Don't Worry, You Can Charge the VW ID Buzz With the Sliding Door Open
Volkswagen's electric microbus has the charge port on the rear fender, and it's still accessible if you have the rear door open.
When Volkswagen released the latest set of camouflaged photos of the absolutely awesome ID Buzz electric microbus revival, there was a lot of chatter online about its charge port placement. The charge door is on the rear fender, and because of the short-wheelbase Buzz's tiny rear overhang a lot of people feared the charge port would be obscured and unusable when the sliding rear door is open. Fear not, as VW came up with a clever solution that I've never seen before.
The first key point is that the ID Buzz's charge port door doesn't open to a full 90-degree angle, opting for an acute angle instead. (And my math teachers thought I'd never learn anything!) The door isn't powered like on some EVs, opening with a press of the door. Then the actual internal connector is angled outwards, meaning you plug in the charging cable from a more rearward position than fully standard on the side of the car like on other EVs with a fender port. This means there's no danger of the sliding door affecting the Buzz's ability to charge, and the opening to the cabin isn't impeded either.
Voila!
This should be even less of a problem for the US-spec ID Buzz, which will only come in long-wheelbase form and will likely have more breathing room between the charge door and sliding door. We only have details for the initial Euro-spec short-wheelbase Buzz so far, which will launch with a 77-kilowatt-hour battery pack and a single 201-horsepower electric motor powering the rear axle. VW says the Buzz can charge from 5% to 80% in 30 minutes using a 170-kW DC fast charger, and it will have bi-directional charging capability like the Kia EV6 and Ford F-150 Lightning.
The US-spec ID Buzz will debut in 2023 and go on sale in 2024. We won't get the short-wheelbase or Cargo versions, and the Buzz will only be offered with three rows of seats in the US, but we should get a more powerful all-wheel-drive version. After getting to see how rad the ID Buzz is in person, it should be a big hit.
