VW ID.3 Preview event in London on 25th January, fancy going?

[IanB]

I am down for this as I placed a deposit on the ID.3 1st. I now cannot make it on the 25th, anybody fancy going?, here is the info sent to me;


Thank you for registering your interest for our exclusive ID.3 preview event on Saturday 25 January – we’re looking forward to seeing you there.

As well as having the chance to get up close and personal with the ID.3, you’ll be able to get some fascinating insights and ‘insider’ tips on this new car from the Volkswagen UK team who know it best. Several team members will be on hand to answer your questions and award-winning journalist Jonny Smith who you may know from Fully Charged, will also be with us.

Whilst there won’t be a chance to drive the car, it’ll still be a great opportunity to be amongst the first to preview the first member of the ID. family!

The event will be held at Magazine London. Located on Greenwich Peninsula with breath-taking views across the River Thames, it’s easily accessible by road, river and tube (North Greenwich, Jubilee line, a five-minute walk).

Magazine London, 11 Ordnance Crescent, Greenwich Peninsula, London SE10 0JH.

I have to send details of who is going and you are allowed to take a guest, I will just say I cant make it so a family member is taking my place

First to PM me with details gets to go , I have to reply by Monday with;

• First name
• Surname
• Mobile number
• Are you bringing a guest?
  • If so, what is their full name?
• Please provide your emergency contact details:
  • First name
  • Surname
  • Mobile number
• Do you have any dietary requirements?
  • If so, please state them here.
• Do you have any additional requirements?

 

[mo.dilwar]

PM sent mate

 

[Joelly]

very interested - what time is the event?

 

[Jason71]

I think the lucky recipients should agree to ask some question on behalf of the rest of us.
here's mine:
1) Are recent reports correct that the LR version will be a 4 seater due to the weight of the battery.
2) That being the case what is the total load carrying capacity i.e. will a family and their luggage be able to actually use it for the long trips its battery capacity makes it suited to?

 

[mo.dilwar]

I think the lucky recipients should agree to ask some question on behalf of the rest of us.
here's mine:
1) Are recent reports correct that the LR version will be a 4 seater due to the weight of the battery.
2) That being the case what is the total load carrying capacity i.e. will a family and their luggage be able to actually use it for the long trips its battery capacity makes it suited to?

Happy to ask as many questions members would like me to.

 

[mo.dilwar]

Wondering how many attendees will drive up in a Tesla

 

[Glan gluaisne]

I'd certainly be interested in some feedback from the event. I had a deposit down for an ID.3, but withdrew it shortly after the reveal at Frankfurt, mainly because I decided I just couldn't live with the interior design. In that respect I prefer the interior look of the Seat elBorn (same car, basically).

The ID.3 was probably a better fit for our needs than the Model 3, although I'm sure it wouldn't have been as much fun to drive. In terms of size, being a hatchback rather than a saloon, and having enough range, the ID.3 still ticks most of the boxes for us, so it might be an option when (or if) I ever change cars again.

 

[IanB]

I'd certainly be interested in some feedback from the event. I had a deposit down for an ID.3, but withdrew it shortly after the reveal at Frankfurt, mainly because I decided I just couldn't live with the interior design. In that respect I prefer the interior look of the Seat elBorn (same car, basically).

The ID.3 was probably a better fit for our needs than the Model 3, although I'm sure it wouldn't have been as much fun to drive. In terms of size, being a hatchback rather than a saloon, and having enough range, the ID.3 still ticks most of the boxes for us, so it might be an option when (or if) I ever change cars again.

SEAT elBorn looks good, front is a little Tesla/Ford Focus ish

The more I see the Id.3 the more I dislike the styling, I think it is a bit lazy, very much golf with beetle sort of nose which I really don't like, the interior styling looks like it has been done for a 5 year old to play with, even the centre screen looks like a small ipad with a child friendly surround.

I really think VW has a chance to make a big hit in the EV market if they gets things right, but not sure about the ID.3, the ID Crozz could be very interesting.

 

[Glan gluaisne]

Glad it's not just me that has a problem with the styling of the ID.3. I can live with unusual outside design features of cars, as you don't spend ours looking at them (probably why I quite liked the weird little BMW i3). I can't live with interior design that I don't like much though, just because I'll spend hours looking at it.

 

[Adopado]

SEAT elBorn looks good, front is a little Tesla/Ford Focus ish

Yes ... I would have certainly considered one if it had been available and if it had a superb, countrywide charger network ... no to both of those so crossed off the list! I can't see me giving up on all the Tesla loveliness now though!

 

[MrBadger]

If ID.3 had bigger boot and supercharging network it would be top of my list. Nearly cancelled the Model 3 pre delivery, but it all came down to size of boot and access of third party charging when away from home.

 

[Glan gluaisne]

It will be interesting to see how the collaboration between various legacy automanufacturers (including VW) and Ionity pans out. If they do as they say they are going to do, then the Ionity network could come close to rivalling the Supercharger network in a few years time. The main drawback will be that any non-Tesla charging network will suffer from being slightly less convenient with regard to payment, even if they do manage to get around the present situation where dozens of different cards/apps are needed in order to use chargers just within a single country.

Personally I'd like to see more emphasis on getting destination charge points working to a common, easy to use, standard, as the majority of my charging is done either at home or at a destination charge point.

 

[Glan gluaisne]

I'd better withdraw the above bit about Ionity, as it seems they are charging a pretty staggering £0.67/kWh. At that price I can see even more people opting for a Tesla, just for access to the Supercharger network, at a fraction of the price to charge, and an easier charging experience.

 

[mo.dilwar]

I'd better withdraw the above bit about Ionity, as it seems they are charging a pretty staggering £0.67/kWh. At that price I can see even more people opting for a Tesla, just for access to the Supercharger network, at a fraction of the price to charge, and an easier charging experience.

Actually it seems it’ll be 69p per kW, see: IONITY - WHERE & HOW

Seriously crazy pricing.

Edit: I suspect the pricing model is more of a deterrent than anything. As they will be the only charging network (other than Tesla SC) that can charge at upto 250 kWh, they probably don’t want to have all their stations constantly occupied. The current £8 flat price is also having a similar affect as it’s only the best financial choice for those on super low SoC.

 

[Daverh]

Actually it seems it’ll be 69p per kW, see: IONITY - WHERE & HOW

Seriously crazy pricing.

Edit: I suspect the pricing model is more of a deterrent than anything. As they will be the only charging network (other than Tesla SC) that can charge at upto 250 kWh, they probably don’t want to have all their stations constantly occupied. The current £8 flat price is also having a similar affect as it’s only the best financial choice for those on super low SoC.

Yes it looks like a deterrent as the rate is for people who aren't part of the VAG, Merc, BMW, Ford club. My guess is that they'll give an amount of free charging with new vehicles or reduced monthly subscription.

 

[mo.dilwar]

I think the lucky recipients should agree to ask some question on behalf of the rest of us.
here's mine:
1) Are recent reports correct that the LR version will be a 4 seater due to the weight of the battery.
2) That being the case what is the total load carrying capacity i.e. will a family and their luggage be able to actually use it for the long trips its battery capacity makes it suited to?

I’ll be attending this event in the next couple of hours.

Any more questions forum members would like me to ask in addition to the above?

 

[Mark_T]

Yes it looks like a deterrent as the rate is for people who aren't part of the VAG, Merc, BMW, Ford club. My guess is that they'll give an amount of free charging with new vehicles or reduced monthly subscription.

It is only a deterrent if you don't have access to charging at home, or you will need to use it very frequently.

A lot of people will only need that sort of service on a few occasions during a year so it just becomes a part of the vacation costs for example.

I still think the main problem to solve is delivering home charging capability for those who only have on-street parking or remote parking with no power. Those are the ones who can't consider an EV without access to cheap fast charging.

 

[IanB]

Let us know how it went

 

[mo.dilwar]

So the event started at 11 and lasted until 12:30ish. We hung around for another hour to mingle and chat with Jonny Smith.

The event itself was just a PR shindig, to repeat most of the things you can find on the VW website and elsewhere.

They did have one ID.3 on show, but it was a preproduction LHD model, which we weren’t allowed to open the boot. Alas no test drive either.

They did announce some new information here as well to be fair.

Firstly price. The 1st Edition model (the launch car which is basically the 2nd top trim/model) will cost just under £36k after the government grant. I take that to mean £35,999 or thereabouts. So just under the “Luxury” car tax bracket.

The 1st edition will be the only car being delivered during the launch period, with no firm dates on when the other trims will go into production.

Talking of the product line; VW will start producing the cars so that deliveries can begin in Q3 (any time between July and September). As VW are the official car partner for Euro 2020, the ID.3 will be heavily promoted during the tournament and there will be a number of them on the road around Europe to transport VIPs, including in London where the semi finals and final will take place.

VW will send out emails to 1st edition reservation holders towards the end of Q1 (basically in March), to configure their car interior and paint colour choices. There will be a five week window for these customers to confirm their orders, failure to do so within that time frame will result in the reservation holder losing their place in the production line.

Reservation holders may be able to opt for a different trim other than the 1st Edition. However these will only go into production once all the 1st edition vehicles have been built.

The car itself looked and felt well built, even though it was a preproduction model. However, it didn’t feel as lush or premium as my M3 SR+. I was surprised that the model on show did not have power adjust seats or steering column (not sure if the UK 1st Edition will be the same). They had a cool HUD demo stand, but apparently this will not be available for the 1st edition cars.

I could not get any confirmation able the possibility that Long Range models might only have 4 seats to accommodate the larger battery pack.

All in all the event was nice. But I’ve come away a bit disappointed that this car will cost almost as much as a M3 SR+, which in my biased opinion a way better car. I know there will be 2/3 lower trim models that hopefully will be a bit cheaper. But those will have lower range and power.

Thanks again to @IanB for getting me the invite.

 

[MrBadger]

Nice looking car in that blue. Hopefully it will sell in large numbers.