Stable, likeable and a dash of secret sauce are the ingredients in Volkswagen’s new design recipe. The latter’s flourish is epitomised by the digital cockpit’s selectable retro display, which mirrors an eighties Mk1 Golf’s instrument panel. Ferrari won’t like it, but it offers more than a hint of the much-trumpeted design of its new Luce EV’s cockpit. The VW’s new letterbox driver’s screen measures 10.25 inches, and makes the outgoing ID.3 and ID.Buzz’s displays look prehistoric.
Other cockpit changes include Peugeot-style fabric on the upper dashboard, and proper buttons on the steering wheel to operate cruise control, infotainment and the displays. The passenger cell remains the same, which means excellent rear legroom, and the boot still stows 385 litres or 1,267 with the rear seats folded. There’s a modest frunk too.
Other Volkswagen EVs coming soon
VW has big plans for the electric car market and the ID.3 Neo is just the start. Here’s what else is coming soon…
VW ID.Polo – on sale now
This small one is the big one: an iconic VW, reborn as an electric supermini. New family look, 279-mile max range, prices from £25,555.
VW ID.Polo GTI – on-sale next year
Expect much of the 2023’s concept’s trad GTI goodness to become reality: 20-inch rims, sporty bodykit, locking front e-differential and a 223bhp e-motor.
VW ID.Cross – on-sale next year
Volkswagen’s electric answer to the T-Cross baby SUV and the Ford Puma Gen-E. Same 52kWh battery as the ID.Polo, but more spacious.
VW ID.3 GTI – September
Bye bye GTX, in comes a proper GTI-branded ID.3 GTI. Expect the usual red flourishes, and 550Nm of torque spinning the rear wheels.
New VW ID.4 – October
VW’s template is clear: take the ID.4 e-SUV, give it the family face, a less wacky interior, LFP batteries. Crown it with a new name: ID.Tiguan.
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