The Best ID.Buzz May Be The Base-Model Cargo One

I think I have a complicated relationship with the Volkswagen ID.Buzz. This was a vehicle I was very much looking forward to existing in the world, and one I desperately wanted to like – and, in many ways, I do like it. But it’s a vehicle that has a pretty significant Achilles’ heel, one that I believe severely impairs its fundamental purpose: its relatively low range. When I tested it, I was frustrated to find what a fantastic road trip machine it was – if you could somehow ignore the real-world, road trip range of about 150 miles or so. But you can’t ignore that, so it was frustrating. But I happened to see a variant of the ID.Buzz, a variant that somehow feels a bit closer in character to the original, and seems to be better suited to its raison d’etre, technically.

The variant? The cargo version.

And even more so, the absolute base-model cargo version, the one that forgoes most of the passenger variant’s trim and luxurious touches, down to having unpainted black bumpers, front and rear. These don’t yet exist in America, but I saw one on ex-Twitter:

panel van id buzz, unpainted bumpers and everything pic.twitter.com/6GF7t3K1Go

— Alex P (@blueRSavant) March 26, 2025

Seeing that, I felt things. Something about the ID.Buzz stripped down to its barest essentials just made the whole thing feel right again, feel closer to its roots as, well, a useful box on wheels. Because that’s all a VW Type 2 was really ever meant to be. Look at these old ads for cargo Type 2s, for reference:

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The cargo version of the ID.Buzz I think strips down quite well, which speaks well to its fundamental design:

I especially like seeing it in steelies, and even more especially those steelies, because the many-little-round-holes design is pretty much just like what Buses from the ’70s used:

I like seeing the black filler panel between the taillights, replacing the full-width LED heckblende of the passenger version. I like the black hinges, the now-empty horizontal recesses in the rear upper quarter that are normally filled with plastic trim bits, like you see here:

I think look great just as stamped recesses, freed from any excess of design. I think it all just works.

And, in the context of a delivery van, the ID.Buzz is extremely well-suited to the job. The range is really not an issue in this context, as delivery speeds the sort of stop-and-start demands of a delivery van are ideal for maximizing battery range. An electric delivery van is an ideal use of such a platform: quiet, no exhaust or noise or fuel use while stopped, because there’s no idling, good acceleration for dealing with traffic, excellent packaging so you have a big, empty box to load full of stuff – it’s just an ideal platform for the job.

Also, look, three-across seating up front for the cargo version – this should be an option for the passenger ones!

The price for the de-contented delivery vehicle is a good bit less than the passenger ones, of course, and that helps a great deal, too. The price drop is significant – for example, you can get a Buzz cargo for about $53,000 – still not nearly as cheap as I’d like to see, of course, but a lot better than the average passenger ID.Buzz prices of $60 to over $70,000.

I’m still a bit disappointed with the ID.Buzz, a machine that probably is judged unfairly, when it comes to living up to the reputation and legacy of its ancestor. But seeing this cargo variant does make me rethink some things, and feel a little better about what still is, after all these years, a useful box on wheels.

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