Living with a Volkswagen ID4: can a handful of small changes make all the difference? 

Volkswagen recently took my old ID4 away and delivered me a new, updated version so I could experience the differences, but on first impressions it was hard to spot them.

Lighter blue paint aside, there’s very little to separate these cars visually. However, after spending a few months with the new car, there are a few key upgrades which make it easier to live with.

New vs old Volkswagen ID4: what are the differences?

Both my old ID4 and my new one are high-spec Pro Match models, but while the old one was finished in Blue Dusk Metallic and had 19-inch alloy wheels, the new one is the lighter Costa Azule blue and has the upgraded 20-inch rims. While both colours are no-cost options, the larger wheels cost £1,265.

Those are the only visual differences. The rest of the upgrades are much more subtle.

The updated ID4 has a slightly larger battery, 79kWh compared to 77kWh, and this means it’ll go slightly further on a charge. I’ve found over a few thousand miles that both cars average 3.7 miles per kWh, which works out to a real-world range of 285 miles in the old ID4 and 292 miles in the new one.

Inside you have the same slightly drab dashboard, but the touch-sensitive pads on the steering wheel have been replaced with proper buttons. This is a huge win, because the touch-sensitive controls were a pain to use.

I’ve also noticed that the sat nav shows a satellite image now rather than an old-school map, and the puddle lights project the VW logo onto the ground. Beyond that, it’s ID4 business as usual.

Were the upgrades worth it?

The Volkswagen ID4 was already a pretty easy car to live with, but these small changes have elevated my experience a bit. However, they don’t change the fact that this is a very dull car.

It’s comfortable and roomy inside, the range is decent, and the lighter blue has lifted the look a bit, but it’s still not a car which you’ll turn back to look at after parking it up. That’s fine if you’re just after a stress-free electric car to ferry the family around, but at almost £50,000 I was rather hoping for more.

This car still has manual seats and a healthy dose of scratchy plastics inside, and for this sort of money there are other EVs which feel posher and offer more kit.

A Skoda Enyaq with massaging electric front seats costs a few grand less than this ID4, and that car has a bigger boot and a more upmarket interior as well. The Hyundai Ioniq 5 is also more generously equipped and more exciting to look at.

It’s not that the ID4 is a bad car, it’s just a bit too expensive for what you get. My advice would be to wait for the new ID Tiguan, because that car promises some much more substantial improvements.

New Volkswagen ID Tiguan: the car to wait for

Volkswagen recently announced the ID Tiguan as a replacement for the ID4, and on first impressions it’s a more tempting alternative to the Enyaq and Ioniq 5.

In addition to the more interesting exterior design, it also has an all-new interior which features more physical controls than the ID4. The touch-sensitive central sliders for the climate control have been replaced with a row of proper switches, and the dashboard design looks way more upmarket as well. Volkswagen also promises a step up in material quality, but we’ll have to get hands-on with the car to see if that’s true.

With up to 374 miles of range, the ID Tiguan will also go further on a charge than any current ID4. Prices are yet to be announced, but if it costs similar money to the ID4 then I reckon it’s worth waiting for.

Report #2: first impressions after 2 months

A lot of modern electric cars are so needlessly complicated. A perfect example would be our old Polestar 3, which I spent a few weeks with back in spring and was very glad to get shot of.

The buttonless key fob drove me up the wall whenever it refused to open the car, and a seemingly endless array of software glitches didn’t make it easier to like. That’s why, in a weird way, I was happy to swap it for my Volkswagen ID4.

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It may be as dull as paint, but at least the ID4 doesn’t whip me up into a frenzy when the wipers keep going berserk for no reason.

Whenever I walk up to the car and grab the handle, it opens. My phone pairs to the big, bright infotainment screen no problem and the wipers only come on when I want them to. All fairly basic stuff, but features I’m grateful for nonetheless after the troublesome Polestar.

My ID4 is also really comfy to drive. The suspension is great over the potholes of Woking, and the seats are nice and supportive on longer trips. I like the fold-down armrests as well – they make me feel like the captain of my ship.

That said, there are a couple of things I’m not so keen on. The tiny digital driver’s display looks like a TomTom sat nav from 10 years ago, and the button for the windscreen washers are annoying as well. It’s on the end of the indicator stalk, and the shape of it means I keep signalling by accident when I just want to get some bird muck out my field of view.

My old Tiguan had sliding rear seats, which meant the boot could accommodate my dog’s crate with ease. The ID4 has no such thing, so I have to fold the rear seats down to get pooch in the car. This is made even more difficult by the fact the seats don’t lay flat.

The Volkswagen ID4 does most things well, but nothing exceptional. If you’re after an electric car to ferry you and the family around in fuss-free comfort, it’s easy to recommend. But if you’re after something even a little bit quirky or interesting, you’re better off looking elsewhere. Perhaps a Peugeot E-3008.

Report #1: an introduction to my new electric SUV

Should I buy an electric car, or something petrol powered? It’s a question which thousands of car buyers are asking these days, myself included.

I’ve been toying with the idea of buying an electric car for a while now, so when my old Volkswagen Tiguan long term test car went back I decided to replace it with a Volkswagen ID4.

The ID4 is basically an electric Tiguan alternative, so I’m going to live with it for the next six months to see if an EV is the right way to go. I’ll compare it to my old Tiguan on comfort, practicality and running costs, and I’ll be documenting any problems I encounter along the way.

Volkswagen has also recently updated the ID4 with some new tech and a few design tweaks, so after three months I’ll be swapping into the newer version to see if the changes have improved things.

Let’s start by getting to know my new Volkswagen ID4. It’s a mid-spec Pro version with the basic 286hp electric motor powering the rear wheels. Volkswagen says it will do up to 347 miles on a charge, but I’ll see how close I can get to that figure in the real world.

As standard, the Pro gets adaptive cruise control, a 12.9-inch touchscreen with wireless phone mirroring, heated front seats, a heated steering wheel, matrix LED headlights and 19-inch alloy wheels.

The dark blue paint and black roof are both no-cost options, and my car isn’t fitted with any optional extras. This means it costs £44,400 as tested. That’s around the same as the equivalent Skoda Enyaq or Hyundai Ioniq 5.

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