Volkswagen ID. Buzz: A comfortable car for the comfortably off

“Oooh, it’s beautiful!” Well, I didn’t think she was talking about me. I’d just hopped out of the Volkswagen ID. Buzz to get some milk – because everyone needs a big MPV to do that – and the senior citizen accosted me, rather like a nice old auntie. “It’s a VW, isn’t it? Is it electric?” Yes and yes. Come and see inside.

“You could sleep in that.”

It did cross this senior’s mind that there might be a lewd and unwelcome riposte to that, but I didn’t push it. She told me I’d done well for myself. As so often when I’m out and about in expensive kit, I didn’t choose to disabuse her of the notion – why spoil her day and mine? I can confirm that Buzz, as I think I’ll call it for short, like Buzz Aldrin or Buzz Lightyear, has enough space for four litres of Sainsbury’s skimmed milk.

So, yes, Buzz’s admirer got the basics of the review written for me right there – very possibly because she, like me, can remember those old VW camper vans of old: the Type 2, sibling to the original Beetle, and the “bay window” version that arrived in the 1970s. The ID. Buzz is a self-consciously funky, retro-styled five-seater homage to the VWs of a now distant past, and thus unmistakeably a VW, though the giant badge on the front, as fitted to the originals, removes any lingering doubts.

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It even has superior green credentials compared with its forebears – it’s an all-electric battery vehicle, virtually silent, and completely emission-free at the tailpipe. There’s no distinctive air-cooled thrum from the engine, but serene, modern, planet-friendly progress – and it’s vastly more rapid than the sluggish originals. I’m wondering if they could add an old-school soundtrack, though, just for nostalgia’s sake.

I loved Buzz. This was the short-wheelbase version, though still big enough to get the rear seats down and make a bed, and the proportions are just right, very much like those of its ancestors. It’s got the same “waistband” styling around the middle, accentuated by the optional two-tone paint job, the sheer vertical tailgate, slab sides, and some faux air intakes on the rear pillar. It looks like fun, and it is.

Mine was finished off with a tasteful white interior (maybe less practical for families) and it has all the ease of use you’d expect from a modern electric machine – keyless entry, electric automatic handbrake, and lots of very efficient semi-autonomous driver aids.

Buzz is lumbered with VW’s usual touchscreen controls, which have too many menu layers to get at the things you want, like the satnav, and touch-sensitive “haptic” slider controls for the heater (though, perhaps randomly, I found Buzz’s were easier to use than some others I’ve encountered). The wipers are run off a rotary dial on the wiper arm, which I found a little tricky. Otherwise, it’s ergonomically sound.

Best of all, you sit very high up, especially with the electric seat jacked up to the max, so you get a commanding view of the road and the scenery, which is the point of having one of these recreationally oriented vehicles. It’s also what you’d expect in a van-based product, but the visibility all round – aside from the thicker rear pillars – is really very good. You also get a rear parking camera because, well, it needs it.

Buzz is certainly a much more versatile and practical alternative to the plethora of SUVs we see nowadays, with its sliding rear doors, spacious passenger compartment, large boot, and numerous storage spaces. The Citroen e-SpaceTourer is even bigger with space for nine, but it lacks range; the Mercedes eVito Tourer also takes nine, but is another £10,000; and the five-seat Peugeot e-Rifter BEV is much smaller. (The best-value people carrier of all is of course the Dacia Jogger, but that’s still got a naughty internal combustion engine.)

A proper “California” style full-on camper version of Buzz will be along in due course, but as a big, highly stylish MPV with extreme cult-level desirability as standard, Buzz is pretty much in a class of its own. For those who remember another past classic, it’s actually quite reminiscent of the Renault Espace, almost a mini box design with that panoramic front view.

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Buzz is bigger than its VW ID range stablemates, and thus benefits from a commensurately bigger battery pack, which endows it with a real-world range of about 200 miles – but you’ll find more available for city commuting in nice weather (250 miles), and less for hammering it down a motorway in winter (150 miles).

It’ll take about seven hours to charge overnight from a domestic wallbox (which is better for the battery than the faster, more powerful outlets you find at petrol stations). As is conventional with battery electric vehicles, you can tune Buzz for economy or performance, and vary the degree of regenerative braking, to suit your mood and alleviate any residual range anxiety you might have.

It’s pleasant to drive, but a heavy beast at nearly 2.5 tonnes, and doesn’t really invite too much enthusiastic treatment. As I say, it feels very much like a car built for some “life-enhancing” recreational adventures, as the saying goes. It looks and feels like a premium product – even the van-derived plastic trim seems good quality – and they say space is the greatest luxury (Buzz has plenty of that).

It’s expensive, mind, at close on £60,000 to start, and north of £70,000 with upgraded infotainment and trim, which is rich even by electric vehicle standards. Buzz is really a comfortable car for comfortably-off Boomers who’ve done well for themselves.