Volkswagen ID 7 long-term test

The car Volkswagen ID 7 Pro Match Run by Stuart Milne, digital editor

Why it’s here SUVs are flavour of the month, but can a low-slung, sleek hatchback be the ideal family car?

Needs to be spacious, comfortable and brimming with the tech expected of a long-distance executive cruiser

Mileage 15,125 Price £51,580 Target price £51,550 Price as tested £57,700 Dealer price now £38,749 Trade-in price £34,452 Test range 300 miles Official range 381 miles Running costs (excluding depreciation) £708.63 (electricity)

4 January 2025 – Measuring up

Bigger, faster, harder, stronger. Life in the 2020s demands more of everything, so in many ways the Volkswagen ID 7 is the right car for the age.

And it doesn’t take long to see why – after six months and nearly 11,000 miles behind the wheel, I still haven’t really become accustomed to just how big the it is. And that’s not necessarily a criticism, because while it is very long and very wide, it also feels pleasantly spacious inside.

It’s shrugged off the most bulky of family luggage, and the panoramic glass sunroof emphasises the space inside. I was concerned that swapping a physical roller blind for electrical opacity at the touch of a button might’ve led to a sweltering interior in the summer, but it proved not to be the case. Even in the high-30s, it was bearable.

The seats lend a high level of comfort, too. They’re supportive and adjust in all the right ways, although after more than an hour behind the wheel, I’d often get some leg ache in my preferred higher seating position, although dropping it down a little solved the problem.

That aside, the ID 7 proved to be an exceptional long-distance companion. For example, it ate up the miles on a recent round trip from Essex to Newbury via Woking to help with a photoshoot for our annual Car of the Year Awards. The ride was comfortable on all but the worst surfaces, and wind and road noise were minimal, even considering the larger-than-standard 20in alloy wheels.

On that particular trip, I needed to pay a rare visit to a public EV charger. Plugged in, I didn’t reach the car’s maximum charging rate 170kW, but it swallowed up more than 80 miles worth of range in 13 minutes. Yes, that’s longer than a stop at a petrol station, but barely took any more time than it took me to use the facilities and queue for a bag of Minstrels.

Winter-time comfort has been improved further with the preconditioning function, which can trigger the air-con and heated steering wheel to coincide with my leaving for the office. Oddly though, it doesn't appear to draw power from the mains when plugged in to do this, meaning I lose a couple of percent of charge. Still, with a winter range of 280 miles and a summer range north of 330, it never became an issue.

The regenerative braking system helps boost that range, but there were a few issues. Firstly, the brakes were very inconsistent, and I found myself not stopping nearly as quickly as I’d have expected on several occasions. Secondly, while manually selecting the regen mode improved things, it’s a rather all-or-nothing approach which wasn’t ideal. My previous Genesis GV60 had a far greater range of adjustment; the ID 7 felt lacking by comparison.

Other odd decisions include fitting two window switches which control all four windows and forcing drivers to alter the angle of air vents via the touchscreen. Talk about overengineering.

I’m no massive fan of VW’s infotainment systems, either. Even though the ID 7 gets the latest upgrades over those in my old VW ID Buzz, it’s still a little clunky to use. Changing the radio station whilst using Apple CarPlay requires too many prods, for example, and here the voice control was of little practical use. Also, it went through a period of disconnecting from smartphone mirroring without provocation, although it seems to have gotten better over time – perhaps as a result of an over-the-air update.

On the plus side, it’s hard to know who wouldn’t enjoy the system's occasional messages, such as when my car passed the 13,171-mile mark – the length of the Great Wall of China – because it’s a nice touch that raises a smile.

I enjoyed the ChatGPT artificial intelligence integration, though. It was useful for finding local information during a holiday on the Isle of Wight, and was able to answer all kinds of obscure questions posed by my seven-year-old son. 

So then? The final reckoning: does the ID 7 measure up as a great family car? I’m the first to admit to being a big fan of family SUVs, primarily because they’re practical and easy to live with. But six months and 11,000 miles with the ID 7 has made me fall in love with the big hatchback all over again. I like its style, its low-slung driving position and the way you feel that little bit more connected to the road ahead. 

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