Volkswagen ID.7 Review & Prices

The fourth model in Volkswagen’s electric car line-up, the ID7 is a family saloon with a sporty design that should appeal to you if you haven’t succumbed to the SUV fever that has taken hold of buyers in the last decade or so.

As a left-field alternative to the SUV, it’s a bit like sticking with skinny jeans when the on-trend fashionable types have moved on to baggier ones.

First impressions are strong, with the long ID7 (it’s a shade under five metres from bumper to bumper) looking like a modern family car, with a swooping roof that makes it look slick and sporty. 

Inside, there’s plenty of space throughout, with a lot of legroom and headroom – despite the fact that the ID7 has the lowest roof of any of VW’s electric models. The boot has a 532-litre capacity, increasing to 1,586 litres if you lower the rear seats, so it should be enough for most family uses. If not, the more practical ID7 Tourer could be worth waiting for.

Helping to make the cabin more airy is an optional full-length glass roof with smart glass, where the layers of glass in the sunroof can be electronically switched between opaque and clear, using a slider in the roof or voice control (which we’ll come to in a minute).

Car manufacturers are very keen on introducing new technologies in their shiny, new zero-emissions vehicles: in this case, Volkswagen’s nifty innovation is an augmented-reality head-up display (HUD), which comes as standard on all ID7s.

The HUD is some pretty clever tech, but it’s also significant because it has a knock-on effect on the layout of the cockpit. The traditional instruments become smaller (because the driver won’t need to look at them as much) which is an innovation that works well, while Volkswagen has also given the infotainment system a more intuitive menu structure on its 15.0-inch touchscreen.

Another way in which the ID7 hints at what will be the norm in future cars is the voice control feature. Voice controls aren’t new, by any means, but systems like the ID7’s are now more like the ones on smartphones, responding to commands or questions that are spoken more naturally. Whether that means it will interrupt the conversations between the driver and front-seat passenger (awkward!) remains to be seen. In the future, it'll even be integrated with AI functionality from ChatGPT.

As the ID7 is a relatively large car, there’s plenty of room under the floor for a battery pack – and the first versions of the model to go on sale have a 77kWh battery. This bigger-than-average battery means that the ID7 has a range of up to 386 miles, with its 286hp motor enabling a respectable 6.5-second 0-62mph time. A version with an even larger battery will arrive later in 2024 with a range of about 430 miles – enough to drive from London to Edinburgh without stopping (theoretically, although your bladder might have something to say).

The onboard charging system is pretty state of the art, too. You can charge an ID7 on one of those fancy (and expensive) ultra-rapid chargers at the motorway services, taking enough electricity in 10 minutes to cover 126 miles: you can also charge a battery at 10% up to 80% in 28 minutes.

If all this sounds good, keep reading for our full take on the ID7. You can take a look at our latest VW ID7 deals here, or take a look at used examples of some of the other Volkswagen ID models, such as the ID4 and ID5. Want to sell your car? Well, Carwow can help with that, too.

There's currently only one model of ID7 available. Named the Pro Launch Edition, it comes extremely well-equipped. On the outside there are 19-inch alloy wheels and LED lights all round, while inside you get heated and massaging seats, three-zone climate control, adaptive cruise control, and the 15.0-inch touchscreen loaded with features. At around £55,000 it's about £6,000 more expensive than a Long Range Tesla Model 3, though it's a significantly larger car. It's close in size to the BMW i5, which it undercuts by around £20,000.

There are a couple of options packs. The Exterior Pack adds LED Matrix headlights, privacy glass, and an electric hatchback, while the Exterior Pack Plus adds Dynamic Chassis Control (DCC) which includes adjustable suspension. The Interior Pack adds ventilation and more massage functions to the front seats, upgrades the sound system and brings more colours for the ambient lighting.

One pos one neg overview sentence: Not too unwieldy around town and comfy on the motorway, but a Kia EV6 is more fun to drive

In town

The Volkswagen ID7 is a very long car, so you might think it’s going to be quite a challenge to drive around tight city centres. However, it’s really not too bad. Visibility at the front is good, with only moderate blind spots round the windscreen pillars, and a whole suite of electronic safety aids help you manoeuvre. A 360-degree camera system comes as standard, helping you thread your way through width restrictions or park without kerbing your alloys.

It copes well with speed bumps, potholes and pockmarked surfaces, though it’s not as soft as a Nissan Ariya. And as the ID7 is a saloon car, rather than an SUV, you don’t get the high-set driving position and imperious view out over other traffic.

The ID7 only has one level of regenerative braking - switched on by twisting the drive selector into ‘B’ mode. It’s quite strong, but it doesn’t go all the way down to a full stop like the Kia EV6, so you can’t drive around town with just one pedal.

On the motorway

The ID7 is extremely comfortable at a fast cruise - it’s very quiet and relaxing, with the slippery shape of the body meaning wind noise is minimal. It’s definitely as good as a Kia EV6 on the motorway, or even the much more expensive BMW i5. 

The ID7 claims 386 miles of range according to official test procedures. Obviously you’ll get less than that at a constant 70mph, but 300 miles should still be achievable if you’re not too liberal with the accelerator. 

The standard electric motor produces 282hp, which is plenty, but many other EVs have a lot more power in reserve. A Kia EV6 or Hyundai Ioniq 5 feels easier to execute decisive overtakes with.

On a twisty road

Head out onto an undulating back road and the ID7 does its best to keep things neutral. You aren’t encouraged to carve up the corners, and the car’s safety systems step in before even very exuberant steering inputs result in things getting hairy.

Opt for the more sophisticated Dynamic Chassis Control and you can adjust the suspension by 13 levels of firmness. At its softest it’s extremely pillowy - great for motorway cruises - but firm it up and the ID7 corners with almost no lean. 

A Kia EV6 or BYD Seal are still more rewarding than the ID7 on a fun road, thanks to steering that tells you a little more about what the front wheels are doing. But the ID7 doesn’t embarrass itself given its clear bias towards comfort. A high-performance ID7 GTX will join the range later in 2024, and will fill the niche of a sporty variant.

A big boot and lots of legroom - but headroom could be better

The ID7 has pretty sophisticated front seats. They’re certified by the German campaign for healthy backs (AGR) and are very adjustable - with four-way lumbar support and an extendable seat base to help support longer legs in addition to the usual fore/aft, backrest and seat height adjustments.

They’re also heated, and come with a massage function as standard. Specify the Interior Pack and you get more choices of massage, as well as seat ventilation. Unlike many cars, you can have the seat heating and ventilation on at the same time - there’s even a function called ‘Dry Boost’ which is supposed to help if your clothes are slightly damp.

Storage up front isn’t bad. The door bins are large, and felt-lined so that items you place in them won’t rattle. There’s also a large cubby under the central armrest, while the two hideaway covers in the centre console conceal a pair of cupholders, two USB-C ports and a wireless charging pad. The glovebox is quite small, though.

Space in the back seats

There’s loads of room in the back of the ID7, especially legroom - even tall passengers can stretch out. There’s also enough space to slide your feet under the front seats, which isn’t always a given in an electric car where that space might be occupied by batteries.

Headroom is not so generous, and anyone much over six feet tall might have to slouch a little bit to avoid their hair brushing the headlining. The outer two seats are quite sculpted, making the centre seat quite a narrow perch - the ID7 is better as a comfortable four-seater. There are two ISOFIX points on the rear bench, though loading a child seat isn’t quite as easy as it would be in an SUV with a higher roofline and larger doors.

Boot space

Boot capacity is a generous 532 litres with the rear seats in place. That’s bigger than a Kia EV6 (490 litres) or a Tesla Model 3 (425 litres). Plus, unlike the Tesla, the ID7 has a full-height hatchback boot instead of a narrow saloon opening, making it much easier to load bulky items in. Fold the rear seats down and there’s a 1,586-litre space.

The rear seats split 60:40, and there’s a ski hatch in the middle to allow you to carry long, thin items between two rear passengers.There’s also an adjustable boot floor - in its higher position it leaves a totally flat floor when the seats are folded, but you can lower it for a little more height in the boot. Underneath, there’s a compartment ideal for storing charging cables, which is useful as the ID7 doesn’t have a front storage compartment (or ‘frunk’) like the Tesla Model 3 or BYD Seal do.

New infotainment system is a huge improvement - shame the cabin environment is a bit dark and dingy

The highlight of the Volkswagen ID7’s interior is its infotainment system. This new generation of touchscreen will be rolled out across Volkswagen’s whole ID range, and it’s been developed according to a lot of customer feedback. 

It uses a 15.0-inch screen, mounted high up on the dash. Underneath are some touch-sensitive buttons, which are now backlit so you can see what you’re doing at night. The software now operates a lot like a smartphone - there’s a configurable homepage with various widgets, and two rows of shortcut keys that can be swapped out to give you quicker access to the functions you most want to use.

It is still firmly a touch-sensitive system, though - the only physical switchgear in the cabin, besides the column stalks, is the button for the hazard lights. While it’s not particularly difficult to adjust things like the climate control through the ID7’s touchscreen, it’s not as easy to do on the move as it would be with a discrete panel of switches. One or two functions, such as changing driving modes, require you to take your eyes off the road for just a little while too long for our liking.

There is a fairly sophisticated voice assistant baked in, which doubles most functions of the infotainment system. You can even change the activation word to your own custom one - which is useful if you find yourself accidentally activating the system with the name of a family member.

While the ID7’s touchscreen is a huge improvement over the existing system used on the ID3, ID4 and ID Buzz, it’s still not the best around. A Kia EV6 or Hyundai Ioniq 6 use more straightforward software, backed up by physical switches for the climate control. Meanwhile, a Tesla Model 3 has a more natural-feeling touchscreen interface, though it goes a step further with the headlights, wipers and even the drive selector on-screen.

The massive central touchscreen is complimented by a narrow driver information display behind the wheel. This just shows the very basics of speed, range and warnings, while other functions such as giving navigation directions are handed off to the head-up display. 

Material and build quality throughout the cabin is good. The dashboard is covered in soft-touch plastic and leather, and you don’t find many hard, scratchy materials until you’re well away from the main touch points. The exception is the cupholders in the centre console, which are sharp-edged and feel quite cheap.

Officially the VW ID7 will do 386 miles of range on a full charge of its 77kWh battery. That’s a very competitive number - it’s far higher than the best Kia EV6 (328 miles) and almost as good as the Tesla Model 3 Long Range, which claims 390 miles on a full charge. In terms of mileage for the money, it’s one of the best ratios on sale - if you want more range from an electric car at the moment you need to opt for a much more expensive model from the Mercedes model line-up.

We’d estimate a real-world 300 miles is quite easily achievable, provided you’re not too liberal with the accelerator. Driven carefully around town, expect to come closer to that WLTP figure. One thing to note, though, is that a heat pump - which makes the heating system much more efficient in the winter - is an optional extra. Without it, your range in cold weather is likely to suffer a fair bit.

Given a sufficiently powerful DC charger, the ID7 will top up its batteries at an impressive rate of 175kW. That means (in theory) a 10-80% charge will take just 28 minutes, which is in line with most rivals, even those with smaller batteries. Home charging will take eight hours for a 0-100% charge from an 11kW supply, or closer to 11 hours from a more common 7.4kW supply.

A version with an even larger 86kWh battery will join the ID7 range later in 2024. This should achieve around 430 miles on the WLTP cycle. Conversely, a high-performance GTX model with four-wheel drive will see some range traded for poorer performance.

With its electric powertrain and a relatively modest list price compared to most EVs of similar size and performance, the ID7 makes an enticing proposition as a company car. It’s also exempt from road tax and London’s congestion charge, at the moment, so it could easily save you some serious cash if you live around the capital.

When tested by Euro NCAP, the ID7 scored a full five star safety rating, with particularly impressive scores in the adult occupant protection category. There’s a ton of safety equipment included as standard - not only do you get the mandated autonomous emergency braking, traffic sign assist and speed limit alerts, but you get a full 360-degree camera system, adaptive cruise control, automatic parking assistance, and Matrix LED headlights.

The ID range of Volkswagens has proved fairly mechanically sound - electric cars often are - but software gremlins plagued the infotainment system and attracted several complaints. It’s far too early to know whether the ID7 will be similarly afflicted, however.

Like all VWs, the ID7 comes with a fairly ungenerous three-year/60,000 mile warranty that pales in comparison to Kia’s seven-year offering, or the four-year/unlimited mile warranty on a Tesla Model 3. The battery is covered for eight years or 100,000 miles, which is in line with the vast majority of competitors.