With the electric ID models, Volkswagen promised to make an iPhone on wheels. Disappointed customers, however, were faced with clumsy controls and malfunctioning software. The new top model ID.7 should quickly make you forget all the misery.
Hendrik Muth, head of product marketing at Volkswagen, makes no bones about it: ,,We have not kept our promise. When we introduced the ID.3, we promised to make an iPhone on wheels. But customers are quick to tell us that their car was not at all as user-friendly as Apple’s smartphone. On the contrary.
“I admit, we went too far. Even with the omission of physical buttons. We thought that an interior with as few buttons as possible would look sleek, tidy and modern. And that nowadays you can operate just about everything via a touchscreen. But that turned out to be a step too far.
Muth therefore reveals to our car editor that the physical buttons will return in future VW models. “We need some time to develop that. But count on the fact that in future VWs you will no longer need a touchscreen for everything you need to operate while driving. People think that’s too clumsy. We will also return the separate buttons for climate control.”
This new course has not yet been fully followed in the new top model ID.7. The car was already too far in development to be able to intervene in time. Minor improvements have been made recently. Just like the recently facelifted ID.3, the ID.7 has lighting in the ‘sliders’: tiny touchscreens with which you can adjust the temperature while sliding. So the next step will be the return of normal buttons with which you can do that.
New infotainment: faster and clearer
In the new ID.7 it is also striking how the infotainment has progressed. It now has a large 15 inch screen. The menus are much more logical. A number of functions are shown as standard, such as the climate control. And thanks to a new processor, the system works much faster.
The ID.7 is also the first Volkswagen to have ‘smart air vents’: an ingenious system that was previously introduced at Porsche. These are electronically controlled outflow grilles for ventilation, cooling and heating. They can be adjusted manually via the touchscreen, but also come into action automatically. The system can adjust the positions of the outlet grilles to cool or heat as effectively as possible.
Another novelty in the ID.7 is a dimmable panoramic roof. We also saw that earlier at Porsche and Renault will also introduce it later this year. The glass of this roof can be adjusted electronically to allow more or less light to pass through.
Driving range up to 700 kilometers
But the ID.7 also surprises in other respects. It has a driving range of up to 700 kilometers and can charge quickly with 200 kW. The 210 kW/286 hp electric motor in the ID.7 Pro is coupled to a 77 kWh battery pack (range of action 615 kilometers) and can then charge quickly with 170 kW. The ID.7 Pro S has an 86 kWh battery pack, can charge quickly with 200 kW and has a driving range of 700 kilometers.
Moreover, this ‘electric successor to the Passat’, as VW itself calls it, turns out to be a true space miracle. He is 4.96 meters long, 1.86 meters wide and 1.54 meters high. The legroom in the back seat is impressive. The luggage space is also large. The car now shown looks like a sedan, but is a hatchback: when the tailgate is opened, the rear window also rises. But a station wagon will also be available at the end of this year.
The ID.7 will arrive in Dutch showrooms next fall. The price list probably starts at around 60,000 euros.
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