The VW ID 7 GTX Tourer is giving me real dad wagon envy
Sporty EV is Volkswagen's most powerful estate car yet
/dad ˈwaɡ(ə)n/. Noun. An estate car with a juicy powertrain up front, and a camping holiday’s worth of boot space at the rear. E.g. the Volkswagen ID 7 GTX Tourer.
As the most powerful station wagon to ever leave a Volkswagen factory, the the ID 7 GTX Tourer promises to bring some much-needed punch to a car class that’s devoid of performance options, save the Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo. OK, the BMW i5 Touring is on the horizon, but the ID will hopefully leave a smaller crater in your bank balance when it arrives alongside the fastback saloon variant later this year.
Twin electric motors send a combined 335bhp to both axles, for what I’m expecting will be rapid off-the-line acceleration – although VW hasn’t confirmed a 0-60mph time just yet. An electronically limited 112mph top speed is a given, while the bespoke chassis setup and sportier steering tune will hopefully reward drivers hoping for some dynamism between work commutes and trips to the recycling centre (if you own an estate car already, you’ll understand).
There’s a generous 605 litres of boot space, which rockets to 1714 litres when the rear seats are folded down. A largely flat load bay should also make it easy to fill. The all-wheel drive system has also upped the GTX Tourer’s towing capacity over the standard car, so it can handle 1400kg loads. It’s about as practical as EV estates get.
There’s no word on maximum range, but the 86kWh battery is the biggest VW has yet offered in its electric line-up. It can manage 200kW charging from powerful enough public charging stations.
Kings Red Metallic paint and GTX-specific 20in alloy wheels mark this particular ID 7 Tourer out as something special. It also gets diamond-style front and rear bumpers, a more aggressive set of daytime running lights, and oodles of gloss black trim. An optional panoramic roof, which uses a polymer-dispersed liquid crystal (PDLC) layer to turn from transparent to opaque at the push of a button, sounds especially slick.
Inside, the ID 7 GTX Tourer takes plenty of cues from the ID 3 GTX, including bespoke sports seats (electronic, and heated with the right options boxes ticked) and a three-spoke steering wheel with GTX trim. The driver instrument cluster is more tightly integrated into the dashboard here, with the drive selector on a separate stalk on the steering column.
A 12.9in touchscreen sits pride of place in the centre of the dash, with the latest version of VW’s infotainment software. It has a voice assistant, IDA, with access to Wikipedia and built-in ChatGPT AI for smarter answers to all your questions – not just how to turn up the radio volume or get your bottom nice and toasty on cold mornings.
There’s no details on pricing or availability just yet. I’m expecting the ID 7 GTX Tourer to arrive somewhere north of the ID 5 GTX, which currently retails for £55,705. Expect it in dealerships towards the end of 2024.
Tom Morgan-Freelander
Deputy Editor