The ID.4 is Volkswagen’s first dedicated electric vehicle. We found this small SUV to be quick, quiet, and roomy, and it’s competitively priced. But its unintuitive controls mar the experience, and the all-wheel-drive ID.4’s EPA-rated 255-mile driving range lags behind a few competitors, such as the Ford Mustang Mach-E.
We think the best option for buyers is to go with the 295-horsepower all-wheel-drive model like the one we tested (rather than the rear-drive version), which sprinted from 0 to 60 mph in 5.8 seconds. Power is plentiful with a smooth, linear, and silent punch, without snapping your neck back as some other EVs do. We found the range prediction quite accurate and the car would cover 250 miles comfortably during typical fall temperatures. However, when temperatures got below freezing, we saw less than 200 miles. The 201-hp rear-wheel-drive version we rented from VW failed to deliver the zippy acceleration we’ve come to expect from EVs, although it has a longer estimated driving range of 275 miles.