Volkswagen ID.3 Review

Practicality and space

The ID.3 is a practical car, which is great for passenger space compared with conventional cars like the Golf, and it's also one of the better family hatches in the class. It's got much better rear passenger space than the MG4 and Peugeot E-308, for instance. Mind you, the battery is stashed under the floor, which means that the floor is higher than you’d expect - a common trait with electric cars. The flipside is that, with no engine to get in the way, the engineers have been able to push the wheels right into the corners of the car, leaving loads of legroom for passengers to stretch out in the front and back. 

The boot is perfectly adequate, too. There's 385 litres of space with the seats raised (a smidge more than a petrol Golf’s boot). Since the 2023 update, the ID.3 has also been offered with a nifty bar that pops out of the rear bumper, so that you can attach a bike carrier that would normally attach to a tow bar. Sadly, the ID.3 isn't rated for towing, so this feature really is just for bike racks. The Kia Niro EV, Hyundai Kona Electric and Jeep Avenger are all rated to tow over 1000kg.

Unlike most of the ID.3’s rivals that have a bright LED that illuminates the port when you open the charge flap, the Volkswagen will leave you in the dark when you’re trying to plug in at night. The light that indicates charging status only comes on when you’ve plugged in.

Interior and design

Interior finish and quality wasn't terribly impressive at launch, but the facelift in 2023 saw a useful improvement on this front and the ID.3 now gets some nice, tactile textiles and it feels solid and durable even if there are some scratchy plastics lower down. The driving position is good, too, with enough adjustment to get comfy even in the lower spec models that do without electric adjustment. You can add electric seat adjustment with adjustable lumbar support and heated seats as a pack, which we'd recommend you do if you're prone to back pain or expect to do a lot of miles, as the lumbar support is particularly useful to keep the aches at bay on a long drive. 

Visibility is very good, too - noticeably better than in most rivals, in fact.

Dashboard 

The ID.3 has a minimalist dash design, with very few switches and buttons as most features are controlled through the central touchscreen. Even the gear selector is on a stalk on the side of the steering wheel column, but you will see the headlight controls on the dash, tucked away behind the wheel. It's a shame that they're such annoying touch-sensitive switches that aren't terribly responsive or intuitive. The same can be said of the touch-sensitive slider controls beneath the screen, which you use for volume and cabin temperature, but they're really easy to hit by accident when you're prodding at the screen. 

Technology and equipment

At the heart of the ID.3’s cabin is an all-new infotainment system that serves as the main control centre for everything. Early versions were far from fault-free and a quick check of owner forums will give you all the grisly details about faults and bugs that buyers endured. 

Thankfully Volkswagen has worked overtime to sort the issues, and a further update in 2023 plus ongoing over-the-air software updates, means that the system is now usefully improved. It does most things well, and although it takes a while to remember where certain functions are it's still a fairly logical layout with decent graphics and screen response times. You also get wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, Bluetooth, voice control even on the Essential Pro model, but the cheapest ID.3 model misses out on in-built 'Discover Pro' nav system with charger search function.

The ID.3 is offered in either Essential or Match trims on both the 58kWh Pro and 77kWh Pro S batteries, but equipment is also more generous if you go for the Pro S, which brings with it electric seat adjustment with lumbar adjustment for the driver, heated front seats and bigger alloy wheels. Essential is, as the name suggests, the more basic version but it still gets LED headlights, adaptive cruise control, ambient lighting in the cabin, front and rear parking sensors. We'd go for Match if you can, as it's less than £1000 more yet adds wireless phone charging, keyless entry, reversing camera, fully adaptive headlights, dual-zone (rather than single-zone) climate control and more. It's a shame that heated seats are part of an expensive pack on the 58kWh models, so that's sure to be a popular addition, while a head-up display and sunroof will be popular extras on both trims. 

Safety   

All ID.3 models come with a full five-star Euro NCAP safety rating. In its crash tests, the independent testing agency awarded the ID.3 an 87% score for Adult Occupant protection, 89% for Child Occupant, 71% for Vulnerable Road Users and 88% for Safety Assistance. 

The car itself has been engineered to make the most of the dedicated electric car structure. Without the need to find space for an engine, Volkswagen have incorporated extra strengthening and impact-absorbing zones at the front and side of the car. There are airbags in all of the usual places too, plus a new centre airbag which is new to the ID.3. This pops out between the front seats and stops the driver’s and front-seat passenger’s heads from knocking together in a side impact or roll-over. 

In addition to electronic helpers which sense an impending impact and can activate the brakes, the car’s interior lighting will also glow red to alert the driver to danger. Clever stuff.

It is annoying that the wipers are set up for left-hand-drive cars, so flick a splat of water right into the driver's line of vision. It remains un-wiped for an irritating two seconds until the blades pass again, but then the process repeats itself. We know a couple of potential owners who have been put off buying the car after test driving it in the rain, so it's worth trying it out when you sample the car. While the ID.3 does get adaptive cruise control as standard across the range, you have to add a pricey Driver Assistance pack to get the semi-autonomous drive mode that will allow for stop-start driving in traffic jams, and it's worth noting that you get all of that as standard with rivals from Hyundai, Kia and MG.