chinese cars recently. L8 impressed me the most, ngl. The car seems a great example of the right mix of physical controls and good UX design for touch screens. All of most important car functions have physical buttons, knobs, etc. For climate control, seat heating and ventilation just touch a big icon on a massive screen and slide, no looking around required, no going through 30 menus and sub-menus, no quitting any app you have open currently. It's really intuitive and doesn't require more attention than in older cars. BTW the L8 weights something like 3 tones as well, but it's a big SUV, with seats for 6, with electric range not much shorter than Buzz AND a range extender on top of that. Overall range is something like 900 km or 550 miles or thereabouts. Quality also seemed good, owner did not complain. I really do wonder why Chinese car manufacturers are so competitive in European market, even after all of the tariffs put on them. I really wonder why /sarcasm, it's pretty obvious why.
@@EngineeringExplained The wiper controls in the older Model 3 with the stalks are fine. Push the button on the stalk to enable them, and then use the left track ball on the steering wheel to adjust wiper speed. It works well and is intuitive.
I'm not sure if it's as intuitive in the new stalk-less Model 3s that they're now selling, though.
Despite this touch screen being one of the best? Easy to control sliders, simply climate bar down at the bottom which you can customise yourself, same for most of the system. It reacts fast and has all the EV features you need. It is not as bad as many American reviewers been saying IMO. No I do not drive a VW but I can see that this system is actually one of the better executed ones.
0:21 I really wish they had gone more retro with the styling and gave it circular lights. That seems like a no-brainer to me. It looks like they took the original design and sprinkled in a whole lot of modern bland soullessness. I don't mind that they made it a little more streamlined or added wheel covers to eke out more battery range, but those headlights were iconic.
If they made it with round headlights and a sunroof you could open, boy would it be great for a back to the future group Halloween costume.
long term owner here, great review, you pretty much summed it up, I agree with ALL the points - good and bad (except controlling cruise control - you will get use to it).
Yes. The 2024 Id4 has identical controls. If the interface misses the speed, just hit set when you are at your target.
The rear button control is annoying long term. Most other complaints are not an issue.
We are entering the knobs-and-switches-as-a-luxury era.
It always has been
@@shawcobrano it hasn’t. It used to be the only available option.
@@pieflies indeed, touch screen was modern and sleek and compact hi-tech, or expensive for that matter. Now its cheap and normal
Artesian controls.
it's like in the indiana jones movie, as you get up from the seat you have to put something of equal weight on the seat and you have to be incredible quick about it. It's a free game.
A business opportunity: heavy lead-lined seat cushions for VW.
Or just wear the seatbelt. The weight detection thingy is disabled while your seatbelt is buckled.
@@styx85 When you wanna get out of the car or reach for stuff? 😂
@@ReZhorw Yep, then it's annoying.
In real life it’s not an issue and you have the bonus of never actually having to turn the car on or off. You get in, hit the brake and it turns on. You stop and get out and it turns off. After driving this for a few months I more than once exited our holiday rental car with the engine still running.
This is DOA with that price tag. Pretty sad if you asked me because the original bus was for the masses. This is obviously for the elite.
cars are for the elite today, that is the difference, i never imagined the prices soar to the skies for such basic cars, a colleague bought a 3 year old golf wagon for 30k €, that is just horrible, 20+ for a new vw up which is not car but a tin can, the original twingo which the vw up is replacing now wasnt even close, but the wages? Sure, they got higher but they for sure didnt double in cost, like cars, houses, apartments, groceries, basically everything
You got that right, it's a nostagia trip for rich yuppies, a hippy van that real hippies could never afford in a million years.
@@patrickchubey3127 exactly, i can only imagine what kind of people will drive these in europe, because their tesla wasnt special enough
I drive a base model Corolla. It was relatively cheap to buy, cheap to maintain, cheap to insure and cheap to feed. Could be that one day affordable cars will make a come back but in the meantime I'll be cruising around in my Corolla saving tons of money and waiting for that day.
@@patrickchubey3127 What drugs are you on? Real hippies are in their 70s now and most have more money than they know what do do with
I'm so glad you mentioned the window controls. Volkswagen took something that has been simple and intuitive for generations and made it frustrating. Why?
Saved a few bucks on the BOM leaving out two switches.
@@whette_fahrtzjust one switch I think Need a switch to toggle between front and rear windows Dummest idea ever. I’m sure it was designed by accountants
The one thing we have learned is that cutting out unnecessary things to save money works well for manufacturers. Boeing is doing a bang up job!
This is what Germans do. Make things more complicated than it has to be. I'm a mechanic who owns German vehicles, and this is just the way they do things. They make solutions to problems that don't exist.
@@derekborden1390 And Ford now ditched the buttons as well as they use the same platform as VW.
This is an excellent review. Giving us what it’s really like to live with and explanation of some of the technicalities. Very professionally giving negatives of the interior features without slamming VW. Hopefully they look at this and realise that everything on a screen/haptic buttons is not the way to go for a task like driving which requires multitasking and concentration. I’m excited to see more reviews from you in the future
VW must've been buzzed themselves when pricing this car out.
Technology is expensive thanks to Silicone Valley's high expectations...
The California VW dealers we work with can't give away ID4s at $45k which suffers from similar design flaws as this EV.
And they'll still lose $30k per van like they do with all their other EVs. Only Tesla and maybe BYD actually makes profit on their EVs.
They don't care about the US market for this. The base model was designed for cargo purposes in european cities.The cargo version of this fits two euro-pallets inside and can park anywhere you can park a Passat. European delivery and services (electricians, plumbers, ect) firms goddamn love this thing, because it is a great way to move stuff about town.
So you see the cargo version all the time, the people mover much less frequently. The Chicken tax means they can't sell that version in the US, so the entire US market became an aftertought they only bother with at very high prices.
Realistic price I'd actually consider a brick like this would be $18-23K
I desperately want an electric minivan in the United states, and this thing just doesn't cut it. We ended up buying a honda odyssey earlier this year for our growing family because there just are not any options for an electric minivan here. I wanted this to be the answer, but it isn't. $60k+ for a vehicle with around 200 miles of range is just not competitive in today's market. In addition, we should not be getting half baked software experiences when we're paying this much for a car. In day to day driving the user experience is far more important than the 0-60 time, but it seems like UX designers at automotive manufacturers are either high on paint fumes or are getting overridden by poor quality management. It's frustrating to turn a car down for software when it's relatively easy to fix compared to designing a new vehicle from the ground up.
I agree with you; I really do wish there was a better offering for folks in your situation. This could have been it!
Good review, you go into depth and numbers no one else does. Thanks, appreciate your background and thoughtfulness.
Thanks for watching and for the kind words!
Really love the picky engineer reviews you put out, pointing at really specific things everyone else completely miss. Very detailed, and helpful considering some of those details could be deal breakers (I know they would be for me). Keep that work ethics, love it!
The controls for modern vehicles have gone off the rails. There was nothing wrong with analog buttons, knobs, and sliders. They were fast, intuitive, one step. These new touch screen apps are a deliberate increase in danger that costs us on the insurance side and when we have to go repair a defective touch screen, it can be in the thousands of dollars instead of less than $100. I weep for drivers.
Sadly, janky software is much cheaper than hardware so manufacturers are probably going to keep pushing "futuristic" touch screens unless there's massive backlash.
I've been a VW fan for basically ever, and it seems like they're going out of their way to make their cars infuriating to operate. The non volume knob, the haptic buttons on the wheel, all of it is madness, but the window button thing is pure insanity. Say you have all 4 windows down, and it starts pouring, you have to do 1 pair at a time????
Then the seat thing turning the car off all the time, would 100% be a deal breaker for me.
crazy. I really want to love this thing but VW's current
You can open and close all windows with just one knob.
The software is a PITA
At work, we circumvent the seat-detection when stopping by braking then inserting the pax seat belt at the driver's seat
Then you can release the brake and get out
You can drive it like that, but it's unsafe
Or you can put the driver's seatbelt in the pax seat = better but not OK
If you get in, don't shift your a$$ but push the brake right away, release pax seatbelt, insert driver's seatbelt the normal way, and off you go ...
You can close/open them all at once. Hold the Rear button for a few seconds until the light starts blinking, and you can control all of the windows. Not the best solution, but unlike having 4 switches, you can do this with one button
Yeah, it's sad story of VW, especially if recalling how good their cars were before dieselgate. In result some legacy still remains, like drivetrain quality, physical comfort, but the innovations that required investment, like EV and infotainment got a severe hit.
Agreed. My base mk7.5 GTI is so good in every way. A useful screen combined with physical buttons for sound and climate control. I'm not buying another VW until the user interface team is collectively fired and replaced...
Summary
Advantage: Looks and space.
Disadvantage: Everything else.
Advantage: Nothing
Disadvantage: Everything
The video itself stated that it is very good to drive, it has great power (since when exactly count a 7-second 0-60 "slow" for a van?! - just to be clear: the original VW type2 couldn't reach 60mph!), it looks fantastic and has basically the biggest cargo of any EV bar full-size vans.
Yeah, it's a bit pricy, but not much more than a Model Y and the size is incomparable. The Model Y is tiny compared to this thing.
The range is a non-issue-as long as it can charge relatively quickly, it won't really affect you: you'll stop on a trip every so often anyway. I think anything that can go 250km in any condition on a highway is enough-and this can do it easily.
Looks? They should have made the T1 chassis (exterior design) just a bit bigger and work from there on the EV version. The marketing department at VAG, again, destroyed the original concept of this car...
@@stefan2796 I think they captured the style pretty well. The type 2 was an amazing van, but it's 75 years old now - it's nowhere near the expected comfort or practicality of today's vans. And it was tiny - and some folks feels like the new Buzz is still too small...
@@isuller I'm talking about a T1 XL, with modern day comfort and safety features.
I live near a VW distribution center in Poland and they have literally one on a spot in front of the dealership. Never seen one driving. Price puts it against Audis and BMWs while offering quirky looks and not much else.
I live in Sofia, Bulgaria, may be i saw 3 times one of this! The price is mad, seriousy! Not surprased they close factories ;)
Since when does Audi or BMW offer a van?
Range and Software seem to be horrible though!
It is a van, which tries to compete with luxury SUVs. This thing should have a 2.0 TDI and cost HALF in order to sell.
80,000 views in the first 15 hours! Jason, loved that final shot starting from inside the car and exits out the passenger slider window, the shows the whole car.
In Norway these are incredibly popular when reconfigured as small vans for businesses. I see so many of these in comparison to other EV utility vehicles.
Last time I heard, it's the best selling van in Norway. I've driven one myself, and if I needed a vehicle of that type and size, I would love to own one.
Norway is one of the richest countries on the planet, with a microscopic population, selling oil to finance its green crazyness.
Same in The Netherlands. Everytime I see the Buzz it's converted to a Small business van. Easy to see why as it reduces the lease/sale price.
@@marce8760 I dont think its reconfigured, there's a stock cargo version of it. Our buisness is actually going to need a new van to run around our region soon, and the basic cargo version of this is being considered, really cheap to run compared to any diesel van, no oil changes and stuff like that, and probably just big enough.
@Filip-uw9jp I think you're right. Evs in general should be very low maintenance. Personally I have my doubt about vw and would rather choose Hyundai, Kia, Tesla or Byd, Geely, because of better financial outlook and commitment to ev and software updates. And that from a current vw driver...enough said
A lot of the UI problems comes down to the simple fact that they rely on a touch panel for so much of the controls. It sucks with touch panels when driving. You have to look at the screen to see that it is showing the controls you want to access, you might have to switch the screen to another use to get what you want, and you have to look where you touch to see that you hit the right control or a control at all. That lockout of the audio settings when you touch the volume control is because the driver is likely to slide the finger off the control if trying to change volume while driving and looking at the road. So it's better to lock out that button for three seconds rather than having the driver start messing and looking at the screen because suddenly the finger is sliding over other controls than the volume. It even applies to the passenger trying to change the volume. A car moves. It's kind of what it's supposed to do, and that means that it sometimes get a bit bumpy when hitting a pothole or just a bump in the road. If you are sliding your finger over a touch screen at the time chances are you will slide it around a bit over areas you were not planing on touching. So locking the controls immediately near the slider makes sense.
So the best thing they could do for usability would be to remove a lot of the controls from the touch screen and have normal buttons and volume controls instead. Now I don't hate touch screens, but they should not be used for thing you regularly fiddle with when driving. I like buttons I can feel with my fingers so I know when I touch them without having to look at a screen that can contain all kinds of things I'm not currently interested in when trying to change the setting of the air condition, radio volume or channel, or a number of other things. Give us back the buttons!
Yes, bring back simple dials and buttons.
I live in Canada and this thing starts at 80 000$... The AWD with taxes (no discount available since it is considered a luxury vehicle at this price) gets over 100 000$ for a VW minivan? It is ridiculous.
Being a car guy I will always have a car with an ICE, but I do want an EV and since I don't like SUVs, I was really hyped for this minivan! But the price, controls and the range are a deal breaker for me...
But hey, one day I am sure, a similar vehicle will be offered at a decent price and with real knobs and buttons!
Also, great video as always, really like the way you present cars!
VW’s target price was $100k CAD. Execs thought Canadians would say, “bargain!” 😮
$70K for 190 miles range is absurd
In Europe they sell for 100k...nuts.
@@rjung_ch Was kind of liking the new Toyota Yaris Cross - bu regretet imediatly. 42K euro for the top vertion, dor A YARIS ! I live in Bulgaria
@@Mtematiks All new cars seem to be 10-20% more expensive than the previous model. The Civic type R is the same, from 45 to 60+, it's just too expensive. The GR Yaris is another very nice car, 4x4, fast but have no idea about the prices here in Switzerland. Cheers to Bulgaria!
Specially in 2024 where Chinese companies are launching EVs with 400 mile range!
@@rjung_chnot true. 70k€ in France
23:39 I love the text hiding behind the glass
In my 39 year old truck, all functions are available at all times with no gimcrackery, no frustration: Ignition, gearshift, horn, turn signals, hazard flasher, lights, dimmer switch, wipers, HVAC, audio, cruise control, windows, locks, seat adjustment, fuel tank selector, and transfer case shifter... Only the last one is a bit of a reach, but it's still operable without taking your eyes off the road. How far we've come!
In a vehicle actual physical controls are so much better then screens.
Kudos for the word 'gimcrackery' !!
I'm an old, running a car about 5k miles/year.
The thing I drive is also old, but all its interfaces and buttons still work.
I don't particularly love it, but I do trust it ("Panther" chassis Ford).
Parts aplenty. It has never spent more'n a half-day in the shop,
and that, not often.
It gets me 'round, and in turn I try to keep it out of the landfill.
I look forward to seeing this vehicle on US roads.
But, I won't be driving it.
Too expensive *and* inadequate range? Heavy and huge, too? Plus that short range forces you to deal with the lame reality of non-Tesla charging infrastructure repeatedly if you want to take a trip? I guess it's not surprising that VW has managed to fumble one of the most anticipated car launches of the past 20 years, but damn. And we haven't even gotten into the decision not to bring the SWB version to the US. The whole thing is bewildering.
ETA: Every time I actually need to charge on a longer journey, I encounter broken chargers or inaccurate data in the apps of both Electrify America and EVGo. Last weekend it took going to three locations to find an available charger which worked. This is why range is such a huge deal for even experienced EV owners.
Things are changing. Volkswagen will be on Tesla Supercharger network sometime in 2025, so that compliant will go away soon enough.
I do agree that I would've liked to see the short wheelbase version come here. I like that one more. That said, this is currently the passenger transport king of personal EVs in the US. Nothing else can seat seven 6'2" adults in sheer comfort.
Dr. Diess thought EA was awful. 😢
Great review Jason!
Included all the tests and stats I am looking for in an EV review 🙌
Happy to hear it, thanks for watching!
This thing would’ve been so perfect as a hybrid
Yep. Without question they needed to offer this beyond EV only.
All hybrids are too complex, intermediate solutions until battery prices come down and your local and regional charging options are in place. In my end of the world (Northern EU), they're obsolete, IMO.
These UX issues were why I passed on a ID.4.
My wife and I could not figure out how to do SO MANY things in their ID.4. It looks like they kept the same system for this vehicle.
I've heard they have improved ID.4 UX through over the air updates.
@ well one of the issues was that the mirror controls would not work. Same for the windows. Both were real buttons.
The UX is quirky until you have set up your account and confirmed all contracts. It takes some days until the whole system settles down. Then it runs very smoothly.
the real question is why are people asking for touch screens in cars when they want actual feely buttons to touch so they don't have to look away from
driving
It was not people asking for touch screens. It was Elon's will people have to use it!
It makes it marginally cheaper to manufacture. I'm fairly sure that's why. It's disappointing though.
Bad idea sold as a solution.
@@GS-zc4sk A solution in search of a problem!
As far as I can tell nobody is asking for it. Almost everyone prefers good buttons.
For the price I would demand at least 300 miles of range-nothing less. Great review!
And its not like there isn't battery space under that floor, there is plenty of room.
Agreed,I feel it would've done better as a PHEV.
Agreed,I feel it would've done better as a PHEV.
Agreed,I feel it would've done better as a PHEV.
Regarding 9:15 yeah the range is super disappointing. I'm pretty seriously considering an electric car for my next vehicle and was really excited with the idea of this car but the combo of poor range and too expensive means this is not a feasible option (even once used) for me.
Your Dog needs to be in more videos. Maybe as a measurement unit. :)
Haha, Rozzi, new pup! He's 9 months in this vid.
@ beautiful!
this vehicle needs 300-350 miles of real world range. It's supposed to be a road trip vehicle, this range would make road trips a nightmare
It's a brick. That would take a 140kW battery. More expensive and super heavy.
I don't know who this vehicle is for. It's niche and I don't know who would want a van for mostly local use. Solid range would have made this vehicle a lot more popular.
@amanasd26 especially with kids =X
Even more than that if I was to buy one.
I’d want an ICE version for sure
My 2001 Toyota sienna has about the same space and functionality of this except it has about 400 miles of range. They designed this VW for the European market where range isn't as important.
@mathehack1 i respect your opinion but disagree with "it has low range because it's made for Europe "
You don't think Europe families will dislike how often they have to charge and more importantly they will dislike how slowly it charges.
If it was a good product made for human use regardless of region, the charge speed would have been competitive imho.
Just seems like a typical vw ev. Lacking.
Great review and very informative. Regarding range, if you are someone who does the occasional long distance trip for pleasure the range is fine. Stopping to recharge after 2 hours of driving is perfect and gives you as driver a chance to shake the cobwebs off as well. If you are a regular long distance driver, then it’s probably not the car for you, so don’t complain about range, buy a hybrid or stay with your ICE for now.
I live in Serbia and my neighbout bought this second hand and uses it as both cargo van and family vehicle.
Trick is not to drive it over 100km/h, which is about top speed of old VW vans.
why was writing where you are from relevant to this story?
@eotikurac Serbia is a small country, outside EU and not many motorways or other roads where speed limit is over 100km/h - most of local traffic is at 60-80km/h. So acceleration at these speeds is very good with this van, and also the range does not seem so low, as you would fill your bladder before you drain your battery.
Or, to put simply, there are use cases where this car has practical range and is truly useful, not just pretty.
@@eotikurac Why would it cause you to comment on it?
This vehicle had such potential. The utility portion of it is really good. But low range and a really terrible UX makes for a crappy drive.
I just hope VW doesn't stop manufacturing it but rather just refreshes the vehicle.
Btw thank you for giving a comprehensive review in a reasonable amount of time!
i think it is a good starting point and in the next version they will fix a lot of the problems. VW sadly is a bit slow regarding the EV tech development, but they will get there. right now in the middle of the transition to EVs, that tech is developing fast and the difference of 3 years is visible. but this tech also converges to a point where improvements are slower and then being 3 years behind does not mean much anymore. and then other core values of a car get more important again.
They certainly won't stop manufacturing it. Midcycle battery/motor improvements will happen. Range is going nowhere but up on same-for-same EVs every few years. This thing is a brick with a high frontal area, range was always going to hurt.
No way this will make it. Id be surprised if anyone buys this thing
VW should not stop manufacturing it. What would maje it better is an internal combustion engine and ripping out that UX system.
In uk these are £58,915 to £64,795 second hand 2022 models are asking £3O,239 🫨
50% hit in 2 years
It's still not even worth 30k.
New cars often drop 25% in value as soon as you drive out from the dealer.
I hadn't bothered looking but compared to the T5-T6.1 diesels which hold a premium... Ooph.
Classic EV depreciation.
I don't have a "capacitive touch everything" car right now and I'm already exhausted by that feature. There's no hope.
I would be a lot more critical if I were you. I was an engineer at Toyota North America until I voluntarily left for family. LOVED it. I had a newfound respect for what goes into a new platform development and got to participate in it at every level. All I can say is, VW should know better.
Drove the six-seater exact color one today briefly...(72 K plus tax and fees, nearly 80K out the door)... Very comfortable seats.... great visibility....totally cool interior.... really loved it....but the mileage range is a total id Buzz-kill. 190 miles of highway speed range is a real deal breaker....but great vehicle if you live on an island....
Great design, great looks. However it's insanely expensive, and the range is meh.
@ if it was 1/2 the price it wouldn’t be an issue to me.
it can't handle a 4*8 sheet of plywood, for the suburban minivan buyer, that is a basic function, and without that capability, it's a poor design for the North American market. no matter how good it looks, lacking that ability will let people download immensely.
@@aerialbugsmasher gotta ask if you're being paid by VW to do a social media press, your other comments on this video are pretty much, "guys believe me this van doesn't suck, please..." and as for the average soccer mom, probably not, but the average suburban dad, yeah it's a pretty foundational capability a van needs to have. this was a use case identified by Honda in its 1998 redesign and Toyota in its 2003 redesign, it wasn't even needed in a Hyundai/kia redesign, their launch model for north america could handle it in the lwb version.
@@aerialbugsmasherI’m an EV owner. But just stop with the BS about a family needing to stop for lunch and a charge. I don’t want to stop with kids at most of the on road charging stations. I’ll take my gas car on long trips and refuel at practically any street corner - we’ll stop for food at real restaurants. Not where we’re are forced to stop.
@@saeedhossain6099 Aerial is a typical EV Stalanist who believes everyone must think, drive, live and believe as he does. I’m an EV owner and they are great for local driving and charging at home. I’m just not a liar like most of these EV cultists.
Thank you Thank you.
I love your passion on telling it like it is.
All these other “reviewers” get the car for a couple hours and give glowing reviews, because they are AFRAID of that manufacturer not allowing them to be first on new vehicles coming out.
It’s a great car haha, but it most definitely has flaws
FINALLY a reviewer who gets the tape measure out to confirm the length of the cargo area with all the seats down!
And 4’ inside at the narrowest width, so it would in fact fit 4x8
Great review thank you. I think this review will deter lots of people - which given the design failures is a good thing.
"Who is asking for these features?!?"
It's insane VW learned nothing from the Golf R haptic control catastrophe.
I'm not a minivan or SUV consumer but VW's lack of reasoning on simple, basic functions of a freaking car turns me away hard from anything VW. I do actually want to own a MK6(?) Golf R! Can't see it happening atm. Not the way this show is playing out tho.
I have the impression they have learned, but they are slow and not agile enough to adapt. The ID Buzz is not a new car, it’s just new to America
@@fjt99yep, this car was all planned out long ago.
Thanks for this Jason. This is by far the best and most thorough review of the ID Buzz I have seen yet. You've covered the things I had questions about including the interior size, seat removal, range etc. A very interesting vehicle but I personally cannot afford the $70,000 price tag (close to $100,000 here in Canada!).
Happy to hear it! Interior is huge, but yeah, price leave something to be desired.
I wish automakers didn't use screens as an excuse to eliminate physical buttons. I look forward to seeing these on the road. Hopefully VW will work out some deficiencies next year.
It looks great, and super functional size. Sounds quick enough, even RWD. I was thinking of getting one, but the interface with touchscreen and poor range means I’d wait for improvements in both areas.
Such great feedback. I love thorough reviews like this. Amazing work!
VW had a chance to do something special with this and missed terribly. This would be a good vehicle at $35-40k but not its current price tag.
Today this car just wouldn't possibly cost 35k. That's actually what a eurovan cost 20 plus years ago! But at 45 to 55k it would be pretty tempting. I actually think VW doesn't want to sell very many of these at all. They just want it as a halo car. They'll sell very few and make very little money off of them. Another strange decision from the VW group but not exactly the first.
@@EPeltzerit’s a pretty chintzy car to be passing it off as a Halo vehicle lol
@@EPeltzer I think you're right, or at least at first. They know it doesn't have to be competitive, people will buy it because of what it looks like, and the early adopters are willing to pay because they're the kind who want to be the first ones seen in the new cool thing. After a year or two, if it sells enough, I bet the price will drop a bit and we'll see some refinement. Gotta cash in first.
It's overpriced and overhyped. Total failure for VAG. The ID Cargo does sell a bit better.
9:57 “That’s not that fast by today’s standards” I totally disagree.
The only car that can do 10-80% in 16 minutes is the Porsche Taycan and that’s a $100k+ vehicle, and cars that do it in 18 minutes like an IONIQ 5 is a physically smaller car and in turn has a considerably smaller battery than the Buzz, so charging 10-80% is putting significantly less energy into the battery than the Buzz does.
The EV9, which is this cars competitor and has a somewhat similarly sized battery, and is on the same platform as the IONIQ 5, takes basically the same 26 minutes to go to 10-80%, and ppl praise that car for having fast charging, the Buzz’s charging rate is good and competitive for the segment and battery size it has.
Acting like the charging isn’t good because the 10-80% doesn’t compare favorably to a $100k+ Porsche or a car with a battery that is physically smaller by a significant amount instead of comparing it to competitors with similar sized batteries makes no sense at all to me.
Charging 10-80 is battery size irrelevant, as it’s a percentage and not a kwh amount. Ioniq does it better. 🤷♂️
@@EngineeringExplained Huh? I’m unsure if I’m understanding you right… If you are comparing 10-80% on cars with different battery sizes I think it’s only fair to consider the difference in battery size if it is significant.
Ioniq 5 has an around 74kwh usable battery, 10-80% or 70% is recharging around 51kwh. Buzz is a 86kWh usable battery, 10-80% is recharging 60kwh, the Buzz is recharging about 9 more kwh than the Ioniq 5 in the same 10-80% window, of course it will take longer than the Ioniq, it is putting more energy into the battery.
@@pine111you would need to compare the range that it charges in a given time or the time it takes to charge 100/200 km, so that the efficiency plays a role.
@@денисбаженов-щ1бTime is money, and you can never get that back. The argument of how you spend that time is moot.
I loathe waiting for my EV to charge. It’s awful. Range anxiety is real and waiting to charge is real. Anyone who says that isn’t a problem is out of touch.
@@денисбаженов-щ1б Fair point. I own an EV already, but still, I prefer a higher battery capacity. Hence why I purchase a 402 mile epa range EV so I don’t have to worry about when I’m away from home. I will still advise new buyers in the EV market to find something with good range. I have friends with teslas and the battery degradation is awful. Have to charge frequently and delay their life due to it. No thank you.
Just like Toyota/Lexus, weight capacities dictate removing the center seat for AWD. Funny thing is I would much rather just remove the 3rd row and have a massive trunk that can carry 5 passengers in comfort. Rear captain chairs just reduce versatility to me. I wish it were cheaper and charged faster, but it is what it is.
Yeah I'm with you on the 5-seater plus massive trunk.
Good thing then that it is so easy to remove the back seats.
@oerthling yes, but I want it with AWD (no reason with electric not to) and a 2nd row bench. I definitely would remove the 3rd row for until needed if I bought one as I rarely need to carry more than 5 people, but I carry a lot of stuff in my current minivan.
I would argue that it is likely that 2 captains chairs would weigh more than a single bench seat, which, while being bigger, has half as much hardware, if not even less than half.
@jeremyspecce I am sure you are right, but the GVWR is probably the same, so they don't want to give you the 7th seat belt and make you think you can carry 7 people without thinking about the weight. Even though I doubt anyone will really ever put 7 big people together in this for long enough or often enough to ever be an issue
Thank NHTSA, the lockout for pressing buttons is a legal requirement in US. Try the assistant, it can control climate as well.
I’ve owned 3 EVs and actually had an EV company car assigned to me when I worked in public relations for a large electric public utility holding company. My local cost at home is 12 cent per kilowatt hours. Newbies to EVs need to do the math as “COST PER MILE” to drive an EV (my current EV can go 4 miles using 1 kilowatt for 12 cents.) Then for “newbies” calculate how far you can go on 12 cents on gasoline in your current gas powered car. I doubt not many gasoline vehicles could “dream” of going 4 miles on 12 cents of gas. Most “newbies” also need to factor in the expense of oil changes, fuel filters and air filter expense. EVs don’t get burdened by those hidden costs. The “downsize” of owning an EV is having to charge away from home at charging stations such as Electrify America, EV Go and others where the cost can be 48 cents per kilowatt hours.
Electrify America has a really - REALLY bad track record in regard to chargers that are frequently out of order.
Owning an EV for use on road trips requires more planning, but you get used to it quickly. The big plus for me is how easy, quick and simple it is to plug in at home and not mess with wasting time at a gas station.
As for me, I’m planning on buying an ID Buzz soon and using it mostly for local driving.
No one should charge a BEV 10 to 80% SoC doing a road trip. As Bjørn Nyland has shown with the Buzz (short wheel base I assume), you can drive a thousand km in 10 hours and 30 minutes, making the Buzz still a solid BEV for longer trips - especially because of the more aggressive low end charging curve. Btw, 1000km took the Buzz the same time as the 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E LR RWD...
The buzz is more for the european market where we have weird people who want to induldge in EV road trips around europe because they have nothing better to do in life, its not a necessity, for getting around town the people that buy these usually also have a small car and the car enthusiasts will also have a gad guzzling monster in their household, its a mere form of showing off like it is for basically anything in europe, very shallow and meant for the people with money, reminds me of a certain scene with business cards
And yes, the short wheel base version that should be all over europe just isnt, teslas and their owners however are everywhere, just waiting for their next road rage, why dont people just buy minivans for roadtrips??
Exactly, RANGE ISNT EVEN CLOSE TO BEING THE WHOLE PICTURE!!
The Buzz Bjorn tested had even less range than the American model. People need to stop seeing the range and then throwing a fit while not looking at any other aspects of the vehicle. People will see the ID. Buzz get 230 miles of EPA range and complain about it but see the Mach-E get 300 miles of EPA range and be impressed by it, but in reality the Buzz charges great and the Mach-E charges pretty crap, so the Buzz is a better roadtripper despite it having less range, but people refuse to look at that aspect, they just see the range and throw a fit.
@@pine111Range is important for people who do have regularly scheduled trips. I have business trips, family who don’t live close by and many other use cases for that range. Mach E is a bad example… My model s is a godsend for long distances and I don’t have to think about charging unless I do my annual 380 mile trip. For that, I only stop once. With the buzz, it would be 2 stops or 3. Hell no. I just looked at the buzz in person and was considering buying, but range, and battery degradation is a huge concern. In 3 years that 190 will be around 150 miles. That is absurd. Hell no am I buying this.
@@денисбаженов-щ1б It's not just the problem of range. Vehicles like this usually last decades on the road. A 10y old car of this size is still very much valuable and requested by the market. You know how much this will be worth in 10 years? Zero, because the battery could go out any day, and buying a new one, costs more than the vehicle. I already see this with eBikes, but at least those are relatively cheap. Hell, i have a 20y old car because i don't drive much, walk to work. I could never have a 20y/o electric car, the battery would long be unusable. Mine ICE? 65k kms, still as good as new.
We have a '23 MB EQE350+, and recently took it to Key West, 190 miles from home. When we got there, we were down to 46% from 98% at home. We found the Electrify America station in Key West, and managed to get the car up to 95% in about 35 minutes.
Electrify America SUCKS!!!
We have a two year free charge pass from Mercedes Benz, but we needed to go to the EA station here in Fort Lauderdale THREE TIMES in order to finally get it to work! We normally charge at home, but wanted to learn how to use EA, and I'm glad we did before launching on a road trip.
Charging beyond 80% on any EV is not an ideal time investment. Also charge at the end of the drive rather than first thing in the morning, even if you can precondition the battery.
@@subbiahpalani Yes. Normally we do 80%/40% with home charging via installed 19KW charger, which adds 10% per hour. But for this long drive, we "topped it up" so that we could be assured to reach Key West and have plenty of reserve.
@@Flies2FLLyou didn’t get his point. He meant you shouldn’t charge to to 95% on EA. And you should totally charged to 100% at home.
I was so annoyed by the "NOT one pedal driving" experience that I actually wrote Volkswagen a detailed EMail about it!
Lo and behold, I got a call from their car configuration Team in germany, which I explained to that, they must include the option to disable the auto creep below 3mph, if they want to compete and not go down on the elctric market, as this behavior is present in the complete ID line.
They told me that they apprechiate the note and will look into this, if they can bring it in a future update!
I beg all of you interested in the car: write them an EMail as well, so that they will hear from all corners that they could make a lot of people happy, with just a small software change!
The car can already do it, but will only do it when cruise control is active.
agree, this is a big issue.
i work in a industrial area and several companies have and are getting more of these and is a very popular choice. the downsides of things like range and navigation just doesn't exist. having a roomy seat for 7 big industrial blokes while being a electrical car means you are swapping 2 maybe even 3 electrical cars to haul these people around.
you make a good point about the KIA EV9 but leg space is king for this application. but more than that the discounts companies are getting the buzz here since they are already buying transporters from VW for short range goods transport makes it a cheaper offer than a EV9 as well.
but outside that niche situation i never see them it is just a bunch of kia EV9 instead that private people are getting. have a co-worker with a large family he was talking a lot about wanting a buzz still ended up with a EV9 just too expensive for what you are getting as you said. overall i feel like people really want to buy the car but it just priced slight too high for people to ignore that it is a bad deal for them.
Really appreciate the graphs you put together. I find it cool collecting data and have a visual representation of the data. Wish they created this scenario when in highschool learning about graphs/slopes/X=Y+Z etc. It would’ve help have a better understanding on how to use this information in a real life scenario. Thank you!
Glad they helped!
I was really excited about this vehicle, I really want an electric minivan, but this one has lots of compromises compared to the best ICE minivans. Would love to see an electric Kia Carnival on the E-GMP platform.
Glass roof is giving me Jurassic Park T-Rex vibes
Don't shine flashlight at it 🔦 !
I just came from Bloomberg’s video about how VW has lost it’s way. After seeing the price tag, I understand where they are coming from.
Yeah, the price is pretty wild. The drive is exceptional! It’s too bad they couldn’t make it more mainstream.
What's worse is that they seem convinced this vehicle is going to save the company. They're doomed if they can't even see that a well-styled but overpriced electric minivan with terrible range has basically zero mass appeal.
Awesome, thoughtful review. Thank you!!
We were super excited about this car for our growing family and we were planning on it being our first EV. I was even willing to overlook the price and range issues just cause of the cool factor…but the roll out has been fumbled sooo badly we’re now considering getting something else and coming back to this car in a couple years when, I hope, there’s a longer range version.
Our local dealers are getting a handful at a time and most are charging sizable markups on an already expensive car. I don’t have the patience and money for that crap.
Hopefully Volkswagen exists just long enough to bring out a 2nd gen of this - with infotainment and powerelectronics from Rivian. Then we are talking.
Now that would be something!
Except the rivian has annoyances too which is so funny. Lift your rear off the seat and shifts into park while trying look out the side window backing up or the tow truck driver trying to flat bed it. A screen volume slider and other controls that's tough to modulate on bumpy roads. And of course massive vampire drain of 4 miles per day. It's better software and can get updates but it's not ideal compared to ice cars where things work right.
@ xD …probably still better and fixable than VW software
I was so jazzed when this concept first broke years but now i just see another of many reasons why germany is failing in a big way.
The headlights should have been round.
Thank you for an honest review. I have seen a handful of reviews by people in Europe and none of them mentioned the on/off switch embedded in the seat, or the range for price issue, which are both really problematic for this van and the brand reputation.
That On/Off switch? It’s a joy BUZZer❤
100% brutal honesty in this review.
When I first saw this a few years ago I really really really wanted one. It looks like, in the time since, VW basically didn't do/hasn't done anything with it except maybe drag it to a few motor shows. It also seems to reveal something else about VW - they got left behind by the speed of development of EVs in Asian markets. I still love the styling but sadly that's about all it has going for it.
Jason, please don't forget that only you understand those freedom units, I would appreciate if you'd put the normal units on the screen.
But if we’re honest, does anyone understand freedom units?
I live in the US. I’m used to imperial measurements. If I watch a European video and they use metric units and I don’t know what it means, I look it up. It would NEVER occur to me to tell the video creator that they should cater to my preference.
THANK YOU! I hate when youtubers don't use the metric system. I'm even American and I switched over to using metric for most things (aside from cooking). Why use a measurement system that relatively few people actually use? Especially an engineering channel.
@@jeremyspecce Its not a preference, its a global standard.
Metric is for people that have to count on their fingers.
I bought one, Pomelo yellow/white, 4Motion, 1st Edition. I’m happy with the price. 🤗
How’s the range treating you? Looking at buying but range is turning me away.
Can you use Tons or KGs instead of lbs please
No
@@garyandtricia1 Most of the planet loves kgs, so why in the world is the U.S. so backwards? They are using the kings old system, it makes no sense whatsoever.
@rjung_ch cope
I second that. Pounds, feet miles etc mean nothing to me. Please include metric conversions.
@@ientwistle1 If only there was some sort of device, let's call it a Smart Device, that would allow you to convert units of measurement to whatever YOUR country uses. Boy, wouldn't that just be handy?
Excellent presentation and review. Wish they were all this good. Great Job!
I have an ID4 which uses the same cruise control button presses, and honestly it's very intuitive once you adjust to it
Important Question: will it fit 4x8 sheets of plywood?
Ai says yes
No. Neither will a F-150😂
@ Honda odyssey fits full sheets.
Whenever I watch modern car UI it makes me want to go full crazy uncle and build a mad max car with super boring specs but controls that work and are easy and make sense
2:30 Bro your titles have shadows
Great review. Helped me make a decision. Hope you review the KIA EV 9.
You talked about an average EV for 26 mins and I was surprised when the video was over. It Really felt like I was watching for a lot less time. been watching for years but your hosting voodoo magic is top tier.
The orignal van screamed liberty
This one scream i paid a ton and can't go too far of a charging station
More like I paid a ton and I'm not going far from my Mc mansion. Taking the kids to school, grocery shopping, going to my country club. Charging at home yes. Sitting in a deserted charging station no.
Needs to be half the price
Why?
Original anticipated msrp under $40k, now you’re looking at minimum $60k, before any options (NOT eligible for $7500 federal tax credit). Range is quite disappointing as well.
Why can't designers get through their thick heads that a DEDICATED nob for a/c and radio is the very best way to adjust them. Easy and fast.
If I want to play around with a screen I can do it at home or the back seat.
Is it really that difficult?
I enjoyed this review! I think you could have mentioned that most of those interface issues you raised could be updated in the future, like you did in the Cybertruck review I believe!
I enjoyed this review a lot, especially the doggo's participation; how does this compare to the Canoo vans (in case those are still available in the US)?
7 seconds to 60 ... 140 mile practical range ... Awful. Really disappointing.
190 range!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!????
and you THINK it could have been better??????
horrible.
nobody will buy one and most hippies don't have this cash these days.
That's the kind of insight you won't find anywhere else, yes, I do think it could be better!
Not to mention its really like 140 if you want to stay in that recommended 10-70%. Just cant imagine why anyone would want this.
While I'll never buy a VW due to diesel gate, or a Tesla due to racist narcissist, I hope another company takes a lot of these ideas and makes something great. I'm happy with my old Chevy Bolt so I'm excited where EVs are going.
Apparently, you’ll nEVer buy a course in logic😂
Somebody, somewhere, is going to buy one of these and do a "hippie flower-power" 1960s paint job. And it's going to get LOTS of media coverage. I can't wait to see the art people will put on the updated microbus.
7 seconds in a minivan is absolutely fine. accelerating a brick that fast wow. My 2008 Prius with 110 hp does about 10.2 and weights half that at just under 3,000lbs. 18:36 my Prius locks you out of most settings when above 4 mph.(It doesn't even show the message from a radio broadcast, it will say "No message displayed for your safety").
If you don’t need as much space and a third row of seats, and have a limited budget, you can get nearly 300 miles range in a Hyundai Kona EV for just $38k and have enough left over for a second car. We’ve had our Kona EV for 6 months now and absolutely love it! And the home charging cord came free!🙌
Your best review, yet.
The screen lockout function qualifies as one of the things that make me feel like this is not reality but a weird dream. They have correctly identified the problem with having the driver fiddling with the screen while driving, but then choose that to be the solution. At this point, the screen is the customer and the driver is an appliance.
The lock-outs in interfaces drive me nuts. On the road, I have no problem with having my passenger make changes, but there are a lot of functions in many of these systems that lock you out if the car's in motion. The assumption is that the driver is doing it. But they can't do anything to lock drivers out of their cell phones or other devices. I got rear ended a while back by a guy texting. And almost sideswiped by a guy reading a newspaper spread across his steering wheel. And I saw a teen playing with a smart watch nearly drive off the road recently. We'll just continue to be annoyed by these kinds of interface decisions by companies not wanting to be part of liability lawsuits, while idiots continue to drive while finding other ways to distract themselves.