Volkswagen ID.4 - Reliability and safety

The ID.4’s MEB platform is used by nearly a dozen electric cars across the VW group, which bodes well for overall reliability. Ford seems to agree because its engineering partnership with Volkswagen utilises this EV-specific architecture for the Ford Explorer electric SUV, and more blue oval models are due to use it over the next few years.

Although it didn't appear in our most recent Driver Power owner satisfaction survey, the Volkswagen brand finished in a disappointing 27th position out of 32 manufacturers in the best brands poll in 2023.

Overall safety is worth highlighting because the ID.4 not only achieved a full five-star rating when crash tested by Euro NCAP, but also gained Advanced status, a mark of a car’s superior on-board safety technology. Volkswagen’s all-electric family SUV gained a 93 per cent score for adult protection, 89 per cent for child occupants and 85 per cent for the car’s safety systems, all of which were higher than those of the Ford Mustang Mach-E.

Standard kit for all ID.4 versions includes adaptive cruise control, autonomous emergency braking with cyclist and pedestrian detection, a driver fatigue alert system, Dynamic road sign display and a Lane Assist function.

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Warranty

Volkswagen offers a standard three-year warranty, although it does provide breakdown cover throughout this period for ID models. The battery pack comes with its own eight-year/100,000-mile cover.

Servicing

Volkswagen states that its ID range of electric cars only require servicing every two years and that there are no specified mileage limits – the latter will appeal to higher-mileage users. However, we’d still recommend checking consumables such as tyres and wiper blades regularly to ensure your car remains road-legal if you plan to cover many miles between servicing intervals.

As with all other Volkswagen cars, you can purchase a fixed-price service plan to help spread the cost of any scheduled maintenance.