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New models - Volkswagen - ID.4Delayed ID.4, ID.5 did not miss BEV boat: VWVolkswagen claims 4.5-year wait for ID.4, ID.5 worth it to meet Aussie expectations14 Apr 2025 VOLKSWAGEN Group Australia (VGA) has been waiting four-and-a-half years for the ID.4 and ID.5 mid-sized electric SUVs to reach the Australian market, but it says delaying the launch until an extensive mid-cycle update – while being able to offer the car with the desired spec, at the desired price – is enough for the ageing ID.4 and ID.5 to remain viable alongside the forthcoming third-generation Tiguan.
Speaking to GoAuto at the ID.4/ID.5 national media launch in country New South Wales, VGA said its main target was to get the car with the right package for the market – one that is really customer oriented.
“The purpose of this model for our line-up and the future of our line-up was very clear – we wanted to make it accessible to as many people as possible and make it the foundation of our ID product in Australia,” said VGA passenger vehicles product manager Arjun Nidigallu.
“So we had to come strongly in the market, and for those reasons the price point is really sharp” – $59,990 before on-road costs for the entry-level ID.4 Pro, with only two modest options available.
When the ID.4 launched in Europe in September 2020, Australia lacked a CO2 emissions regulation system, so the factories producing the ID.4 (Zwickau and Emden in Germany) did not consider Australia a priority over more EV-focused markets. But the product available at that time also did not meet VGA’s requirements.
The battery size of the earlier ID.4 Pro Performance was the same as the updated ID.4 Pro, but outputs were lower (150kW/310Nm), charging was slower (143kW DC), acceleration was not as strong (8.5sec to 100km/h), and electric range was around 50km shorter.
“We knew that the psychological barrier for Australian customers would be a 500km range,” said Mr Nidigallu.
“But also our customers – in particular our Volkswagen customers – like to drive a powerful car, and they like to have the handling characteristics.
“We know the 162TSI is the best-selling Tiguan, for example. So bringing in (an ID.4) that had 310Nm of torque (instead of 545Nm like the updated 2025 ID.4 Pro) didn’t make sense for our market. And if we (were forced to) bring it, it wouldn’t have been the Vee-Dub way. It wouldn’t have been consistent with our brand image in Australia,” he said.
The mid-cycle update for ID.4 and ID.5 became available for order in Europe from October 2023, with extensive modifications covering increased powertrain outputs, improved battery efficiency and cooling, expanded DC charging capability and extended electric range, as well as revamped centre touchscreen functionality.
Launching in two specifications in Australia – rear-wheel-drive ID.4 Pro ($59,990 before on-road costs) and all-wheel-drive ID.5 GTX ($72,990 before on-road costs) – VGA will also introduce a rear-drive ID.5 and an ID.4 GTX in the coming months, though has ruled out any likelihood of a lower-spec, lower-priced ID.4 joining the line-up, at least for now.
“We’ve considered what our first (mid-size electric SUV) needs to be quite a bit, and … we don’t want to have a situation where customers feel like they need to upgrade to something else; we want to include everything in that package,” said Mr Nidigallu.
“So that’s why the Pro (specification) makes a lot of sense for us. But based on market requirements, there’s always opportunities for us to adjust as we need to. So we never say a complete ‘no’. But at this stage, the Pro is a great product to start the range with.
“The (battery) range is a big part for us as well. If you have (an entry-level ID.4) model with a lesser range, and if it falls below that 500km range, then it becomes a concern for consideration from customers. For the next couple of years at least, (we’re) going to have this four-grade approach (two ID.4s, two ID.5s),” he said.
In Europe, the ID.4 is available in a lower-priced Pure variant with a smaller 55kWh battery, outputs of 125kW/310Nm, a 0-100km/h time of 9.0s and a WLTP range of just 364km.
As for talk of a forthcoming styling refresh for the ageing ID.4 and ID.5 line-up, Volkswagen’s head of global development Kai Grünitz confirmed to UK media at the Los Angeles show in late-2024 that a new design language introduced as a “reskin” for the ID.4 and smaller ID.3, potentially in 2026.
But VGA says it will be quite some time before Australia sees this visual makeover. “We’re going to be very close to a normal (model) cycle with (the just-launched ID.4 and ID.5),” said Mr Nidigallu.
“We’ve already future-proofed the product to a great extent, the spec that we have, (which) we think is going to be competitive.
“Nonetheless, there will always be a small section of the crowd – the FOMO crowd – that says ‘well, Europe has this, we don’t have this.’ But for us, this is the right spec at the right price, and when the time is right, we will have that (the reskinned version of the ID.4).”
2025 Volkswagen ID.4 pricing*:
2025 Volkswagen ID.5 pricing*:
*Pricing excludes on-road costs.  Read moreAll new models Alfa Romeo Abarth Audi Aston Martin BMW Bentley Chrysler Chevrolet Dodge Citroen Ferrari DS Ford Fiat FPV Foton Haval Great Wall Honda Holden Hyundai HSV Isuzu Infiniti Jeep Jaguar Lamborghini Kia Lexus Land Rover Mazda Maserati Mercedes-Benz McLaren Mini MG Nissan Mitsubishi Peugeot Opel Proton Porsche Renault Ram Saab Rolls-Royce Smart Skoda Subaru SsangYong Tesla Suzuki Volkswagen Toyota VolvoMotor industry news GoAutoNews is Australia’s number one automotive industry journal covering the latest news, future and new model releases, market trends, industry personnel movements, and international events. |
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