Volkswagen ID.5 Review

25 October 2022

The Volkswagen ID.5 is a ‘coupe’ version of the ID.4 SUV; despite the fastback body style, it’s still spacious, as well as refined and comfortable.

This is a review for the Volkswagen ID.5

Coupe version of ID.4 SUV

Spacious

Refined

Comfortable

Volkswagen ID.5 design & powertrain

The Volkswagen ID.5 is based on the ID.4, sharing the rear-wheel drive (or all-wheel drive) platform, a battery with 77 kWh usable capacity, and an electric motor with either 174 PS, 204 PS or 299 PS of power.

The exterior and interior of both cars are very similar; the main difference is the slightly reduced height of the boot – although the boot size under the window line of 549 litres is actually slightly larger than the ID.4’s 543 litres. The ID.5 has 1,561 litres of luggage capacity with the rear seats down. There’s lots of space for rear-seat passengers.

Volkswagen ID5 on road with hills river sky scenery

What is the Volkswagen ID.5 like to drive?

The ID.5 shares its driving characteristics with the ID.4. There’s no start/stop switch – the car just starts automatically when you sit in the driver’s seat. The gear selector isn’t where you might expect, but instead it’s on the right-hand side of the driver’s instrument display. You can select ‘B’ rather than ‘D’ for increased brake regeneration.

The ride quality is good overall, although, as with most cars, the level of comfort reduces slightly with large alloy wheels and low profile tyres.

Volkswagen’s new bespoke electric platform has moved from the front-wheel drive layout of most of the brand’s petrol and diesel models to rear-wheel drive. This means that the driving experience is more rewarding, and there’s no wheelspin or torque steer that is often experienced in front-wheel drive EVs. The instant responses from the electric motor result in good levels of acceleration.

The ID.5’s interior has been stripped of the maximum number of physical buttons, with most car controls accessed through the touchscreen. There are four physical shortcut buttons under the screen: P Menu, Clima, Assist, and Mode.

‘Mode’ brings up choices on the screen for different drive modes – Eco or Comfort, with the option of Sport in a sub-menu.
‘Assist’ allows you to switch off driver assistance features such as the lane departure warning system.
‘Clima’ brings up a screen of heating and ventilation controls, and ‘P Menu’ allows the car to park itself.
On the touchscreen, there’s a blue button on the right of the screen which is essentially the ‘home’ button. The ID.5 can be updated by over-the-air software, so the layout of the touchscreen, and other features, could potentially change over time.

The ID.5 has ambient lighting with a choice of 30 colors, an augmented reality head-up display, and a voice assistant.

Charging the Volkswagen ID.5

The Volkswagen ID.5 Tech 77 kWh Pro 174 PS has an official WLTP electric driving range of 313 miles. You could expect a real-world driving range of around 260 miles. A WLTP range of up to 327 miles is available for the ID.5.

The ID.5 has a maximum DC rapid charging rate of 135 kW. Charging at 135 kW could provide a 0% to 80% charge in 29 minutes. It can also be charged at a home wall box (7.2 kW) when a 0% to 100% charge should take 12 hours and 40 minutes. If you have access to 11 kW charging, typically found at a workplace, a 0% to 100% charge should take 7 hours and 30 minutes.

There’s the option of a heat pump, which provides energy-efficient heating of the vehicle interior. This costs £1,050, although this is standard on Max and GTX Max trim levels.

One notable thing about the ID.5 is that it’s the first Volkswagen to have bi-directional charging. This means that it has the ability to put electricity from its battery back into your home, or the grid.

The Volkswagen ID.5 price and model range

The Volkswagen ID.5 is available from £50,625. Trim levels for the ID.5 are Style, Tech, Max, GTX Style and top of the range GTX Max. The ID.5 GTX has four-wheel drive.

There’s a single 77 kWh battery option, and three power outputs to choose from – 174 PS Pro, 204 PS Pro Performance and 299 PS GTX. Volkswagen says that the ID.5’s manufacturing is net carbon neutral.

Conclusion

It’s no surprise that the Volkswagen ID.5 shares the same qualities as the ID.4, including being refined, smooth, comfortable, spacious and having a good range. If you like all car controls on the central touchscreen, then you’re likely to be happy with the ID.5’s interior. So the decision is whether you want an SUV (ID.4) or an ‘coupe-SUV’ (ID.5) body style. And of course both models offer zero-tailpipe emissions and lower running cost than petrol or diesel cars.