Driving report: Volkswagen ID.5

Anyone who finds the Volkswagen ID.4 too banal can reach for the ID.5. The striking coupe is a bit sportier in appearance, but is based on the same modular system as its conventional brother.

The rule used to be that Coupes cost more money but offered fewer cars than the equivalent sedans. There was no need to convince coupé buyers to dispense with two doors, they even expected it. Today, most "coupés" are SUV derivatives and of course also have four portals. Apart from the sloping roof line, there are often no or only a few differences within the model family.

This is also the case with the at least 46.515 euros without funding ID.5 – it is even a bit longer than the ID.4. Well, the one and a half centimeters more are rather negligible, since the two and a half centimeters lower roof line unfolds more optical effect - it makes the car appear stretched and therefore more athletic. The sportier of the two electric SUVs from Wolfsburg looks good. 

Classic ID changes

Getting started is largely the same as with the ID.4. Unsurprisingly, Volkswagen has long since said goodbye to the classic instrument cluster in its ID series. Instead, the driver finds a separate display in front of his nose with large digits for the current speed - and that is also perfectly legible. Things like range in kilometers and battery charge level in percent also remain permanently visible, after all, both parameters are not entirely unimportant in battery-electric cars.
 
It makes sense for the user not to be able to configure the display much, so he has to live out his play instinct somewhere else. This can be done on the central touchscreen, on which the wealth of vehicle functions can be operated quite intuitively. Much better, for example, than on the steering wheel buttons, which do not always give precise haptic feedback and are also used to control the cruise control. Volkswagen should make improvements here.

In principle, there is nothing wrong with the operating ergonomics, but the engineers should set up a shortcut for faster deactivation of the active lane departure warning system, which is rather annoying in practical use with its harsh vibration in the steering wheel even if it deviates just a touch from the center line. This is not meant to be a plea against assistance, but not every computer-assisted driving function is always useful in everyday use. On the other hand, the active cruise control including autonomous emergency braking is to be expressly commended. It massively increases driving comfort and ultimately also safety.

No more start button

Speaking of operation: Volkswagen doesn't use the start button - as soon as you sit on the seat with the key in your pocket, the ID.5 is ready. Press the brake and turn the right steering column element to "D", then the spacious SUV coupe crawls away.

We start with the initially weakest representative with a completely sufficient 150 kW/204 hp (47.550 euros without subsidy) - the 128 kW/174 hp variant will be launched on the market later. However, the all-rounder equipped with rear-wheel drive is so heavy with an unladen weight of 2,1 tons that, despite the abundance of torque (320 Newton metres), it is sovereign but not particularly sporty. If you compare it to a diesel that is about as powerful, you should still find the electric model more elastic. The secret lies in the fixed translation. Gearboxes produce interruptions in tractive power, which are eliminated. 

GTX doesn't get 300 hp

Volkswagen wouldn't be Volkswagen if the Wolfsburg-based company didn't have a sharper version up its sleeve. The marketing department dug up a historical abbreviation for this - older contemporaries still remember the GTX versions of the Scirocco, built up to 1989 with 112 little horses. So now GTX again – ID.5 GTX, to be more precise, but with an exciting 220 kW/299 hp. But one or the other performance fan might be disappointed when he drives the modern GTX for 53.615 euros into the 180 km/h limiter on the open road with a bang.

It would then even have to be overtaken by the historic GTX, after all, this is in the papers with up to 204 km/h. And presumably its speedometer needle climbs the 220 mark with a lot of effort. Good keyword, you could have treated the electric GTX to 220 km/h, knowing full well that it is a very German perspective.

Let's enjoy the well-balanced ID.5, which, especially as a GTX with the two electric hearts, also allows striking lateral dynamics thanks to electronic contactor assistance and is not only fast in a straight line (6,3 seconds from 0 to 100 km/h). It's also nice that he doesn't subject his human cargo to excessive hardships, but rolls over bumps quite smoothly.

5-80% is important

Shortly after the idea of ​​covering long distances with the ID.5 - for which it is really predestined - the question immediately arises of how to get fresh energy again. The larger 77 kWh battery is mandatory, which means at least 425 kilometers WLTP range for the GTX and even 516 kilometers for the single engine edition. In general, it is also important to pay attention to the charging time of five to 80 percent battery level, recommends technician Andreas Lange.

Volkswagen puts this at around half an hour. Of course, high charging power can be specified, the engineer explains, but such a statement is of no help to the customer if it is only achieved for a short period of time. However, the Volkswagen engineer reveals that the ID.5 also packs the 170 kW at the charging station, although the group remains conservative with the factory specification with 135 kW – so customers would not be disappointed either. If you want to be as efficient as possible on the road, you shouldn't do without the 990 euro heat pump, which relieves the traction battery when heating is required. On the other hand, you shouldn't expect too much from it either, because only a little heat is lost when driving steadily on the freeway.

The ID.5 also offers two real treats, one of which could at least be tested on the spot: This allows parking processes that have been carried out with great effort to be saved. If you drive back to the previously marked spot later, the assistant takes over the parking automatically. Only the brake and accelerator pedals have to be operated. This even works with quite complex and winding parking maneuvers, which the system reproduces with virtuosity. The EV route manager, which calculates optimal charging points, will still have to face extensive tests later. However, it is no longer so easy to get stranded with an electric car, at least in Germany. This is not least due to the vehicles' ranges, which are now usable, but also to the dense fast charging network, which does not have to hide in European comparison.

Technical data


Medium SUV, length: 4,60 meters, width: 1,85 meters, height: 1,62 meters, wheelbase: 2,77 meters, trunk volume: 549 to 1.561 liters

Pro: Permanently excited synchronous motor on the rear axle, 128 kW/174 hp, maximum torque: 235 Nm, single-stage reduction gear, rear-wheel drive, 0-100 km/h: 10,4 s, Vmax: 160 km/h, average consumption: 16,9 kWh (WLTP), CO2 emissions: 0 g/km, battery capacity: 77 kWh, range (WLTP): 454 - 523 km, Price: from 46.515 euros

Pro performance upgrade: permanent magnet synchronous motor on the rear axle, 150 kW/204 hp, maximum torque: 310 Nm, single-stage reduction gear, rear-wheel drive, 0-100 km/h: 8,4 s, Vmax: 160 km/h, average consumption: 16,9 .2 kWh (WLTP), CO0 emissions: 77 g/km, battery capacity: 516 kWh, range (WLTP): up to XNUMX km, Price: from 47.550 euros

GTX: two electric machines (one per axle), 220 kW/299 hp, maximum torque: 470 Nm, single-stage reduction gear, all-wheel drive, 0-100 km/h: 6,3 s, Vmax: 180 km/h, average consumption: 17,9 .2 kWh (WLTP), CO0 emissions: 77 g/km, battery capacity: 425 kWh, range (WLTP): 491 to XNUMX km, Price: from 53.615 euros

In brief


Why: Because it looks sleek
Why not: Because it doesn't have what it takes to be a real coupé
What else: Audi Q4 E-Tron Sportback, Skoda Enyaq Coupé, Volvo C 40
When: Immediately

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