The buzz around Volkswagen’s new transport bus

I told myself I will not own a boring car. The family’s utility needs affected this somewhat, as my wife and I couldn’t find a car to rent with a manual transmission. If I squint, I can pretend our Volkswagen Tiguan is just an oversized GTI.

Then the Volkswagen ID.Buzz appeared on my radar.

The original plan was to consider the car seeking its normal name at the end of our lease, but that was 18 months ago, well before its November 2024 debut. Instead of investing in a new car, we bought a lease on the Tiguan while we waited for this new minivan. The lack of a clear launch date (combined with the post-pandemic shortage of used cars) led us to shop around. Our plan is to enjoy a new car and by the time the lease is up, we’ll have a production-ready ID.Buzz ready to go. But this never materialized.

While I’m not interested in electric cars, I’ve driven a few short distances and decided I could get used to an “autonomous” car as long as it had a range of 350 miles. Plus, the novelty of being the apparent successor to the Volkswagen Type 2 microbus offsets the threat of EV boredom, especially since I’d rather own a van than an SUV – I like the idea of ​​open rear cabin access, captain’s chairs and all .

Last summer, I prepared myself to be overwhelmed when VW announced the launch of the ID.Buzz model, which would cost over £60. And, based on similar EVs from Volkswagen, I know the range won’t be anywhere near 350 miles.

a few days ago, car and driver The first road test of ID.Buzz was released. The article called ID.Buzz the “bee’s knees” (a popular 1920s phrase meaning “rad”), but it also noted that Volkswagen’s highway range was disappointing, and the magazine’s double The motor example (meaning it has 4Motion) is only good for 190 miles. 75 mph range test. VW claims 231. Oh, and did I mention that this midlevel Buzz carries an as-tested price of $72,035?

Yes, I’m out. There’s no way I’m going to spend that kind of money on a vehicle that doesn’t pique my fandom. Now I really wish my wife and I could have easily signed a new lease two summers ago.

Not long ago I suggested to my wife that we have to wait a year before considering buying the ID.Buzz (as long as we like it) because I had a feeling the range would expand and the price drop, but now I have no feeling. Also, while the ID.Buzz may be beautiful, I can’t get over how bland Volkswagen’s cars – especially the ID series – look. They are, like German Toyotas, the antithesis of enthusiast vehicles. Compared to the GTI, it looks better than ever (even though it loses the manual gearbox). Maybe the 2026 Rivian R2 will be more enjoyable?

Or, my wife and I could say, “What the hell!” and find a more exciting vehicle that meets our current needs.

In other words, I was stuck in a boring car.

again.