Might this big facelift for the ID 3 finally be the trigger for local introduction?

POTENTIAL for Volkswagen here giving thought to lending a fresh start to the one electric model it wanted but couldn’t quite achieve has arisen.

The announcement overnight of the ID 3 Neo is big news; the second refresh of this salient product brings more than just a name change.

Some history: What started out as the ID.3 stands as the first bespoke electric car out of Germany’s largest maker; prior to its unveiling, all hinged on the Golf-e, a conversion of the make’s core fossil fuel-designed product.

In production from 2019, ID.3 debuted the make’s core MEB electric underpinning utilised by the ID.4 that has made it here.

VW New Zealand’s grand plan for ID had been to start off with the ID.4 and coupe-roofed ID.5, then add in ID.3 a year later, by which time that slightly more compact and cheaper car would have undergone its first facelift.

History relates how that plan fell apart very quickly; the entire ID pricing structure relied on the core volume models achieving the labour Government’s Clean Car rebate; when that was pulled by the National-led coalition at end of 2023, EV uptake also plummeted. VW was left with a huge count of ID.4s it had to fire-sale; ID.3 was shelved.

Now, of course, the Middle East ruction has turned the whole car market upside down; EVs are again hot property and, while the swing only began a month ago, all signs are that oil distribution could be a fact of life for all this year.

In-country EV car supply has already all but exhausted; an unavoidable of distributors having reduced to minimal stock holdings over the past year to avoid being burned again by a fickle customer base.

Regardless that sourcing cars out of Europe has plenty of challenges, there is assured potential for battery-wed cars i the sub-$70,000 bracket, where ID 3 has always aimed.

So what chance of seeing the Neo? No word yet from VW NZ, but they’ll likely be considering how it might be useful.

The ID 3 Neo brings a fresh exterior styling, a completely fresh interior that returns physical buttons and also takes bigger batteries and improved power outputs.

The fresh combinations are a 50kWh battery with a 125kW motor, a 58kWh battery with 140kW and a 79kWh battery with 170kW. Although unconfirmed, a successor to the 240kW GTX dual motor hot hatch version is expected.

The Neo name results from VW deciding to move away from using just numerical designations for its electric far; that’s what ID.4 will soon rebrand as ID Tiguan.

The cabin is entirely new, with higher-quality and softer materials and, of course, less haptic interaction. So the audio has a physical volume knob and there are heating switches to replace the controversial slider controls. The driver’s door now takes a button for each window; originally there were two switches with a toggle to alter from front to rear.

The 13 inch landscape-mounted infotainment and 10.25 inch digital driver’s displays are also new.

Exterior changes amount to adoption of the new family face being progressively rolled out with new VW electrics.