Volkswagen ID. Buzz sets a massive EV distance record
Setting the record for ‘most countries visited in a continuous journey in an EV’, the Buzz covered almost 62,000 miles in 445 days.
A standard Volkswagen ID.Buzz has set the world record for the most countries visited in a continuous journey by an electric car – covering 61,992 miles across 92 countries in 445 days, including “more than 300” charging cycles.
The Buzz, running on stock Giti tyres, left the Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles Customer Centre in Hanover, Germany, on 1 July 2025 and returned to the same point earlier this week. Technical inspection service TÜV Nord, which assessed the vehicle on its return, certified the battery state of health at almost 96 per cent.
The man behind the mission, Rainer Zietlow, claims the van suffered “no technical problems” during the mammoth 100,000km journey, despite traversing what he called some “genuinely difficult regions” and encountering “very different traffic conditions”.
Zietlow said: “The fact that I never had any technical problems: for me, that is the decisive point. On a trip like this, the difference between a combustion engine and an electric vehicle is noticeable. In many parts of the world, diesel fuel can contain high sulphur levels or water contamination; several oil changes are required and there is also the risk of the engine overheating – all of that is eliminated with an electric vehicle.”
Having charged the vehicle more than 300 times, his impression of the global charging infrastructure is particularly eye-opening. “In countries such as Zambia or Tanzania there was simply nothing available,” he said. “So I charged at national substations under supervision. South Africa, Morocco and Rwanda, by contrast, already work well.
“Other regions have caught up enormously: in Saudi Arabia there were not many charging stations three years ago, today it is almost as good there as in Germany. China is in a league of its own."
The Buzz used by Zietlow was a completely standard model fitted with the biggest 86kWh battery. This long-wheelbase (LWB) Pro version claims an official range of up to 293 miles and can charge at speeds of up to 200kW. No modifications were made, with the record holder claiming the model was in “series production condition”.
Last year, European Rally Champion, Miko Marczyk, managed 1,759 miles on one tank of diesel in a largely unmodified Skoda Superb – driven from Poland to Paris and back. Following this, a team in Colombia drove a Nissan Qashqai e-Power more than 1,200 miles in one hit, setting the record for the longest distance driven without refuelling or recharging in a non-plug-in hybrid.
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