VW ID. Buzz Cargo: Everything we know as of September 2022 [Update]

Update: ‘Specifications’ section updated with final values and ‘Price & Release Date’ section updated with new information about the launch plan.

The much-awaited all-electric ‘Bus is here, and the model line includes a commercial van, the VW ID Buzz Cargo. Together, the VW ID. Buzz and the ID. Buzz Cargo enables Volkswagen to enter the electric van/MPV segment that’s quickly becoming popular in the U.S., Canada, and European countries. We’ve already covered the passenger model in a separate story. Now, let’s talk about the commercial electric van.

Specifications

The VW ID. Buzz Cargo measures 4,712 mm (185.5 in) in length, 1,985 mm (78.1 in.) in width, and 1,932-1,953 mm (76.1-76.8 in.) in height. It has a 2,989 mm (117.7 in.)-long wheelbase. VWN will introduce a long-wheelbase version in the future.

The ID. Buzz Cargo offers 3.9 m³ (137.7 cu ft) cargo space, which is enough for two euro pallets. The maximum payload capacity of the ID. Buzz Cargo is 516-647 kg (1,138-1,426 lbs). The electric van can tow loads of up to 1,000 kg (2,205 lbs).

VW ID. Buzz Cargo Aspect	Value
Length	4,712 mm (185.5 in)
Width	1,985 mm (78.1 in.)
Height	1,932-1,953 mm (76.1-76.8 in.)
Wheelbase	2,989 mm (117.7 in.)
Cargo Space	3.9 m3 (137.7 cu ft)
Maximum Payload Capacity	516-647 kg (1,138-1,426 lbs)
Towing Capacity (unbraked)	750 kg
Towing Capacity (braked, at 12% gradient)	1,000 kg (2,205 lbs)
Turning Circle	11.09 m (36.4 ft.)

The drive system is the same as the passenger model, meaning a rear-mounted electric motor draws energy from a 77 kWh battery pack and generates 150 kW (201 hp) and 310 Nm (229 lb-ft) of torque. A 0-100 km/h sprint takes 10.2 seconds, and the top speed is an electronically limited 145 km/h (90 mph). In Germany, the ID. Buzz Cargo delivers a WLTP range of 425 km (264 miles). The company will offer new options for the battery pack and motor from 2023.

The maximum charging power when using alternating current is 11 kW. Fully recharging the battery pack from empty takes 7 hours 30 minutes. The maximum charging power when using a DC fast-charger is the highest for any production VW EV – 170 kW. Using direct current, fast-charging from 5 to 80% SoC takes 30 minutes.

Exterior

The VW ID. Buzz Cargo features the same design as the ID. Buzz. It has a drag coefficient of 0.29 C_d, which is marginally higher than the passenger model (0.285 C_d) and comes with minor visual differences.

The front end is no different from the passenger model. On the sides, the ID. Buzz Cargo gets typical commercial van traits like disabled rear windows and a single sliding door on the passenger side. VWN will allow configuring it with a second sliding door optionally, though.

At the rear, VWN has used clear-lens tail lights. The ID. Buzz Cargo’s taillights are also different from the ID. Buzz as they are narrower and don’t include the inner-side extended portion of the passenger model’s cluster. In the same vein, it has deleted the thin light strip.

Interior

The ID. Buzz Cargo has a differently designed dashboard with a unique upper part that doesn’t house a full-width AC vent. There are five USB-C ports instead of eight.

Several differences make the ID. Buzz Cargo more practical than the MPV for its application. For example, two additional cup holders are located in front of the A-pillars. As standard, the commercial van accommodates three passengers in the first row instead of two, sitting on a double bench seat. However, a more comfortable, two-seat layout with an individual passenger seat is optional.

A fixed partition separates the cargo space, which has wood flooring, and as an option, customers can specify it with a window and an opening for loading items from the inside. There are lashing rings on the floor and lashing rails on the side walls to secure cargo.

Production

Production of the ID. Buzz Cargo started in Hannover, Germany, in the first week of April 2022. On June 6, 2022, VWN announced the series production of the ID. Buzz had also started. The company plans to manufacture up to 15,000 ID. Buzz and ID. Buzz Cargo units in Hannover in 2022. After 2023, it will be able to make as many as 130,000 units annually.

From June 25, 2022, to August 12, 2022, VWN paused vehicle production at the Hannover plant for a summer break. It used the three-week downtime to improve the factory with more than 550 changes.

Price & Release Date

In Germany, the VW ID. Buzz Cargo is available in one standard trim and costs EUR 54,430.60 (USD 54,227). Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles has put it up on the online configurator and started pre-orders, with deliveries commencing in fall 2022.

Through Volkswagen Leasing, German customers can lease the ID. Buzz Cargo for 36 months and drive it up to 10,000 km (6,214 miles)/year for a monthly payment of EUR 661 (EUR 659). According to an electrive.net report, in addition, there’s a special leasing payment of EUR 5,000 (USD 4,981).

Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles CEO Carsten Intra has told Automobilwoche that the company has received 12,500 pre-orders for the ID. Buzz and more than 6,000 of them are for its Cargo version, the German publication reported on September 18, 2022. VWN will ship the first 6,000 units of the ID. Buzz model line to showrooms and then begin delivering customer vehicles, Intra said. The brand boss more specifically revealed that customer deliveries will commence in November 2022, although he didn’t disclose whether that will be with the Cargo version or the passenger van.

On July 27, 2022, VWN announced that it will start taking orders for the ID. Buzz Cargo in the UK from August 2022. It said that the UK-spec ID. Buzz Cargo will come in Commerce and Commerce Plus trim levels, priced at GBP 38,125 (USD 43,352) and GBP 42,375 (USD 48,185), respectively, and deliver a WLTP range of up to 256 miles.

VW ID. Buzz Cargo is not coming to the U.S.

VW has confirmed that North America will not get the ID. Buzz Cargo. The company will focus on the ID. Buzz (passenger model) in this region, bringing down the long-wheelbase specification with market-focused adaptations. The American ID. Buzz units will come from the same German factory, though. With the U.S. launch scheduled in 2024, customers here will have to wait a lot longer than in Europe, where the launch of the passenger model will happen this year.

Chicken Tax could be the main reason for the ID. Buzz Cargo isn’t coming to America. Light trucks and vans imported to the U.S. attract a 25% tariff, and the resulting steep prices would make the ID. Buzz Cargo seem uncompetitive compared to rivals like the Ford E-Transit and the Ram Promaster Electric. Unless Volkswagen manufactures the ID. Buzz in North America, which is not an immediate possibility, the commercial derivative may not be available in the country.

Featured image: Volkswagen Group