The Volkswagen ID. Buzz Is Here, And Everyone Is Mad

Volkswagen has finally announced pricing and EPA-rated range figures for the ID. Buzz in the U.S. These figures haven't met the expectations of the internet, and would-be buyers are unhappy about the range-per-dollar value. The lackluster response could lead to lukewarm success of one of Volkswagen's halo cars. 

The Volkswagen ID. Buzz is finally here—well, technically, it's been here, but only in Europe in its standard wheelbase configuration. Now it's finally coming to the States. Ahead of that, Volkswagen revealed the pricing and initial specs for the U.S. market this morning.

There's just one problem: people aren't exactly happy about the value of VW's iconic van.

At a starting price of $59,995, people are undoubtedly expecting pretty big things. After all, that price isn't exactly cheap—not for minivans, and certainly not for electric vehicles. Plus, the Buzz was one of two halo cars for the ID nameplate that the automaker has been promising for years, so of course it'll be packed with features for the money. (The other halo car, by the way, was supposed to the ID.7 sedan, but that has since been "indefinitely postponed" and possibly canceled for the U.S. market.) 

But features aren't the concern here.

Range and performance to price are the primary problem for most critics.

From its single 282-horsepower electric motor, the VW ID. Buzz is only able to offer 234 miles of EPA-estimated range in rear-wheel-drive form. With an extra motor, it bumps the AWD version of the bus to 330 horsepower but down to 231 miles of all-electric range.

It's not like VW gave the Buzz a tiny battery, either.  The Germans stuffed a 91-kilowatt-hours of cells into the van, giving it tons of juice to sip on while putting around town. But 230 miles isn't enough at that price point, according to critics.

"I knew it was gonna be expensive, but this is too much for those miles," wrote one user on Reddit. "Was a fun thought for a bit."