Volkswagen ID.3 POV Ridealong Reveals Supreme Levels of Soundproofing

As the German company promised all the way back in late 2015, the ID.3 will only be the first of many. Volkswagen's sudden shift toward electric power came after the infamous Dieselgate scandal, which cost the Wolfsburg-based carmaker billions and put a large stain on its image.

The VW PR team quickly realized that the only way to save face was to show concern for the environment by announcing an ample EV program while continuing to, you know, sell diesel-powered vehicles as well. A behemoth such as Volkswagen needed time for the transition and with a combination between its own treacherous actions and the industry's growing push toward EVs, time was in short supply.

Fast forward to 2020 and we have the ID.3 - the battery-powered hatchback that Volkswagen has bet so much on, at least as far as the European market is concerned. For everywhere else, it has the ID.4 electric crossover lined up shortly, though we'll have to wait a few more months for that.

We've seen the preparations for the start of ID.3 deliveries in Norway as hundreds of EVs were offloaded on Scandinavian shores on Friday, and you can be sure similar steps are being taken all over the continent. Most early adopters bought the ID.3 relying strictly on the provided specs, the available images, and VW's reputation of building good quality cars. Now, though, we get the first independent videos showing what the production version of the ID.3 is really like.

This particular video gives the viewer the chance to draw their own conclusions. There is no voice-over, no text, no explanation whatsoever - just some raw footage of the ID.3. The one thing that stroke us immediately was just how quiet the ID.3's cabin is. Don't worry, we pumped the volume all the way up just to make sure we weren't imagining things, but the noise level was still surprisingly low.

It's quiet enough that you can easily hear the click of the indicator stalk even at highway speeds. It's no Rolls-Royce, but the combination of low rolling resistance tires and good soundproofing makes the ID.3 the perfect place to have a chat or listen to your favorite record.

What we didn't like so much was the spartan aspect of the interior. Too much gray plastic that might feel good to the touch (can't say since we never touched it) but looks very drab and boring. The cloth upholstery doesn't do anything to change the feeling, and neither does the design of the rear of those two front seats. We guess that's the price you have to pay if you want to pay a low price - around €30,000 in Germany for the base version - which, much like Tesla did with the Model 3, won't be available from the start.

The ID.3 1st edition has a 62 kWh battery pack (45 kWh and 77 kWh to be added later on) for a maximum WLTP range of 260 miles (~420 km). Power output sits at 150 kW - or 204 hp - and 310 Nm (228 lb-ft) of torque, enough to hit 100 km/h (62 mph) from a standstill in 7.3 seconds - not that far off the Golf GTI's time. In fact, we get a taste of the ID.3's acceleration in the video below, even though it's in the much more useful 100 to 140 km/h (62 to 87 mph) interval.