Volkswagen Id.5 Reviews

Time’s up! Our three-month long-term test of the Volkswagen ID.5 Pro is over and I have so many thoughts about this electric car. It does some things way better than its rivals but misses the mark slightly in other areas.This is the stuff you learn over a longer period of time as an owner would discover, too.The Volkswagen ID.5 is one of the best mid-sized electric SUVs I’ve driven. The emphasis is on the word "driven", however.Sure Volkswagen might not be the first brand you think of when it comes to EVs, especially given the enormous variety offered by Chinese brands, but the company’s cars are nearly always excellent to drive and the ID.5 is no different.Some EVs are just quick at accelerating but the rest of the driving experience feels half baked, from the ride and handling to the steering and driving position.The ID.5 isn’t all that quick when it comes to accelerating (0-100km/h in 6.7 seconds) compared to some EVs, but all the components that make a superb driving car are there.The steering is accurate and well weighted, the suspension setup offers both a comfortable ride and sporting handling, the seating position makes you feel part of the car, and, being rear-wheel drive, the ID.5 Pro benefits from better traction, good balance and a sporty feel.The next best ID.5 Pro takeaway is the 543km driving range which is equal to many petrol SUVs. For city dwellers like our family who only do between 60 and 150km a week, it was enough to last a couple of weeks between charges.This month, for example, we only travelled 238km. But keep in mind we have two cars in our family - the one we own and the car I’m testing. If we were a one-car family, then you might find the ID.5 needs to be charged weekly.Batteries are very different to petrol tanks and charge can be used up faster, depending on the type of driving. Motorways tend to deplete the charge, whereas lower-speed city driving with lots of braking will conserve the charge. The ID.5 does well on this front. Official energy consumption is 16.3kWh/100km, but we averaged 18.8kWh over three months. Still, many electric SUVs hover above 20kWh and I’m sure with more conservative driving the ID.5 would easily hover around the official consumption figure.And my final best bit of the ID.5 is the design. I wasn’t sold on the styling at first and I still think this car looks inflatable and odd, but it’s such a refreshing change from all the SUVs that seem to look the same. With this unique design the ID.5 oozes premium car quality inside and out. The ID.5’s biggest drawback is the lack of cabin practicality, and not just in terms of outright space. It feels like VW didn't prioritise storage solutions, which isn't great for a medium sized SUV that'll be considered by families.Seriously, I have driven two smaller electric SUVs recently with far more space and cleverer interior packaging than the ID.5. This lack of clever storage is unusual for a Volkswagen which is a brand that prides itself on its utility.Electric cars don’t have drive shafts and transmission tunnels eating into cabin space so there really is no excuse.The boot’s usability is reduced due to the sloping coupe roofline and there’s no front boot here, either. The mechanically identical ID.4 has a more practical boot. With 549 litres on offer, the boot is large enough for shopping, just don't try to fit anything too tall in there.Yes, there are door pockets and cup holders, but that’s about it. A family needs trays, large covered areas, hidey holes and deep wells for all of the bits and pieces that follow them.Add to this a cabin without physical buttons, but with touch-sensitive haptic controls instead for everything from volume to temperature control, and the car loses points for functionality.The ID.5 would suit people without children or those whose children have flown the nest. But for busy parents the ID.5 doesn’t offer the kind of help needed in terms of space and practicality. If only there was a fully electric version of the Volkswagen Tiguan! This would be perfect. That said, the ID.5 really is lovely to drive and for those looking at buying an electric car that is as good to pilot as the best combustion cars, this is it. This electric SUV is also appealing thanks to its unique design that differentiates it from the same-same design of so many modern EVs. Acquired: March 2026Distance travelled this month: 238kmOdometer: 2633kmAverage energy consumption this month: 18.1kWh/100km

Why do things grow on us? You know, when you don’t really like something but after a while you begin to appreciate it more. What is this phenomenon? Because it’s happening to me after two months of living with the Volkswagen ID.5. This car has me feeling conflicted.In my last instalment I testified that the ID.5 wasn’t pretty to look at and while I still don’t disagree with that first impression, the unique styling is growing on me. Having driven so many 'samey' electric SUVs I’m starting to think it is quite brave of Volkswagen to not just make another one that also looks like a bar of soap.Look at the ID.5’s side profile (see images) - it’s almost cartoon-like with its bulbous shapes. There are also small tocuhes of design flare I really like from the way the paint colour scoops into the black bumper and the white VW badge on the bonnet.The cabin styling is growing on me. I like the sculpted door trims and woven headlining but I’m also noticing the hard plastics and a colour scheme that feels a bit dull now. There are also cabin design elements that I didn’t really take in at first but after two months I find them unappealing. Really unappealing. The fold-down armrests on the front seats, for example - they look as though they’re from office chairs, so out of place and unstylish (see images).The instrument cluster is another example - it’s quite small and toy-like - and the lack of head up display is perplexing.From the start, I had my doubts about the practicality of the ID.5, especially from a family car perspective. That feeling has solidified after living with it daily with my family of four. The interior space just isn’t packaged as well as it could be.Overly large and thick front seats eat into rear legroom, and the coupe-like roofline limits headroom, combining to limit space for adults and make getting our child car seat in a squeeze.The rear doors don't offer the biggest aperture, either (see images).Storage is also an issue with a thin centre console area which lacks functionality along with cupholders that feel far from people but too close to controls.An opportunity for good storage is also missed under that floating centre console with no stowage area (see images).Topping off this bad run are the haptic controls which have been frustrating me. The climate controls are haptic and require constant swiping and pressing to work effectively.The door handles have a similar haptic feel and aren’t pleasant or easy to use.Finally the driver's master window switches have one set of controls and require you to toggle between front and back. I’m constantly having to look down at the switches to see if I’m about to put my widow down or the one behind me.My first impression of the way the ID.5 drives was a good one - comfortable, planted brisk accleration - and I still feel that way. However, I was also a passenger for some trips this month and I'd forgotten how electric cars can induce car sickness due to their sudden acceleration and one-pedal braking. I also found as a passenger the ID.5’s suspension is quite firm and body control can be a bit busy too.This month we covered only 547km and used quite a lot of energy doing so - 22.0kWh/100km. I have to say I’m not using the strong setting on regenerative braking as much now and the climate control has been getting a workout as we’ve headed into winter.Oh, and finally, the visibility out of the rear window is obstructed by the coupe roofline and headrests (see images).So, that’s it for another month. I’m still impressed by the quality feel and the comfort of the cabin and the quirky styling but there are practicality issue galore.Acquired: March 2026Distance travelled this month: 547kmOdometer: 2395kmAverage energy consumption this month: 22.0kWh/100km

A month ago we said goodbye to our Chery Tiggo 8 Super Hybrid long-term test car and hello to our current one, the Volkswagen ID.5 SUV.Alongside its ID.4 sibling, the ID.5 is Volkswagen’s first electric SUV and it's the first time I’ve driven one, so I entered this long-term test the same way you walk into a supermarket while on holiday - a bit lost, even if everything looks the same.The ID.5 is a mid-sized electric SUV and the Volkswagen rival to the Toyota bZ4x, Tesla Model Y, Geely EX5 and the mechanically related Skoda Enyaq.The ID.5 is the not-so identical twin to the ID.4, the difference being the ID.5 has a swoopier, coupe-like profile while the ID.4 has a boxier shape.Both the ID.5 and ID.4 are offered in two grades, the Pro and the sporty, top-of-the-range GTX.The ID. 5 Pro is the car we are testing and it lists for $62,990 before on-road costs.The standard features list includes heated and massaging front seats, three-zone climate control, a panoramic sunroof, a head-up display, proximity unlocking and LED headlights.The ID.5 has a 77kWh battery and a range of up to 543km. There’s one motor and it makes 210kW and 543Nm.What’s interesting is that Volkswagen created completely new models for its first electric SUVs rather than just making an electric variant of its combustion powered Tiguan mid-sized SUV.Frankly, I think an electric Tiguan would have been a better idea and I’ll tell you why later.My first impression is that the ID.5 isn’t really an SUV but just a large-ish, round-ish car. Some people told me they loved the way it looked, but I have trouble seeing its beauty. Although I admit it is uniquely designed compared to many SUVs.I immediately appreciate the quality feel of every touch point, from the door handles through to the seats and steering wheel. The ID.5 doesn’t look like any Volkswagen that went before it, but the materials and craftsmanship are very much on-brand even if the styling is new.I was concerned the ID.5 might not be big enough for my family. It doesn't seem particularly spacious or practical for a family of five.Getting our child into the car and buckled up has been hard on my back, largely because of the coupe-like roofline. Higher-riding SUVs with taller door openings make this job easy, but the ID.5’s shape doesn’t help. Halfway through putting my daughter into her car seat in the pouring rain at night, I wished Volkswagen had just made a Tiguan EV. At least the ID.4 has a boxier shape.However, the space back there for head and legroom is actually very good. Our forward-facing child seat fits well with room for our daughter’s legs without the front passenger having to squash themselves against the dashboard.Storage is good with big door pockets but the adaptable cup holder area is a waste of space (literally) and the wireless phone charger lives in a pokey little cave down there, too.The boot is big at 549 litres but, again, the sloping roofline means tall objects won't fit under that hatch. Again, I miss the practicality of the Tiguan with its draws and utility. At this point I feel like VW has forgotten its ethos of maintaining practicality.Finally, while the volume and climate control functions are physical they're haptic buttons which sometimes work and sometimes don’t. It’s already making me go a bit bananas.The best thing about the ID.5 so far is energy efficiency. Also, the way the ID.5 drives, too. It’s smooth, comfortable, planted and quick. And we’ve spent more than a thousand kilometres behind the wheel - 1142km to be exact.But really if there's one thing that impresses me the most, it’s the SUV's efficiency. Some EVs I've lived with have given me such range anxiety. They've stayed home in the driveway while we’ve taken our own combustion car instead if we are traveling far and the availability of chargers is scarce.But the ID.5 uses its charge quite frugally. Officially, the combined energy use is 16.3kWh/100km but we’ve done even better at 15.8kWh. In the coming months I’ll attempt to calculate exactly how far we can get on a full charge because I might be able to beat the 543km range.I know I’m going to regret saying that…The headlights perform an unsettling movement when the car detects the key within range. It’s a sort of shifty side-eye action that is a bit too life-like for me.The other thing is the ID.5's accelerator pedal has a 'play button’ icon embossed on it and there’s a pause button on the brake pedal. I don’t like this nor do I like the person who thought it was cute, whoever they are. Acquired: March 2026Distance travelled this month: 1142kmOdometer: 1848kmAverage energy consumption this month: 15.8kWh/100km  

GTX carries the mantle of GTI, but does the ID.5 do enough to justify its existence in an increasingly crowded mid-size EV market?