The Volkswagen Polo has been around for more than 50 years, sold more than 20 million cars and built its reputation by not trying too hard. It has always been the sensible little Volkswagen: smart without being showy, grown-up without being boring and, above all, straightforward. Now, seven generations in, the biggest change in the Polo’s history has arrived. It’s electric.The new ID. Polo isn’t replacing the petrol-powered Polo straight away, but it does take a familiar name into Volkswagen’s electric ID range for the first time. It’s also the first Volkswagen electric car to put its motor at the front and drive the front wheels, rather than use the rear-wheel-drive or four-wheel-drive layout of the bigger ID models. Underneath is Volkswagen’s latest MEB+ electric platform, specifically developed to make smaller EVs roomy, efficient and relatively affordable.And affordable is an important word here. UK prices start at £23,945 for the ID. Polo Life when it goes on sale on 10 September, while the big-battery versions qualify for the Government’s £1,500 Electric Car Grant. That puts the ID. Polo straight into one of the busiest new parts of the electric-car market, where buyers will also be looking at cars such as the Renault 5, Kia EV2 and Hyundai Ioniq 3.At 4,053mm long, 1,816mm wide and 1,530mm tall, the ID. Polo is still very much a supermini, but the 2,592mm wheelbase and clever packaging mean there’s much more going on inside than those outside dimensions might suggest. There’s room for five (just), while the 441-litre boot is actually bigger than the space in the current Volkswagen Golf and ID.3.Volkswagen design boss Andreas Mindt calls the company’s latest design philosophy Pure Positive. Strip away the designer-speak and what you get is a car that looks recognisably like a Volkswagen, but wearing a smile. It doesn’t shout about being electric and it isn’t trying to frighten small children with an enormous blanked-off grille. There’s a friendly look to the front, a strong C-pillar that deliberately nods back towards earlier Golfs and, depending on trim, illuminated Volkswagen badges and a light bar.But the biggest change compared with some of Volkswagen’s earlier ID cars becomes obvious once you climb in. Volkswagen has listened and righted the wrongs of some of its most recent cars, especially early ID models. There are real buttons on the steering wheel, proper controls for the heating and ventilation, normal mirror controls and even – praise be – a physical knob for volume and for changing tracks or radio stations.And that’s before you get to the quality. My top-spec, big-battery car felt genuinely premium inside, not just impressive for a small car. The mix of fabrics, colours and materials gives the cabin real warmth and a posh feel, the switchgear feels expensive and the whole thing has the solid, reassuring character you’d hope to find in a Volkswagen. My immediate reaction after spending a lot of time with it in Austria was pretty simple: this is exactly how a Volkswagen Polo should feel.How I testedI drove the ID. Polo extensively on its international launch in Austria, covering motorways, towns, villages and country roads, while assessing its comfort, quality, practicality, technology and everyday usability too.Volkswagen ID. Polo: from £23,945, Volkswagen.co.ukThe new ID. Polo feels very Volkswagen on the road: comfortable and easy to drive (Volkswagen)Independent rating: 9/10Pros: Premium-feeling cabin, beautifully weighted controls, easy-to-use technology, huge boot, impressive refinement, strong efficiencyCons: A bit of wind noise at motorway speeds, rear space is only okayPrice from: £23,945Battery size: 37kWh or 52kWhMaximum claimed range: 281 milesMaximum charging rate: Up to 105kW DC, 10 to 80 per cent from 24 minutesBattery, range, charging, performance and driveThere are two battery sizes and three power outputs in the ID. Polo range for the UK. The smaller 37kWh battery is an LFP, or lithium iron phosphate, unit and comes with either 114bhp or 133bhp. The larger 52kWh battery uses NMC chemistry and is paired with the most powerful 208bhp motor, which is the version I drove.The new Volkswagen ID. Polo will go for up to 281 miles on a full charge (Steve Fowler)The 133bhp cars have an official range of between 203 and 206 miles depending on trim. Move up to the 52kWh battery and the figure rises to as much as 281 miles. Charging speeds aren’t headline-grabbing, but the relatively small batteries mean you shouldn’t be sitting around for too long. The 37kWh battery can rapid-charge at up to 90kW and go from 10 to 80 per cent in about 23 minutes, while the 52kWh version tops out at 105kW and takes around 24 minutes for the same charge. All versions can charge at up to 11kW on AC power.There’s an optional heat pump to help reduce the amount of battery power used to warm the cabin in cold weather, while you can also get vehicle-to-load capability. Volkswagen’s PowerSocket system can provide up to 3.6kW for external electrical equipment, so you could use the Polo to charge an e-bike or run camping equipment, for example.The 208bhp version gets 290Nm of torque and goes from 0-62mph in 7.1 seconds, while the 133bhp car takes 9.5 seconds. All are limited to around 99mph.That 208bhp car certainly doesn’t feel short of performance. There’s plenty of instant response when you need it and it feels pleasingly brisk without turning what is still, fundamentally, a Polo into something silly – there is a GTI model still to come, though, which VW folk all spoke about with big smiles on their faces! There is one little reminder that Volkswagen has opted for front-wheel-drive layout, though. Be very quick with the accelerator when pulling out of a junction and the front tyres can momentarily lose grip, with the steering going light for a second in a way that feels like proper old-fashioned torque steer. It doesn’t last long, but you notice it.For the rest of the time it has the easy, natural character I’d expect from a Polo. Volkswagen has developed the suspension specifically for this front-wheel-drive electric layout, with MacPherson struts at the front and a compact torsion beam at the rear, while the battery sits low between the axles. The ride quality is really nice – comfortably firm and connected without ever jolting you over broken surfaces. Again, it feels very Volkswagen, as does the steering with just about enough weight to give you confidence through corners, while being easy enough around town.Visibility is good, too, making the car easy to drive and park, without any nasty blind spots either forwards when approaching roundabouts or over your shoulder when overtaking. There’s also a new braking system with discs front and rear that blends regenerative and conventional braking, plus proper one-pedal driving. Select B rather than D using the drive selector and lifting off the accelerator can slow the Polo all the way to a standstill, which is especially useful around town and all feels very natural.ID. Polo styling is smart, yet conservative with some neat treatments for the front and rear lights, plus illuminated badges (Steve Fowler)Refinement is mostly strong. The electric motor is little more than a distant hum and the rest of the car is impressively quiet around towns and villages. The exception came on the motorway, where I could hear more wind noise than I expected. At one stage I found myself checking whether all the windows were properly shut – it stands out all the more because everything else is so quiet.If you want to tow with your ID. Polo, you can. The 114bhp and 133bhp versions can tow up to 500kg, while the 208bhp car increases that to 1,200kg, enough for a small caravan. Interior, practicality and boot spaceThe ID. Polo’s interior might just be its strongest feature. Volkswagen has talked a lot about getting back to the things people liked about its cars in the first place, and this is where you see – and feel – the results.The inside of the ID. Polo is a highlight, with high quality materials and a smart design (Steve Fowler)There’s fabric in all the right places to give the cabin some warmth, including across the dash and doors, with material that matches the seats. It looks great and I particularly like the darker material across the top of the dash with its slightly more rugged finish, while the tasteful combination of textures and colours lifts what could easily have become another rather gloomy small-car interior.It all feels very premium. And plenty of credit should go to the people who worked on the switchgear, because almost everything you touch has clearly had some thought put into it. The window controls, mirror adjustment and even the indicator stalk – which also has to deal with the lights and wipers – have a nicely weighted, expensive action. This is one area where the ID. Polo feels a cut above plenty of the newer Chinese rivals I’ve driven, which is exactly where Volkswagen needs to be.There are harder plastics where you’d expect them, including the tops and lower sections of the doors, but I’ve no problem with that. There’s little point covering parts you rarely touch with expensive soft-touch material just for the sake of it. What’s more telling is something as simple as the glovebox: open it and it drops in a nicely damped way rather than crashing down.There’s plenty of recycled material, too. Volkswagen says the textiles used in the seats and doors, as well as the upper headlining and carpets, are made from recycled PET material, while the Style seats use fabric produced from recycled ocean plastic.Rear seat legroom in the ID. Polo is just about good enough for adults (Steve Fowler)Space is pretty good rather than miraculous. Volkswagen says the all-electric platform has created 19mm more usable interior length compared with the petrol Polo, as well as more width and a higher seating position without sacrificing headroom. I’m close to six feet tall and could sit behind a driver’s seat set for me with a little room to spare, so adults can use the back without feeling like they’ve been folded up. It’s okay rather than enormous, but for a car only just over 4,000mm long it does its job well.Visibility is as straightforward as you’d expect from a Polo. The driving position is easy to get comfortable in and the view around you is good. I wouldn’t object to the windscreen being a little deeper, but it never became an issue.The real surprise is behind the rear seats. At 441 litres, the boot is huge for a car this size – more than 25 per cent larger than the petrol Polo’s and, remarkably, more than Volkswagen offers in the larger Golf or ID.3. Fold the back seats and you get 1,240 litres.There is a small caveat though, since most of that extra usefulness comes from depth rather than the boot being exceptionally long or wide. The load space on the car I tried also had a clever three-stage floor arrangement, letting you trade outright depth for a flatter or more convenient loading area depending on what you’re carrying. The official figures give 658mm of load length with the rear seats up and 1,393mm with them folded, with 984mm between the wheelarches.The ID. Polo boot is deep with even more space beneath the floor (Steve Fowler)There are ISOFIX points on the outer rear seats and front passenger seat, while the roof is rated for up to 75kg. Add together the optional tow bar, big boot and decent passenger space, and the ID. Polo proves it’s a proper everyday car, not an electric supermini only suited to short urban trips.Technology, stereo and infotainmentThere’s lots of technology in the ID. Polo, but the best bit is how little effort it takes to use most of it. Volkswagen appears to have taken a long look at some of the criticism aimed at its earlier ID interiors and decided that perhaps making people swipe and prod at a screen for everything wasn’t such a brilliant idea after all.The new tech in the Volkswagen ID. Polo is impressive for its usability and features (Steve Fowler)So, there are buttons – real ones. There are proper buttons on the new steering wheel, a separate bank of physical controls for the heating and ventilation, and normal mirror adjustment where you expect it. Then, between the phone tray and cupholders, there’s a proper rotary volume control that can also be nudged left or right tp change tracks or radio stations. Such a simple idea shouldn’t feel quite so exciting in 2026, but here we are.The touchscreen itself is good, too. UK cars get a 12.9-inch central display and the menu structure is clean and intuitive. Frequently used functions can be kept where they’re easy to reach, while shortcuts for the main menu and vehicle controls reduce the amount of hunting around. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are available, plus wireless phone charging.In front of the driver is a lovely 10-inch digital display, sitting behind a slightly squared-off steering wheel that gives an unobstructed view of the instruments. The wheel itself feels good in your hands, too.Then there are those retro displays, which are pure theatre. Press the View button and the modern driver’s display turns itself into something inspired by a first-generation Golf, complete with an old analogue speedometer and something resembling a rev counter, although on an EV it shows power use and energy recovery instead. You can give the touchscreen a retro makeover as well, with old-fashioned graphics including a cassette-style media player and a radio frequency display.It’s great fun and exactly the sort of little detail that gives a car some personality. Would I keep it switched on permanently? Probably not. The modern displays are clearer and more useful day to day, but I’m glad it’s there.My fully loaded launch car also had ID.Light, an LED strip that runs across the top of the dashboard and into the doors. It can work with the navigation using light to point you in the direction you need to go, as well as giving warnings. Again, it’s technology that manages to be useful without demanding much attention.The optional Harman Kardon sound system is another impressive extra. It has 425 watts of output and I found it punchy, with good clarity and far better sound than you’d normally expect from a small car. Electrically adjustable 12-way front seats with three massage programmes are also available on higher-spec cars, bringing another feature you’d normally associate with something much bigger and more expensive.The driver-assistance technology follows the same theme. All ID. Polos get a useful spread of systems including autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist detection, lane-keeping assistance, Side Assist, Rear Traffic Alert, an exit warning system, traffic-sign recognition and a driver attention and drowsiness monitor. Life and Style cars add adaptive cruise control, front cross-traffic assistance, parking sensors front and rear and a reversing camera.Connected Travel Assist goes further. On the motorway, it combines adaptive cruise control with lane assistance and can help with lane changes, and I found it worked well. Away from motorways it can also use information about the road ahead and even recognise traffic lights, bringing the car to a stop at a red light within the system’s limits. I’m still not entirely convinced by using that level of assistance around town, though. It’s clever, but it’s still assisted driving and a long way from anything you’d describe as full self-driving.Retro dials in the Volkswagen ID. Polo are a fun choice, and mirrored by a retro look for the infotainment screen, too (Steve Fowler)Other optional systems include Area View with a 360-degree camera and Park Assist Pro, which can remember parking manoeuvres and even allow the car to be moved into or out of a space remotely using a compatible smartphone. There’s an Emergency Assist function that can bring the car to a halt if the driver becomes unresponsive.Prices and running costsVolkswagen has kept the ID. Polo range relatively simple, although there are some launch editions to complicate things slightly at the beginning. The important number is £23,945: that’s the starting price of the regular series-production ID. Polo Life with the 37kWh battery and 114bhp motor.The new Volkswagen ID. Polo starts at a very competitive £23,945 (Steve Fowler)The 133bhp Life with the same battery costs £25,055, while moving up to the 52kWh battery and 208bhp motor takes the Life to £28,330. The Style starts at £28,470 with the 37kWh battery and 133bhp motor, while the 52kWh, 208bhp Style I drove is £31,745. All of the 52kWh, 208bhp versions qualify for the Government’s £1,500 Electric Car Grant.Before those regular cars arrive, Volkswagen is offering a small number of Launch Edition models. The 37kWh, 133bhp Life Launch Edition is £25,555 and available from stock only, while the 52kWh, 208bhp Life Launch Edition costs £28,830. The 52kWh Style Launch Edition is £32,995.The launch cars provide extra kit for your money. Life versions add two-zone climate control, heated front seats and a heated steering wheel, while the Style Launch Edition piles on a lovely panoramic glass roof, massage front seats, Area View cameras, Travel Assist, Park Assist Pro and rear privacy glass.The regular Life is hardly bare. Standard UK equipment includes parking sensors, selectable driving modes, a reversing camera, the 12.9-inch touchscreen, wireless phone charging with AppConnect and a height-adjustable boot floor. Style adds IQ.Light matrix LED headlights, illuminated Volkswagen logos and a front light bar, ambient lighting with ID.Light, 18-inch alloy wheels, front sports comfort seats and fun little play and pause symbols on the accelerator and brake pedals.There are more options if you want to push the Polo further upmarket, including the panoramic roof, massage seats, Harman Kardon stereo, extra driver assistance and a heat pump. That makes the £31,745 Style quite a different proposition from the £23,945 entry car, so choosing how much luxury and technology you actually want will make a considerable difference to the bill.As an EV, though, the ID. Polo’s efficiency figures look strong on paper. The most efficient 52kWh version is rated at the equivalent of around 4.7 miles/kWh, while even the smaller-battery cars sit around the 4.5 miles/kWh mark on official figures – I was impressed by the efficiency shown over a mixed route on my test.The Volkswagen ID. Polo was efficient on my test drive (Steve Fowler)The smaller battery will make most sense for drivers whose regular journeys are relatively short and who can charge easily, while the 281-mile maximum range of the 52kWh version gives the Polo much greater flexibility for longer trips. The 24-minute 10-to-80 per cent rapid-charge time also means the modest 105kW peak figure isn’t as limiting as it might first sound, since it’s a relatively small battery.The verdict: Volkswagen ID. PoloThe ID. Polo feels exactly how a modern electric Polo should: comfortable, practical, beautifully finished and refreshingly easy to use, with clever tech, sensible controls and no major flaws.Mercedes-Benz GLB rivals:Cupra RavalRenault 5 Hyundai Ioniq 3FAQsHow long does it take to charge?The Volkswagen ID. Polo with the 37kWh battery can charge from 10 to 80 per cent in around 23 minutes using a suitable rapid charger, with a maximum DC rate of 90kW. The 52kWh car can manage the same 10-to-80 per cent charge in around 24 minutes at up to 105kW. All versions support AC charging at up to 11kW.How much does it cost – is it worth it?The regular ID. Polo range starts at £23,945 for the 37kWh, 114bhp Life and rises to £31,745 for the 52kWh, 208bhp Style, while limited Launch Editions run from £25,555 to £32,995. On the evidence of my drive, the Polo’s strongest cards are its premium-feeling interior, huge boot, straightforward controls, impressive technology and the way it still manages to feel exactly like a Volkswagen Polo. The 52kWh versions also qualify for the Government’s £1,500 Electric Car Grant.Does Volkswagen replace batteries for free?There’s a standard eight-year battery on all electric Volkswagens, as with other cars. There is small print around the retained capacity over time, which are worth checking on.Why trust usOur team of motoring experts have decades of experience driving, reviewing and reporting on the latest EV cars, and our verdicts are reached with every kind of driver in mind. We thoroughly test drive every car we recommend, so you can be sure our verdicts are honest, unbiased and authentic.With more than 30 years of experience, Steve Fowler is one of the UK’s best-known automative journalists. Steve has interviewed key industry figures, from Tesla’s Elon Musk to Ford’s Jim Farley, and is a judge for both Germany’s and India’s Car of the Year Awards, as well as being a director of World Car of the Year. When it comes to electric vehicles, Steve reviews all the latest models for The Independent as they launch, from Abarth to Zeekr, and he uses his expert knowledge of car buyers' needs to provide a comprehensive verdict.