You might consider that to be sub-par, in light of its official 255-mile range and considering a vehicle of this shape and size should really be able to facilitate hassle-free holidays and five-up festival runs, but given I wasn’t really even trying and the energy-sapping M25 and M40 accounted for roughly half of my total mileage, I’ll take it.
I’m still perplexed about why Volkswagen didn’t launch the long-wheelbase seven-seater first (or indeed exclusively), and it’s a shame the Buzz isn’t available with the ICE Multivan’s spinny, slidey armchairs, to say less of the long-awaited camper option
. But if you view the Buzz as I came to, as simply a massive and slightly oddly shaped estate car, you will soon come to forgive its ergonomic shortcomings.
Am I a mug for being so wilfully taken in by the superficial charms of what is fundamentally a pretty ordinary car? Indeed, there is little here in technological terms to really shout about down the pub.
I never saw the high side of 100kW when public charging, even my lightest right foot could only kick it to about 250 miles in the real world and the clunky digital interface already feels a few years out of date.
But the near-impossibility of maintaining a frown while at the wheel of the Buzz is testament to how little any of that really matters.
Volkswagen wants to be a “love brand” again, and I’m not sure what that means exactly, but I’d wager the Buzz stands in better stead to achieve that goal than its amorphous electric stablemates.
I can’t say the heart-wrenching decision to sell my beloved 1972 Beetle a few weeks ago was made any easier by the fact that I still had this other cheery orange Volkswagen to punt around, but there’s no ignoring the obvious effort that Wolfsburg has gone to here in injecting a degree of sorely needed personality and charisma into its EV line-up. If the ID 3 hatch and ID 4 SUV are the Volkswagen EVs to buy with your head, the smiley, cheeky Buzz is where your heart would put its money.
Ultimately, though, it will be a particularly tough fight between the two organs for your vote. The Buzz is an undeniably attractive proposition in isolation, but there are some pretty compelling electric options at this lofty price point, variously touting longer real-world ranges, faster charging, plusher interiors and the option of a third row of seats.