2025 Volkswagen ID.Buzz Review -- Well-Packaged Style

The ID.Buzz is banking on retro looks, excellent packaging, and the gas-free life of an EV powertrain to appeal to buyers. And given the pricing, which we'll get into, the company will need those aspects to be quite appealing indeed.

(Full disclosure: Volkswagen flew me to San Francisco, fed and housed me, and offered up a hat, bandana, and snacks as swag. I was also offered the chance to tie-dye a T-shirt. I declined the shirt and hat but ate the snacks and took the bandana).

The first thing I noticed about the ID.Buzz -- and for at least the first few years, everyone will notice every Buzz, these things stand out -- is that it looks good. Darn good for a slab-sided people mover. The old VW vans/Microbuses of the past (think Costner's ride in Field of Dreams) were charming because they were unattractive, but this modernized Microbus looks good -- at least when purchased with a two-tone paint job. The monochrome treatment that base trims are stuck with isn't as visually appealing.

It's a head-turner, and it drew attention whenever we stopped for photos. I can't recall the last first drive I was on in which so many locals wandered over to check out our ride. Maybe the Ford Bronco in 2021?

There are eight two-tone and three monochrome color options for the exterior and three available interior color schemes.

Inside, it's immediately clear that there will be space and visibility aplenty. Headroom in the second row and legroom in the third row are both 42 inches -- which puts the ID.Buzz at an advantage over plenty of three-row SUVs and minivans, even with a 195-inch overall length. Specs are one thing -- I found both the second row and third row of the Buzz to allow for plenty of legroom and headroom, and access to the third row was easy-peasy. I did my rear-seat test in a Buzz with a second-row bench seat -- captain's chairs for the second row are available.

The large windshield gives drivers plenty of visibility -- it's almost as if there is no A-pillar.

Cargo room is a bit limited with the third seating row up, though even here there's smart packaging -- there are available soft-sided storage bins that sit under a tilting parcel shelf.

The ID.Buzz has a 91 kWh battery and is either rear-wheel drive with a rear electric motor or all-wheel drive with electric motors at both ends. Horsepower is 282 for the rear-wheel-drive model and 335 for all-wheel drive, while the RWD model has 413 lb-ft of torque. If you get a 4Motion AWD version, you get 413 lb-ft of torque from the rear and another 99 lb-ft of twist from the front motor.

Range is listed 234 miles for RWD Buzzes and 231 for AWD. You can charge up to 200 kW on a DC fast charger, getting from 10 percent to 80 percent fast charging in 26 minutes.

The Buzz shares Volkswagen's MEB platform with the ID.4, and I noticed a bit of similarity, especially in steering feel. I expected the Buzz to drive like, well, a bus, but it was surprisingly adept on challenging, twisty roads. Sure, at times you can feel the length, in which case you might need to feed in a bit more steering to tuck it into the corner, but the Buzz was more at home on a winding road than one would expect. At least in the rear-wheel-drive version I piloted, I merely rode shotgun in the AWD.

I was driving slow initially thanks to rainy weather, though I pushed harder as the road dried and the fog cleared. Eventually the Buzz's flaws revealed themselves -- push a bit too hard and understeer made itself evident. Body roll was well-muted at slower speeds but became more noticeable the harder I drove.

You can one-pedal the Buzz if you're not being too aggressive and/or the corners aren't too demanding, and the brakes were smooth and progressive when I did need them. The steering feel was heavier than the typical featherweight VW programming though still a bit distant at times. Sport mode did tighten things up.

Like with most EVs, the Buzz offers fast and silent acceleration -- passing and merging will be easy enough.

The low-center of gravity provided by the "skateboard style" battery pack definitely help the handling, and I suspect that's one reason that I really needed to push hard to experience body roll.

The Buzz rode well on pristine NorCal roads, with the few bumps we encountered doing little to upset the chassis, though Sport mode is a bit too stiff for anything but spirited driving.

Spirited driving is one thing, but most folks will be using this rig as a commuter or a road tripper. To that end, wind and road noise didn't intrude much -- only on a patch of weird pavement did I really hear any tire noise at all.

The Buzz is smooth, quiet, and not a chore to drive. That's music to the ears of anyone with a long drive to the campsite -- or Grandma's house.

Sadly, the range is a bit limiting here, although we saw a bit higher number in the real world than on the spec sheet. It's worth noting that at some point Volkswagen will offer buyers the chance to use the NACS charging standard. With those chargers more plentiful along major routes, that should alleviate some, if not all, range concerns.

As much as I liked the Buzz's driving dynamics and interior packaging, there are let downs aside from the range. While some interior materials looked and felt upscale, other pieces felt underwhelming in a vehicle that starts at $60K.

I still don't love VW's take on haptic-touch interior controls, and some functions required too much menu diving. For example, I needed to dive through two menus via the infotainment system just to change the drive mode. That's too much complication and distraction for a task that is usually performed while in motion.

At least the large infotainment screen was easy to read. I also liked the sound quality from the available Harman Kardon sound system.

Another beef involved the driver's seat. It was initially quite comfy -- and a massage function is available -- but my lower back was barking at me a bit after 45 minutes or so behind the wheel.

The step-in can be awkward, too -- I occasionally banged my knee on the steering column while climbing in.

Finally, the Buzz only has toggles for the front windows -- one must toggle a haptic-touch switch to open the rears. Needless complication confounds.

I mentioned a starting price of $59,995. That's for the Pro S trim. That gets you a monochrome paint job, LED projector headlights, adaptive front lighting, light-up logos, keyless entry, 20-inch wheels, power tailgate, power-sliding side doors with power-sliding side windows, wood dashboard trim, heated and cooled front seats with massaging lumbar and thigh extension, heated outboard second-row seats, heated steering wheel, tri-zone climate control, removable center console, 12.9-inch center display, wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, wireless cell-phone charging, satellite radio, Bluetooth, 7 USB-C ports plus one USB-C dash-cam port, in-car power outlets, the IQ.DRIVE suite of advanced driver-assist systems, front and rear park-distance control, road-sign display, and parking assist.

Pop for the Pro S Plus ($63,495 RWD, $67,995 AWD) and you add a retractable trailer hitch, head-up display, 360-degree camera, the Harman Kardon audio, easy open for the sliding doors and tailgate, and storage bins. All-wheel-drive Pro S Pluses add a heated windshield and the captain's chairs.

You can also, if you wish, equip your Pro S Plus with an electrochromatic panoramic glass roof ($1,495) and/or two-tone paint ($995). You can also opt for the captain's chairs even if you didn't get AWD, they'll run you $695.

There's a First Edition trim available this year for $65,495 with rear-wheel drive and $69,995 with all-wheel drive. This one takes a Pro S and adds special 20-inch wheels, special badging, the glass roof, the Harman Kardon audio, the 360-degree camera, the storage bins, easy open for the sliding doors and tailgate, roof cross bars, and special floor mats. If your First Edition is all-wheel drive, you get captain's chairs. Two-tone paint is standard on this trim, regardless of the amount of electric motors you have.

Destination and delivery is $1,550 across the board. The rear-drive First Edition I drove was $67,045 and the 4Motion Pro S Plus I rode home in was $70,540.

Were it my money on the line, I'd probably buy a Pro S Plus with the glass roof and one of the two-tone paint schemes. The extra power from the AWD is nice but not necessary and getting into the third-row is easy enough with the bench that the captain's chairs aren't needed.

I liked a lot about the ID.Buzz. It's roomy, smooth, quiet, and well-equipped. It also handles spirited driving with a level of aplomb that's unusual in a people-mover, though it's no sporting vehicle. It can handle six or seven people, including fully-grown humans, with ease. It will swallow cargo without trouble.

Volkswagen has cooked up a great road-trip vehicle, but one with relatively limited range. If you're wondering why there's no ICE or hybrid/PHEV version available, it comes down to two things. One is that the MEB platform is dedicated to EVs. Reason two is that any internal-combustion motor would probably have to be located in the front and that would change dimensions and packaging (even if, as I cheekily suggested, said internal-combustion motor was horizontally-opposed).

So maybe the ID.Buzz is going to be tricky to drive from San Francisco to Seattle. It will still be a good commuter -- and a good vehicle for getting you to the beach or campground, provided they're within range.

To that end, VW was mum on OEM mods or partnerships with aftermarket companies, but we'd bet our lives that plans are in the works to be announced at a later date.

This modern take on the Microbus has flaws. The range is disappointing, the price is eye-watering (especially when measured against mainstream minivans), and VW continues to overly complicate interior controls. But its style, packaging, driving dynamics, and ease of use make it relatively easy to forgive such foibles.

We'd love a hybrid/PHEV or ICE version, but that's not happening, at least not on this platform.

Failing that, give us a range of over 300 miles, some more knobs and buttons, and perhaps a discount trim with fewer bells and whistles, and we'll be cooking. In the meantime, what we're actually able to buy looks great and is packaged, at least in terms of interior space and utility, nearly perfectly.

That's still quite -- sorry -- Buzzworthy.

[Images © 2024 Tim Healey/TTAC.com]

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