Electrek.co
by Jameson Dow
VW has revealed the much-anticipated North American version of its ID. Buzz electric microbus, with an extra row of seats and starting deliveries next year.
The new ID. Buzz version is much like the two-row European spec, but with a little more of just about everything.
It has 282hp as opposed to 201hp (plus an available 330hp dual-motor configuration) with a top speed of 99 mph instead of 90 mph, 91kWh instead of 82kWh of battery, and is a full 10 inches longer.
Those additional 10 inches all come in the form of a 10-inch-longer wheelbase on the NA-spec. At 192.4 inches long, the three-row ID. Buzz is actually a full 2 feet longer than VW’s original 168-inch-long microbus.
This all means more space for humans and cargo compared to the two-row version (though the extra row of seats takes up some of that space, but the 2nd row folds flat and 3rd row can be removed).
It also means room for an extra 9kWh of battery. VW hasn’t yet announced the range of the three-row version, though the European spec has 263 miles on the WLTP cycle.
While the NA-spec has a larger battery, it’s also a longer and heavier vehicle, and EPA mileage estimates are significantly lower than WLTP estimates, so we can’t be sure what the final number will shake out as.
We don’t know if there are any changes to the Buzz’s charging capability either – the EU spec has 170kW charging, and that will likely stay the same for the US version, but a larger battery could enable slightly faster charging speeds, which would be nice.