Volkswagen took an important step about a year ago: the ID3 was launched on the market, the first model on the MEB platform specially developed for EVs. How has the ID3 been doing since its market launch? Time to see how the flag hangs for the Wolfsburg electric standard-bearer.
In the field of ID models, things have gone fast at Volkswagen. After the ID3 came the ID4, the ID5 is planned and in the coming years the car manufacturer will further expand the electric range both upwards and downwards. The focus on the electric models can be seen in the sales figures. In the first half of this year, the Volkswagen Group sold 170,939 EVs, an increase of 165.2 percent compared to the same period last year. Volkswagen is also attracting a new buyer group: half of European ID3 buyers are new to the brand.
In total, 11,556 ID3s have been sold in the Netherlands to date. The lion’s share, 10,980 copies, were registered in 2020. That does not mean that Volkswagen has actually delivered so few ID3s in 2021: of the ID3s registered in 2020, according to the importer, ‘more than 3,500 copies’ went to a customer in 2021. Of course, the registration in 2020 made a difference in the addition. About two out of three ID3s is a ‘1st’, which was available in three different versions: ‘1st’, ‘1st Plus’ and ‘1st Max. These introduction variants are best recognized by the stickered C-pillar. In addition, the ID3 1st standard had the 58 kWh battery and 204 hp power.
The ID3 1st is easily recognizable by its stickered C-pillar.
The ID3 is currently available as Pure, Pro and Pro S. The Pure has a battery pack of 45 kWh with an electric motor of 145 hp. The Pro has a battery pack of 58 kWh and is available in two power variants: 145 or 204 hp. At the top of the ID3 series is the Pro S with a battery pack of 77 kWh and 204 hp. In terms of equipment, it does not differ much: the Pure has standard 18-inch steel wheels, Lane Assist, Adaptive Cruise Control, front and rear parking sensors, climate control and the navigation system ‘Discover Pro’ with smartphone integration. The Pro, equipped with a larger battery pack, does not add anything in terms of equipment, while the Pro S always comes with 19-inch alloy wheels and the Style Interior Package (height-adjustable passenger seat, heated steering wheel and extensive mood lighting).
Little color
According to importer Pon, the ID3 Pro with 204 hp is the most chosen variant outside the ‘1st’. More than half of the customers opt for this combination. Pon does indicate that the Pure is now gaining in popularity. The cheaper variant came on the market later, so it is only now starting to run a bit. In terms of color, the customer usually chooses gray: 31 percent of all ID3s are painted in ‘Mangan Grey’. In second place comes ‘Gletscher White’ with 29 percent, followed by ‘Moonstone Gray’ with 17 percent and ‘Scale Silver’ with 10 percent. The percentage of colorful ID3s is considerably lower. ‘Stonewashed Blue’, ‘Makena Turquoise’ and ‘Kings Red’ account for only 9.3 and 1 percent of ID3s sold, respectively.
The endurance test ID3 that we recently said goodbye to.
Although the steel wheels are standard, a minority of all ID3s roll on them: 16 percent roll on steel, the most popular wheel choice is the 19-inch ‘Andoya’ at 54 percent, followed by the 18-inch ‘East Derry’ at 17 percent and the 20-inch ‘Sanya’ by 13 percent. Among the interior packages, the Style Interior Package is the most popular, the Style Interior Package Plus and the Top Sport Interior Package Plus come in second and third place. With regard to the chosen option packages, the Comfort Package, which includes heated front seats, a heated steering wheel, extended center console, electrically folding exterior mirrors and an automatically dimming interior mirror, is the most popular.
For an additional cost of €1,000 you can equip the ID3 with a heat pump. According to the importer, this option is not very popular and the standard range is sufficient for most ID3 buyers: slightly more than 1 in 5 customers opt for the heat pump. The fast charging option for the Pure is again very popular: 80 percent of customers opt for the option of fast charging with 110 kW. The fast charging option is available as standard on the other variants of the ID3.
revival
To date, relatively few ID3s have been registered in the Netherlands in 2021, but according to the importer, that will change. The rest of Europe was due in the first half of 2021, but now it looks like a significant number of ID3s will come to the Netherlands in the last months of this year. Perhaps he can use a final sprint.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl