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New Volkswagen ID.4 Crowned World Car of the Year 2021

Right after the Euro NCAP awarded it five stars for safety, the ID.4 has been crowned "World Car of the Year 2021." It is the fifth WCOTY award for the German manufacturer since 2009 when the Golf won this title.
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Photo: Volkswagen
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Along with the compact-sized electric crossover, World Car of the Year winners include the Mercedes-Benz S-Class for luxury, Porsche 911 Turbo for performance, Honda e for urban vehicles, and Land Rover Defender for design. It’s quite an impressive lineup, but then again, the Honda isn’t the most capable or affordable electric vehicle out there, and the Defender is a shadow of its former self because of the woeful reliability record.

“We are particularly pleased about our ID.4 being named World Car of the Year,” said Ralf Brandstätter, chief executive officer of Volkswagen passenger cars. “Not only because it’s one of the most important awards in the world, but also because the jury honored a great idea and a great team.”

The bigger brother of the ID.3 could sell approximately 150,000 units in 2021, according to the Wolfsburg-based automaker. Volkswagen AG intends to become the world’s best-selling EV manufacturer by the decade’s end, and the ID.4 is an important stepping stone because it’s manufactured in Germany and China. As for the North American market where Tesla is king, the Chattanooga plant will start producing the ID.4 at some point in 2022.

Still, the newcomer isn’t without its faults. Doug DeMuro and pretty much everyone else who reviewed the ID.4 can’t make a case for the infotainment system, and the plastic used throughout the interior isn’t exactly great either. On the upside, the ID.4 offers a lot of passenger space, cargo capacity, batteries as large as 82 kWh, and a choice between one and two motors.

Priced from $39,995 before destination charge in the United States of America, the Volkswagen-branded electric crossover actually costs as low as $32,495 after the federal tax credit. Add a few state and local credits, and you’ll understand why the ID.4 has the makings of a commercial success.

Winner of the 2021 World Car of the Year is the #VolkswagenID4 #WCOTY #WorldCar #WorldCarAwards #WorldCarTV

Posted by World Car Awards on Tuesday, April 20, 2021
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About the author: Mircea Panait
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After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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