Ot - vw id.4?

[David Kirk]

I'm considering a purchase of a VW ID.4 and wonder if anyone out there owns one and has any feedback on living with one as a daily driver?

dave

[saab2000]

Not going to try to sell you on a Tesla but there’s one thing to know - charging.

Tesla’s Supercharger network is superior to everything else out there.

This is likely only relevant if you plan to take road trips. If it’s local and day driving for most of your locomotion then it won’t much matter.

Get a home charger. I recently had a Tesla wall charger installed by a licensed electrician. I expect to get my Tesla Model Y next week.

As to the ID 4, if you’re planning to use a trailer hitch for any reason, be advised that VW only offers a 1.25” receiver on this vehicle.

Watch a lot of YouTube videos on the brand you intend to buy.

Mostly I’d be sure to have a home charger installed regardless of what brand you’re getting.

[David Kirk]

Thanks. I hear you on the home charging - that's part of the plan from day one.

No real road trips for us in this car. The charging network in the 3rd world country of Montana is sparse.

I just drove an ID.4 an hour ago but the roads here are VERY slick this morning so getting any real feel for how it drives was off the table. I only drove it because the dealer called telling us that they had a used one we could drive. They have no new ones of the lot and don't expect to have them any time soon.

Montana is the land of the Excursion and F350 so dealers here aren't stocking many EV's. I expect that I'll need to travel to buy what I want.

dave

Originally Posted by saab2000

Not going to try to sell you on a Tesla but there’s one thing to know - charging.

Tesla’s Supercharger network is superior to everything else out there.

This is likely only relevant if you plan to take road trips. If it’s local and day driving for most of your locomotion then it won’t much matter.

Get a home charger. I recently had a Tesla wall charger installed by a licensed electrician. I expect to get my Tesla Model Y next week.

As to the ID 4, if you’re planning to use a trailer hitch for any reason, be advised that VW only offers a 1.25” receiver on this vehicle.

Watch a lot of YouTube videos on the brand you intend to buy.

Mostly I’d be sure to have a home charger installed regardless of what brand you’re getting.

[loafer]

Moving to an electric car for at least a second car is a great decision, they are easy to live with for a car that you just drive around town and they are generally amazing winter cars.

Having read the reviews, the one motor ID.4 is one of the slower big battery electric cars out there, so be aware of that. One of the great things about electric cars is that they are usually very quick and the immediate acceleration makes them super fun to drive...

[bigbill]

Originally Posted by David Kirk

Thanks. I hear you on the home charging - that's part of the plan from day one.

No real road trips for us in this car. The charging network in the 3rd world country of Montana is sparse.

I just drove an ID.4 an hour ago but the roads here are VERY slick this morning so getting any real feel for how it drives was off the table. I only drove it because the dealer called telling us that they had a used one we could drive. They have no new ones of the lot and don't expect to have them any time soon.

Montana is the land of the Excursion and F350 so dealers here aren't stocking many EV's. I expect that I'll need to travel to buy what I want.

dave

We looked at getting electric for an errand and commuting car. We both have 3/4 ton diesel trucks because we live in WY in the summer. Making an extra trip from AZ to WY to move the car wouldn't be a huge deal. I'd just put in on a trailer. Looking at a map, Montana has 100% more Tesla Superchargers than Wyoming.

[fourflys]

FWIW- I think the Id4 has a bit more inviting interior than the Teslas.. I've sat in the Model3 and S and both just seemed like I was in one of those movies where the asylum is very clean and white, but looks very cold.. plus I just couldn't get over the Model3 only having the center screen (and no other anything)..

Dave- being a car guy, like I know you are, I would suggest taking a look at some of the other EVs like the Mach-E.. as a wanna-b car guy myself, I need an interior that is, at least, reminiscent of an ICE car..

[Munger]

Dave, you like Lotus so hold out for this!

[Munger]

http://www.lotuscars.com/en-US/eletre/

Sorry about that, maybe this will work!

[reuben]

Originally Posted by saab2000

As to the ID 4, if you’re planning to use a trailer hitch for any reason, be advised that VW only offers a 1.25” receiver on this vehicle.

I can't speak to the ID.4, but UHaul and local shops will install 2" receivers. That's what I'm going to do with my Crosstrek, which is on order. I didn't buy any sort of receiver or hitch, and will add one in aftermarket.

Apparently this is a standard ploy, and UHaul is well known for this. Probably others as well.

From what I've read you can bring your own receiver and pay for the labor to install, or select one that they stock. Can't remember the best/most popular brands of receivers offhand.

[p nut]

A friend has one and likes it. Basic no-frills model. Although if I were to buy an ev today, it’d be the Ioniq 5

[Hakkalugi]

We traded in 2 Golf Sportwagens a year ago for 2 ID.4 Pros (base awd version). The trade values were awesome, so it made complete sense to do it. We ordered and waited 8 or 9 months for the EVs. I have almost 24,000 miles on it so I think at this point I’ve learned it’s pros and cons.

It drives great, super quiet, smooth, planted in turns. Much roomier inside than you would expect. In warm conditions, a full charge is about 250-270 miles, below freezing more like 170. Charging 2 cars at home on ChargePoint chargers for 3 hours each hasn’t made a massive impact on the power bill (at $.12/kWh). Our utility provided them for free, so that was a $1400 savings. Wiring them in took me a couple of hours, but I’m a good electrician. Hiring a contractor will add to the cost and timeframe, of course.

I hate the sensors/lane minding/ panic brake stuff but all new cars have them. With a bike in the hitch rack, I have to hit 3 buttons to suppress the brake, or it will see the bike and stomp like an over-caffeinated driver’s ed instructor. Some of the features you can turn off with an after-market software package.

Speaking of software, we’re waiting well over a year for version 3.X, the forums say people are getting letters to go get it, but we have yet to see it. The infotainment is OK, nothing good, nothing bad. Setting a departure time and having the windshield clear and seat & steering wheel warm is pretty awesome on winter mornings.

It’s been super solid in the snow with Hakkapellitas. Turning off the lane minding in winter is key, because it tries to steer you and you don’t know if you’re sliding. Once I suppressed that, it was great in snow and ice.

It came with a 1.25” receiver hitch, and we are using QuikrUp racks because their system will do 3 bikes on a 1.25”. Your can swap easily (~$150) to a 2” with the same bolt pattern. There is a wire harness for trailer lights, you buy a $20 plug and hook it up under the bumper. We tow a raft, but the trailer, boat, and gear are probably 500lbs, so we see very little extra battery drain.

There’s no spare in the car, just a can of fix-a-flat. Base models don’t have storage under the rear floor, I loved that in the Golf but am not really missing it.

Electrify America included 3 years of free charging, I don’t know if that’s still part of the deal, but it’s cool. Free charging is also relatively easy to find because many municipalities offer it. I paid for charges a couple of times from 20-80%, I think I paid about $10 each time.

Plan on 6 months of range anxiety (for any EV, really), then you get to know what the car does, you learn where stations are, and you relax. Plus, more stations are appearing. Since October ‘21, I’ve spent maybe $200 on gas, mostly for rental cars and my snowplow. I’ve spent under $50 to charge.

I don’t miss a gas car (I still own an old truck, but it sees maybe 1000 miles annually), and I like the road feel. The ergonomics are good, visibility os pretty good, and the seats are comfortable. The lane sensing stuff is in everything new, so that’s not an issue specific to this car, and it’s the part I don’t like. I can’t say it’s better or worse than any other EV on the market, I haven’t driven any, but overall I’m satisfied and can’t see owning a gas vehicle again.

[R3awak3n]

try to find some journalist reviews on the id.4 because at least everything I have read on it is that its absolute trash and one of the worst vws ever.


Personally I would not buy a tesla because I don't want even a cent of my money to land in Elons pocket (also find them incredibly ugly and uninspiring). I do admit that they are decent EVs, they are built poorly but they have the best charging infrastructure by far in the US.


I personally would look into either that hyunday someone just posted (my neighbour has one, likes it and imo looks great) or my personal favorite the Ford Mach-e. Those look awesome and seem to be pretty great.

Of course if money is no object there is a lot more stuff but I figure you have a budget

[pasadena]

ID4
pros:
-great midsize suv/crossover with plenty of space
-great seat comfort
-setup as a good transition vehicle, mild regen so it drives more like a ICE car
-materials are par VW Golf level but feel solid and durable. Has a nice feel, imo.
-great driveability and depending on spec, can skip the glass roof.
*EA 3 yr free charging but it's 30min limit, per session, I believe.
*used to come with a free L1 charger but not anymore.

cons:
-horrible capacitive touch infotainment buttons that are not backlit
-stupid window switches
-upper level Pro S Plus starts to become poor values. The scratchy interior plastics become far less acceptable at this price range imo.
-standard is a great value but you skip a lot of features like rear seat armrest and the cargo floor to make a flat load floor w/ seats folded, etc that, imo, should be standard across the board.

2023 has some nice upgrades in minor areas of trim and hopefully software.
2023 will be at least partially eligible for tax incentives, being assembled in Tennessee

-bigger and more practical than the Ioniq5/EV6
-the interior, though not as stylish, felt a lot more solid than the Korean twins
-build quality is good on the ID4. There is a lot of ICE carryover stuff under the hood (but most EV's are the same barriing Tesla, Lucid and Rivian)

VW already said they will redesign the infotainment and get rid of capacitive buttons (hopefully put in normal window switches as well). But that's probably two yrs out.

ID4 can be a great value. I think you have to think about range if you do a lot of freeway driving. It takes a range hit if you're used to driving 75-85mph on the freeway w/ AC or Heat on... it's going to take a pretty hard range hit at those speeds.
For mixed driving, EV's are fantastic. ID4 is a great overall package.

[pasadena]

Mach E is the only ev that lost recommendation from Consumer Reports so take that as you will.
ID4 has been a huge hit. The ID line seems to be improving and VW seems very focused on it.
Tesla is at least two generations ahead in technology and engineering.

Originally Posted by R3awak3n

try to find some journalist reviews on the id.4 because at least everything I have read on it is that its absolute trash and one of the worst vws ever.


Personally I would not buy a tesla because I don't want even a cent of my money to land in Elons pocket (also find them incredibly ugly and uninspiring). I do admit that they are decent EVs, they are built poorly but they have the best charging infrastructure by far in the US.


I personally would look into either that hyunday someone just posted (my neighbour has one, likes it and imo looks great) or my personal favorite the Ford Mach-e. Those look awesome and seem to be pretty great.

Of course if money is no object there is a lot more stuff but I figure you have a budget

[superbowlpats]

I'm waiting for the Audi Q4.