By Ian Strachan.
Going fully electric may be the responsible thing to do in the headlong charge for net zero. But that doesn’t mean you have to forego the fun of driving. And Volkswagen’s rear-wheel drive ID.3 proves the point.
Zero emissions don’t have to mean zero excitement. The ID.3 is fully electric, with rear-wheel drive reminiscent of the iconic Beetle. It develops 204PS, has a top speed of 99 mph and will propel you from 0 to 60 mph in around 7.5 seconds.
Of course if you take full advantage of the ID.3’s sparkling performance, you won’t get the very impressive published range of 345 miles on a single charge. Being heavy-footed has a range penalty, but you’ll still get sufficient range for most journeys and this car has a DC rapid charge time of just 30 minutes – assuming you can find a charging station.
The ID.3 was VW group’s first vehicle to be built on its modular electric drive platform. The group is planning to sell 20 million vehicles built on this platform by 2029.
The ID.3 is a good looker from all angles. My test car came in a striking Olivine Green metallic with contrast black roof (£965 extra). It has plenty of space, good specification and excellent all-round visibility. I test drove the ID.3 Pro S Match specification which comes with striking black and silver 20-inch alloys.
The interior of the ID.3 is modern and well laid out. You get pleasant trim and seat materials, integrated armrests in the front, heated, multifunction steering wheel, ambient lighting with 10 colour options and more than enough storage space.
Specification on the ID.3 Pro S Match is good, with two-zone electronic air conditioning and electric auxiliary air heater, all-round airbags, 10-inch colour touch-screen navigation system with DAB seven-speaker radio plus Apple CarPlay, Bluetooth connectivity and voice control, USB port, adaptive cruise control and a range of safety technology including lane keeping aid, distance monitoring, road sign display and park assist.
You also get all round electric windows and heated electric door mirrors, fatigue detection, automatic windscreen wipers, heated windscreen washers, front and rear parking sensors with camera, high-beam assist and smartphone charger.
Handling on the rear wheel drive ID.3 is sure-footed and involving. A fairly stiff suspension set-up doesn’t do much to iron out potholes, but in general driving is comfortable. My test car had a pleasant single-speed automatic gearbox.
If the ID.3 is your first experience of a fully electric vehicle you’ll be hooked for life. It’s not cheap, at £39,020 on the road for the version I tested, but residuals are good. My test car came with an energy efficient heat pump to avoid the heater draining the battery (£1,050), a panoramic glass roof (£795) and a exterior pack including adaptive chassis control and dynamic steering (£745).
