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Absolutely, IMO VW group has made a stellar job with the MEB platform, and are selling very good Electric cars at competitive prices.
VW group has of course the VW ID series, Skoda Enyaq and Elroq, Cupra Tavascan and Born, Audi E-Tron 4-6-8, Porsche Taycan.
This is a very impressive lineup IMO. And generally they have lower noise and better driving comfort than Tesla. Allegedly drive assist systems are way better than Tesla. No sudden phantom breaking, and no weird warnings about traffic that is completely irrelevant. Common for all is that they are all very good cars, without the weirdness of a Tesla. VW group has about 14 distinct models, so you have way better chance of finding a perfect fit than with Tesla.
Apart from that, if you don't give a shit politically, we also have some decent Chinese options. Xpeng is very attractive IMO.
The best selling EV here is the Skoda Enyaq, and that's absolutely with good reason, there is just about nothing to fault on that car IMO, it is also my own personal favorite, although I hate to go mainstream.
To quote Elon Musk:
You'd be a fool to buy ~~anything but~~ a Tesla today.
To be honest, VW EVs are extremely boring and overpriced. I would rather buy Volvo, Polestar, KIA or Hyundai. The fully specced ID.3 is something like 53K which is insane for such a small car. Their cars are simply uninspiring.
I've driven Kia, Hyundai, etc. Trust me, you don't want one of those. The Ioniq 5, one of the higher-end Hyundais, has absolutely shit ride quality. I test drove that, got back into my old diesel E-class (and I mean OLD. 2003) and felt like the E-class was the slowest thing ever, but 10x as comfortable as the Hyundai.
I did end up getting a newer car, but it wasn't an EV, it was a 2019 C-class, because it was a lot more affordable than any new car in early 2022 and also way more comfortable than any EV that would've been "only" twice the price I paid. That's because VW or BMW didn't really have a proper lineup yet and MB and Audi were only doing really expensive models.
Now that the Germans have somewhat proper EV lineups and Volvo is turning around as well, the Koreans are just going to be the cheapo EVs, much like they were cheapo ICEs. They can have cool designs, pretty good infotainment, etc... But the ride quality is abysmal because they cheap out on everything that isn't visible or numerically significant.
There's so much in a car that the size alone doesn't tell you, nor do numbers. The Ioniq 5 has a McPherson strut for the front suspension. My C-class (which I've since sold because I now drive so much, I can't justify a car that has room to depreciate, I put 80k on it in the last 8 months), had multi-link front. In the Ioniq 5, I didn't feel very confident cornering at a high speed on a back road. In the C-Class, it was soooo much better. But then you'd think maybe if the Ioniq 5 wasn't as great for spirited driving, maybe it felt better over bumps? Also no, it felt MUCH worse. Way crashier. You could feel every bump in the road. And bear in mind, I didn't even have Airmatic suspension or anything.
Now if you truly can go drive a Polestar, a Mercedes and a Hyundai and tell me that the Hyundai felt like the best car to you - go for it. But personally I've been ruined by the fact that I've driven extremely depreciated luxury cars for 8 years out of the 10 I've had a driver's license and a nearly new executive car the other 2. I can feel every single imperfection in a car's ride quality at this point lol
Ah, an extra fun fact: The best car I've owned in my last ~8 months of driving shitboxes, was a V8 Cayenne. For years I figured "but it's just a Volkswagen with a Porsche badge, it can't be that great", but I was so wrong. The first gen Cayenne isn't as sporty as the newer ones, but it could still corner pretty damn good for a big hunk of SUV, yet handled bumps really well too. It had locking diffs and a low-range transfer case. It was an absolute beast in every way. Unfortunately, one of those ways was fuel economy and though it was OK once I had LPG installed, the tank was so tiny, I had to refuel it every 200 km, so it also had to go.
Maybe you're talking about the previous models? The platform starting with ID.7 is amazing. Yes, I replaced my Tesla with an ID.7. Two of my friends waited a bit longer and grabbed the GTX ID.7 Tourer model instead - now voted best EV of 2024.
The price of my ID.7 was slightly more than the much smaller Model 3, and way cheaper than Polestar and KIA.
The problem I have with id7 is that it is bigger on the outside, smaller on the inside and not as fun to drive. Having said that, I recently got to drive a new Model3 and the changes the last 5 years has not done it any favours. Quieter, yes, but that's about it for the positives.
You might not like the interior/exterior changes other than the reduced noise, but it's also much more aerodynamic, and it is exceeding the range estimates even on 70mph tests instead of rapidly dropping off below estimates at those speeds (which the tests aren't meant for). That's also a big improvement. That and noise are the big ones IMO.
Sure, better range is always nice, if that's the case, but I didn't drive it enough to be able to come to that conclusion. The power usage from previous owners was as expected, though.
Ya, I don't think the power usage was that much different for normal driving, it just excels better now at prolonged high speeds. Some of that has to be the improved aerodynamics since the impact of drag is quadratic at high speeds, but probably some motor/power train efficiencies as well?
Personally the ID3 is a bit too small for me, but the ID4 is pretty good, but the Skoda Enyaq is just a tad better.
If you want something more interesting maybe the Cupra Born is more your style.
But the cars you mention also have their benefits, Kia and Hyundai have more features as standard, but it's not quite the quality of VW from what I understand from reviewers.
If you want something that isn't boring there is also BMW, but they are a bit expensive IMO.
Polestar is a bit of a mixed bag from what I understand, and they have financial difficulties. But some people seem to simply love them.
There is also the Ford Explorer, which is also built by VW on the MEB platform.
I agree VW and the Skoda Enyaq are a bit boring,for instance the speeder is calibrated so it doesn't jerk the car when floored, it's designed and built to be safe, practical, reliable and comfortable.
I guess it doesn't get much more boring than that, but it is also makes it a very pleasant car to drive and use.
Anyways we certainly have many great alternatives to Tesla now, also without having to go Chinese.
I had never seen the Born before. To me it looks just about as bland as anything. What makes it interesting to you?
It's a more sporty hatchback, not one of those bulky SUV cars. A heck of a lot prettier than Polestar and KIA. The new KIA 3 is outright ugly IMO.
try a Taycan if you ever get a chance! not literally VW but definitely not boring
Even the ~~Taycan~~? It's the only crossover I like. But yeah way overpriced.
Edit- Macan not Taycan
not a crossover! not even remotely close
You are correct, I was thinking of the Macan. Thanks!
I hate crossovers but I actually like the ~~Taycan~~. I love everything Porsche makes. Too bad I'll never be able to afford one.
I didn't know they had an electric version of the ~~Taycan~~. That's awesome.
Edit - Macan not Taycan
There has never been a non-electric Taycan, it has always been a pure battery EV
It's also not a crossover. Sedan or wagon. And I can say firsthand that the wagon is outstanding
You are correct on all counts. I was thinking of the Macan. Thanks!
I'll never afford that either. But if the xiaomi su7 was available here at the typical China price + 50%, I'd seriously consider that.
https://www.drive.com.au/reviews/2024-xiaomi-su7-review-international-first-drive/
Are those switches below the screen programmable? If so that's really awesome.
I hadn't heard of VW MEB and searching it says they just cancelled it because of poor sales?
Soon, we'll find out VW's electric line is a scam and they're actually somehow gas-powered. Somehow. I mean sure you never fill it with gas, but
I get the joke, but it's misplaced IMO, everybody cheated with emission numbers, and it turned out VW wasn't even the worst of them.
The VW powerline is actually very good, and their electric engines among the absolute best in efficiency and build quality. They are also easier to repair than most, and definitely easier than Tesla.