10 Things You Should Know About the 2025 VW ID Buzz 3-Row Electric Van

It's been a long wait, but Volkswagen has finally taken the wraps off the long-wheelbase version of the ID Buzz electric minivan , the variant that will make it to the United States and the rest of North America. We still have a while to wait for this nifty EV—it likely won't go on sale until the third quarter of 2024—so here are ten cool features from the all-electric van to tide you over until the ID Buzz goes on sale.

The 3-row ID Buzz's extra 10 or so inches of length isn't used just for people and stuff: Volkswagen also added more cells to the underfloor battery. The 3-row U.S.-spec ID Buzz will get a 91-kWh battery pack as opposed to the 82-kWh unit in the two-row. So that means more range, right? Well … maybe not, because along with the 3-row's greater size comes more weight.

Over in Europeland, the rear-drive ID Buzz has a 201-hp, 229-lb-ft motor. Here in America, the longer ID Buzz will get more powerful—282 hp and 406 lb-ft of torque, to be specific. That's quite a jump and should help with the Euro van's lackluster 10-ish-second 0-60-mph run. And that's just the rear-drive version, mind you: There will also be an all-wheel-drive, dual-motor variant, and Volkswagen says output will be around 330 hp.

At first glance, it might be tricky to tell the short- and long-wheelbase versions of the ID Buzz apart—and that's because along with lengthening the van, Volkswagen lengthened the doors, by 7.6 inches. Sure, VW could have fitted the same doors to both vans and saved some cabbage, but the longer doors provide better access to the third row, and they also preserve the van's visual proportions. Need an easy spotting feature? Look for a square in the side-door glass of the three-row van—that's a slide-open power window that the two-row lacks. It's a plug design that closes flush with the glass around it. Cool.

The standard minivan trick is to the ability to fold the third-row seats into a well in the floor, but that can't happen in the ID Buzz since there's an electric motor under there. So, the third row is removable, just like in a minivan from the '90s. The seat does split into two pieces, each of which is heavy but manageable for one person to lift out.

VW vans are well known for Westfalia camper conversions—and no, there isn't an ID Buzz version of one yet, but we do have the first element. VW will offer the ID Buzz with a solid shelf for the cargo bay that can mount at the same height as the folded-down seats. Fold down both back rows, and you have a nice big flat surface that will serve nicely as a bed for at least two. (Or more—free love, man, free love!)

We're so used to seeing cars in dull colors (how many shades of gray and silver do we really need?) that it's refreshing to see a vehicle with the ID Buzz's devotion to color. There are eight to choose from, including red, orange, yellow, green, and two shades of blue. (Of course, there are silver and gray, too. Yawn.) Most will be available in white-over two-tone, and there are three different interior color schemes with bright trim. If you were hoping for an anonymous-looking ID Buzz, you are so out of luck.

There's a nice big center console between the ID Buzz's front seats, and it contains a removable ice scraper for cold days and a removable bottle opener for hot days. (Enjoy responsibly, my friends.) Another nifty detail: The center console is itself removable, which makes it easy for a front-seat passenger to get to the back row to assist kids—a useful feature common to minivans of the 1980s and '90s but one that seems to have disappeared from modern-day vans.

Volkswagen has been promising the return of the Bus for decades, and it's finally happening! And although the futuristic styling and electric powertrain may not be to everyone's taste, we love that Volkswagen has created a modern-day vehicle just as groovy as the original. Now if only we could bring back Jerry Garcia …