John drives a Volkswagen ID.3 Family 58kWh 2023.
This is John’s second electric car, he’s owned the ID.3 from new and drives 10,000-15,000 miles annually. The current mileage of the car is between 5,000-10,000 miles and he achieves 230 miles from a full charge.
Why did you choose the Volkswagen ID.3?
Financial advantages! When I had my first EV (2020) charging from council-installed chargers was free. This has changed but my pocket is still benefiting as is the environment. I love how easy it is to drive too.
Positives
- Ease of driving
- cost to run
- comfort
- interior space
- quietness of travelling made journeys much more relaxing than a petrol car.
Negatives
- Promise of over-the-air updates that did not materialise
- poor software in the car which led to breakdowns
- bad dealer support
- dubious tyre choice fitted as new, so I suffered a puncture on the day it was delivered and two more within 10 months
- battery problems.
Compared to when you first bought the car, does your battery still charge at the same rate & do you still get the same range?
Yes, it was no different.
Have you experienced any faults with the car? If so, what have they been?
- Both driver’s display and infotainment screens went blank while driving on three occasions so I couldn’t see what speed I was driving at or do anything other than stop, accelerate and brake. I stopped the car and restarted it and thankfully they returned to normal. The dealer wasn’t helpful really, they just reset the system and hoped it worked.
- lack of responsiveness of infotainment screen
- warning message appearing in a random manner and dealer not able to sort.
What are the standout technological features of the car?
- Comfort to travel in
- quietness inside
- interior space
- economical – over 10,000 miles at an average of 4.2 miles per kWh, this over a whole range of driving and weather conditions.
Surprise us! Tell us something people wouldn’t readily know about this electric car
The boot floor with its lower level meant precious items could be concealed.
What’s the biggest or funniest myth you’ve heard about EVs?
They keep bursting into flames!
What electric car(s) are you interested in next and why?
Tesla Model 3 RWD – range, working technology (e.g. over the air updates) & their Supercharger network.
Home charging unit
Wallbox Pulsar Plus – you can charge overnight at a low cost and go out on a frosty day to the car which is warm inside and defrosted but at no detriment to the range. It also works with Intelligent Octopus Go, is simple to operate and the app shows the units put into the car and at what cost.
Electricity supplier & tariff
Intelligent Octopus Go:
- Low cost for overnight charging
- easy to set the charging time via the app
- I’ve had problems for over 12 months now with inconsistent data being sent from the smart meter. This means I can pay full rate for the charge rather than the one I should be paying. Octopus seem unable to get an engineer out to our area to replace the meter. I’m still waiting for this to be resolved.
What public charging networks would you recommend to others and why?
- Tesla Supercharger – where they are available to non-Tesla cars. They are cheaper and generally reliable.
- GRIDSERVE – again, reliable but can be expensive
- IONITY – as above.
Insurer
LV= seem reasonable for the price with helpful customer service too. I’ve not claimed thankfully so cannot comment on how they handle this.
Please itemise where you’re saving money (or not) owning & running a Volkswagen ID.3
- Fuel cost-savings & zero road tax are all well known to most
- insurance is very similar to petrol so not a saving for me.
*Manufacturer image used.
See other Volkswagen ID.3 Owner Reviews here
