Which is relatively nothing considering the 330km+ range.
German juggernaut Volkswagen have confirmed that the artiste formerly known as the I.D. Neo will go into production as the ‘ID.3,’ and it’ll go on sale towards the end of this year touting a sub-€30,000 (or about $48k give-or-take) price tag for the base model, which will still be able to do about 330km on a single charge.
They’re doing the usual ‘1st Edition’ nonsense for the ID.3 though, which will have a price tag sub-€40,000 (or under $65,000), and make up the first 30,000 ID.3s to roll off the assembly line. Bucking the trend though is the fact that the ID.3 will not be a flagship model with look-at-me bits; Instead, the ID.3 1st models will be made up of the mid-spec cars, packing a 58kWh battery and a 420km range (the base-model has a 45kWh battery and 330km range, and the top-flight car will have a 77kWh battery and 550km range, all based on the WLTP testing standard).
“Volkswagen is offering the ID.3 1st special edition in four colours and three versions. All versions will feature large alloys and comprehensive equipment: the ID.3 1st with comprehensive convenience features including voice control & navigation; the ID.3 1st Plus with additional IQ.Light and two-tone interior/exterior finish; and the ID.3 1st Max with a large panoramic roof & innovations like the augmented-reality heads-up display.” – Volkswagen
The bookings… uh, book is open already for European markets, with prospective customers asked to place a €1,000 deposit for each reservation. The first of the ID.3s will roll off the assembly line later this year, but customer delivery isn’t expected to commence until the middle of next year. Production for the ID family of cars is expected to be around 100,000 per annum currently, but we’re made to understand that VW’s prepared to ramp up production when EV demand picks up.
To that end, the ID.3’s name is also evidence that VW intends to leave as much wiggle-room as possible to grow the ID range to encompass every possible segment and their respective niches in the future. To this writer, the arrival of a properly-affordable zero-emissions vehicle that doesn’t have a self-driving system that might kill you could just herald the paradigm shift needed to get people on-board with the idea of charge-up driving.
Are we excited? Hell yes.
And it seems that the rest of the world is too, with VW recording over 20,000 bookings within 24-hours of the announcement. The electrification wave has been here for a while but this, this right here, is the momentum.
For the best deals on a new car, check out our Showroom.
