ID.4

Make
Volkswagen
Segment
SUV

The VW ID.Buzz electric microbus is one of the new upcoming vehicles we're particularly looking forward to. It promises to be something different in the seemingly never-ending wave of electric sedans and crossovers. The cute concept showed up in 2016 as a modern take on the iconic Volkswagen Type 2 Microbus, more commonly known as the Volkswagen Bus.

According to Volkswagen, it will arrive in 2023 with an all-electric powertrain and feature a configurable interior with flexible seating configurations. Just as importantly, it will have a nostalgic aesthetic inside and out. One that you'll notice is lacking from the test mule pictured below.

It looks nothing like the concept Volkswagen revealed with its cutesy appearance and bold retro colors because the test mule is camouflaged with a Volkswagen T6 transporter body. A couple of things give away the trailered van as a ID. Buzz test vehicle, though. The vehicle in the pictures is shorter and wider than a real T6, and the T6 generally comes with a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-4 diesel, although an electric version is on its way. You'll also notice the word Elektrofahrzeug, which translates as Electric Vehicle from German. What these spy shots mainly show is that the production VW ID.Buzz will be a wide little camper.

The ID.Buzz and the van version, the ID.Cargo, will come as either a rear-wheel-drive model with a 201 horsepower motor or an all-wheel-drive option. The all-wheel-drive option will add a front-mounted motor for a combined maximum of 369 hp. It will ride on Volkswagen's Modular Electric Drive (MEB), which underpins much of the ID range as well as the Audi e-tron crossover. A choice in batteries will affect range with a 48-kWh pack for 200 miles of range or a 110-kWh pack giving the ID.Buzz a reach of 340 miles.