Was that it for the golf? Is the eighth generation the last? That remains to be seen, but there is no question that an electric era is now beginning: Heise / Autos has the VW ID.3 1st Max over Kilometers moved to see what the core of this electric car is, where it is outstanding and where it needs to be improved. If attention is a yardstick for sales success, the Volkswagen ID.3 becomes the most important electric car in Germany: Passers-by are very curious and express themselves through frequent stopping, looking behind and a certain lack of restraint when touching them as soon as the driver suspects they are out of sight becomes. Maybe that’s the novelty effect. Perhaps there is also an openness or even a need for change here.

The first impression: Hui, it’s great. The ID.3 belongs with 4, 27 Meter length compared to the compact class. Formally, it competes with electric cars such as the Kia e-Niro or the Nissan Leaf. The space concept of the modular electrification kit (MEB) benefits the people in the back seat with a comparatively large amount of legroom. Due to the battery system, the seating position is slightly raised and resembles a van, with more headroom at the front than in the Golf 8, while the trunk volume is 385 liters is almost identical.

High traction The Volkswagen ID.3 starts – greetings from Tesla – by tapping the brake pedal. And the drive selector lever is apparently inspired by the BMW i3. Driving itself is one of the clear strengths of the ID.3. The traction of this rear-wheel drive electric car, i.e. engine and rear drive, outclasses the front-wheel drive competitors, who are often unable to bring their high performance to the road or only to a limited extent electronically. If something needs to be regulated with the ID.3 when accelerating out of tight bends on a wet road, it happens absurdly quickly and sensitively. In connection with the precise steering, which is positioned close to the body corners 20 – Custom rims and the adaptive damper control (DCC) in the 1st Max leads to an effortless, quick and playful way of driving.

Less aggressive On the other hand, the ID.3 does not offer the fun of a Tesla Model 3 SR +. The VW is less aggressive and therefore more risk-free, and because the ID.3 is quieter than the Tesla, speeds seem more boring. Volkswagen is clearly addressing a different, broader and comfort-oriented group of buyers who will occasionally wonder why the other road users in the rearview mirror are so small.

The effective noise insulation and the smooth suspension set-up emphasize the Comfort. A smear is only the rolling behavior when driving slowly: It is determined by the 20 – Customs rims impaired, which according to consistent reports cost a few tenths of power consumption and are dispensable apart from the optical impression. 19 Customs should suffice .

Clean processing, cheap materials The torsional stiffness of the 1794 Kilograms (payload 466 kg) heavy ID.3 1st Max is very high and the body does not crackle or rattle. All the gaps on the test car fit perfectly. The overall quality is good. So what caused a car magazine to criticize harshly? The colleagues from Auto Motor und Sport complained, among other things, of a worn seat. This was possibly due to the pre-series status and could not be determined on the test car from Heise / Autos.

VW ID.3 outside (8 pictures) The VW ID.3 is the first electric car based on the group-wide modular electrification kit (MEB). Heise Autos drove the ID.3 1st Max, which with 48. 743, 62 Euro is in the list. The starting price with 58 kWh battery capacity is 35. 574, 95 Euro.

(Image: Christoph M. Schwarzer) On the other hand, there are obvious defects in the choice of materials and haptics, which give the impression that Volkswagen has it with the cost pressure exaggerated. These points can be narrowed down: The top part of the door panel is extremely hard, sounds hollow and is very sensitive to scratches. It looks like a pre-production car. The combination of the different shades of gray on the fittings and seat fabrics is also doubtful and radiates a certain coldness. Cozy is different.

The horn sounds inexpensive in the best case – that would be okay for a basic version, but not for the top equipment, which in the specific ID.3 comes at a gross list price of 48. 743, 62 Euro (all prices without taking into account the “innovation bonus” in the amount of 9480 Euro) leads. Volkswagen could already achieve a big improvement with small changes – it remains to be seen if and when that happens.