Volkswagen ID. Polo Review & Prices

The Volkswagen ID Polo is an all-new, all-electric take on the German brand’s historic Polo small hatchback. It’s a handsome little thing with a premium interior which offers plenty of space and an enormous boot, but other small electric hatchbacks are cheaper to buy in entry-level guise.

Picking the ID Polo a bit like shopping in Sainsbury’s, rather than saving some extra pennies at Lidl or Aldi. Sure you’ll pay a little more, but it’s a more premium proposition, so you can forgive it for not being bargain-basement cheap.

That rings especially true when compared to the Fiat Grande Panda and Citroen e-C3, at which point the ID Polo looks practically decadent. The Renault 5 and Nissan Micra are admittedly more stylish, and the mechanically-similar Cupra Raval has a sporty edge which the little Volkswagen can’t quite match.

Volkswagen ID Polo: electric range, battery and charging data

Range: 204 - 283 miles
Efficiency: 4.3 - 4.7mi/kWh
Battery size: 32kWh, 52kWh
Max charge speed: 90kW - 130kW
Charge time AC:
Charge time DC: 23mins (10-80%, 88kW), 24mins (10-80%, 105kW), 33mins (10-80%, 50kW)
Charge port location: Left-side, front
Power outputs: 116hp, 226hp

Still, not every small hatchback needs to look racy, and the ID Polo is a good-looking little car nonetheless. It’s certainly mature in its design, with soft curves, sharp creases, a neat light bar at the back and a swoopy front ‘grille’ which contains the headlights and a full-width LED strip (on more expensive versions).

The ID Polo’s cabin is equally easy on the eye, and equally mild in its design. The simple dashboard is fabric-trimmed on its leading edge, with an accent strip that kinks up at the edges and wraps around to the windscreen. The highlight is the row of physical climate control and shortcut switches beneath the infotainment screen and air vents, replacing the awful touch-sensitive nonsense seen in Volkswagens of recent times.

There’s plenty of storage space for small odds and ends up front, but passenger and boot space is most impressive. The back seats are cavernous compared to a Renault 5 (and the larger Renault 4, for that matter), while the 441-litre boot is even bigger than that in a Volkswagen Golf; not miles behind the T-Roc small SUV.

Range varies from 204 to a more impressive 283 miles, depending on which battery and motor option you choose. The latter figure is comfortably ahead of the Renault 5 and Hyundai Inster, plus it edges out the Cupra Raval which offers 275 miles to a charge.

We have yet to drive the ID Polo, but our German colleagues have had a poke and a prod around one at the car’s reveal, and it’s an impressive piece of kit at a quick glance.

We’ll let you know how the Volkswagen gets on with our roads when we get our hands on one, but in the meantime you can check out the latest Volkswagen ID Polo deals and ID Polo leasing offers on Carwow, as well as a range of used Volkswagens for sale though our network of trusted dealers. Remember, Carwow can help you sell your current car when it’s time to switch.

The ID Polo starts at just under £24,000 in small-battery, Life trim, while the Launch Edition cars start at just over £25,500 - stepping up to almost £33,000 for the Style Launch Edition with the big battery fitted.

As standard, the ID Polo Life features 17-inch alloy wheels, high-beam assist headlights, front and rear parking sensors, a rear-view camera, wireless phone charger and black exterior trim details such as the mirror caps.

Meanwhile, the ID Polo Style comes on 18-inch wheels and features matrix LED headlights with the full-width light bar, ambient interior lighting, sat nav, heated seats and steering wheel, plus two-zone air conditioning.