Yahoo Autos Kia EV9 vs. VW ID.Buzz: Comparing Range and Performance Test Scores
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The Volkswagen ID.Buzz and Kia EV9 are two of the few three-row EVs, and we've now tested both of them.
The ID.Buzz went 190 miles on our 75-mph real-world highway route, while the EV9 made it 240 miles, albeit with a bigger battery.
The 379-hp EV9 is lighter and quicker than the 335-hp ID.Buzz, with the Kia hitting 60 mph in 4.5 seconds versus the VW's 5.5-second run.
Welcome to Car and Driver's Testing Hub, where we zoom in on the test numbers. We've been pushing vehicles to their limits since 1956 to provide objective data to bolster our subjective impressions (you can see how we test here).
Now that we've had a Volkswagen ID.Buzz at our office and put it through our rigorous testing, we figured it's as good a time as any to compare its test results with the Kia EV9. As things currently stand, the pair are the most affordable family-sized three-row EVs that you can buy.
For the 2025 model year, the entry-level, rear-drive version of the Kia starts at $56,395, while VW's van carries a $61,545 base price. All-wheel-drive models start at $65,395 and $69,545, respectively, but the ones we tested had most of the best features, making them quite a bit pricier—$72,065 for the ID.Buzz Pro S Plus and over $77K for the EV9 GT-Line.
Real-World Range and Consumption
An EV's driving range is one of its biggest selling points. Of course, there's typically a big difference between the EPA's combined-range figure that's listed on the window sticker and what you'll see in real life, especially at sustained highway speeds. Going, say, 75 mph at a steady cruise will suck the juice out of the battery much quicker than schlepping around town at a slower, stop-and-go pace. The former scenario is what our real-world highway test aims to replicate. It's also where the EV9 GT-Line, which features a 99.8-kWh battery, made it 240 miles on a full charge. That's 30 miles shy of its 270-mile EPA estimate, but it's also 50 miles farther than the ID.Buzz Pro S Plus.
The VW only made it 190 miles in our highway test—41 miles short of its 231-mile EPA estimate. It's worth noting the ID.Buzz has a smaller 86.0-kWh battery capacity, but it still consumed more energy on the highway than the EV9, with the van averaging 2.2 miles per kilowatt-hour versus the SUV's 2.4 mi/kWh. The electric SUV also has a slight advantage when it comes to DC fast-charging, where its 215-kW peak is higher than the Buzz's 200 kW—though our test model slightly outperformed its claimed peak. The EV9 GT-Line's fast-charging time was impressive, going from 10 to 90 percent in 38 minutes, with the electric van taking just 33 minutes thanks to its smaller battery.
EV9 Is Quicker, ID.Buzz Stops Shorter
Performance probably isn't at the top of the list for most three-row EV shoppers, but get behind the wheel and you'll feel the difference between the Kia and the VeeDub. The EV9 GT-Line's dual motors combine for 379 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque. That's notably more power than the AWD ID.Buzz, which packs 335 horses and 413 pound-feet.
The modern-day Microbus, tipping our scales at 6174 pounds, is also 335 pounds heavier than its SUV competitor, which has a 5839-pound curb weight. The disparity in their power-to-weight ratios is the primary reason the EV9 is so much quicker, hitting 60 mph in just 4.5 seconds. The ID.Buzz is no slouch with its 5.5-second run, but the acceleration gap only widens from there. Should anyone need to get either family shuttle to 100 mph or do a quick drag-strip rip, the Kia needs 13.0 seconds to reach the century mark versus the VW's 16.3 seconds, and the quarter-mile disappears in 13.3 ticks at 101 mph in the EV9 and 14.2 seconds at 97 mph in the ID.Buzz.
However, Volkswagen's electric van didn't do worse than Kia's SUV in all of these tests. It actually managed a shorter emergency stopping distance. Despite being heavier, the Buzz stopped from 70 mph in 174 feet (10 fewer than the EV9 needed). It's possible the VW's narrower Continental ProContact TX10 all-season tires—HL235/50R-20 front and HL265/45R-20 rear—may have slightly more grip than Kia's set of 285/45R-21 Hankook Ion Evo all-seasons.
What About the Practical Stuff?
Apart from the results of our objective tests, the Kia EV9 and VW ID.Buzz are both great options for families seeking electrified transportation. The Kia delivers a more luxurious experience, especially when equipped with the available lounge-like first- and second-row seats. Meanwhile, the new-age Microbus has an interior that's easier to get in and out of, and it's flat-out massive, which gives it much greater cargo-hauling abilities. From our H-point measurements, the driver sits more than six inches higher in the seat of the Buzz, and the VW van is a massive 7.1 inches taller overall. Both the forward view and the elevated roofline are closer to that of a commercial van than a minivan. Both the Buzz and the EV9 have large second-row seats, but the third row is where they diverge. The Buzz's 49 cubic feet of third-row passenger space is larger than plenty of other vehicles' second rows, plenty comfortable even for tall adults, and it's some 40-percent larger than the EV9's third row. The VW's height also helps to endow it with huge cargo space, up to 146 cubic feet behind its first row compared with the SUV's 82 cubes. We managed to fit seven carry-on-sized suitcases in the van with all seats erect and only managed five in the Kia. With the third rows folded, those figures rise to 28 for the VW and 17 for the Kia. Plus, the VW conjures up unrivaled nostalgia and earned a spot on our most recent 10Best list.
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