VW ID.3 put Power Upgrade behind a Pay Wall !

Comments

24 responses to “VW ID.3 put Power Upgrade behind a Pay Wall !”

1. 

   @Jake.Warren

   September 17, 2025

   Good evening everyone!

   Reply
2. 

   @Paulo-ov4yo

   September 17, 2025

   VW are welcome to keep their products

   Reply
   1. 

      @Yorkshiremadmick

      September 17, 2025

      Absolutely 👍🏻
      Ridiculous and scary. Because the over the air upgrade, what else can they do over the air. Can they stop the car? See where you are.
      VW are no longer of interest to me

      Reply
3. 

   @SavingSalvage

   September 17, 2025

   I use an ID3 as a run around and upgraded to the extra power for 30 days as a free trial, didn’t notice the extra power really so didn’t bother paying the extra going forward

   Reply
4. 

   @shakesnbake

   September 17, 2025

   Paywall features are like the modern equivalent of tailored blanks back in the day – I hate it. Looking forward to the GT3 RS!

   Reply
5. 

   @johns14a

   September 17, 2025

   Any manufacturer who tries the paywall thing can FRO as far as I’m concerned. Very happy to take my business elsewhere.

   Reply
   1. 

      @kevinmills5293

      September 17, 2025

      Paying a one off for a power upgrade I can stomach but a monthly fee is disgusting

      Reply
6. 

   @stevie007

   September 17, 2025

   Great stuff Peds as normal 👌👌👌👌👌👌👌👌

   Reply
7. 

   @SDK2006b

   September 17, 2025

   I’m all for paying for upgrades but this ID3 add-on seems expensive for what is a very small power increase.
   I bought the Polestar 2 ‘Performance’ upgrade software download for £1.2k in 2021, which added about 78bhp, to my 400bhp Polestar 2 [so a total of 478bhp] which I was happy with. Telsa also did/still do the same for the Tesla LR’s model for Performance upgrades.

   The new BMW iX3 will be the replacement for my iX next year – it looks amazing.

   Reply
8. 

   @richardhowlett7398

   September 17, 2025

   Many years ago I had a Passat, I vowed never have another Volkswagen after that experience, this re-enforces that.

   Reply
9. 

   @dangreasley7934

   September 17, 2025

   Very interesting having to pay for additional features behind a pay wall. I guess we live in a consumable society, so it all makes sense, kind of. I assume this method also makes the cost of manufacture cheaper. No separate configs on the car in the factory, they’re all built the same, just with options hidden.

   Reply
10. 

    @colinraynor-z8i

    September 17, 2025

    Evening Pete, thanks for tonight’s video – informative as usual and look forward to the 911 and others soon

    The pay for power debate; wow I wasn’t aware of that at all

    Like you, I know it’s been happening for years for safety and comfort add-ons and don’t have any issue with it at all- it’s no different to the options list from years ago to mainly premium brands but this modern way offers the used car owner market the benefit of choosing something the original owner didn’t want.

    But extra power is a different sphere, offering power rather than safety security or comfort in the form of a payment.

    And knowing the insurance is for the vehicle with the additional power, even when not selected or paid for, feels more like a penalty for those that don’t want or need it. And that may well be enough to put people off so they look elsewhere .

    I don’t know what performance increase this “feature” would bring, nor what the insurance might be if 201bhp was the maximum, though on first glance I feel it’s an own goal for VW and for what- 27bhp??

    From what seems like a flaky business case to entice more customers with this new idea, I think VW may lose many more that don’t want more bhp and certainly don’t want to pay for it anyway.

    Shall we have a sweepstake on when they offer it with 228bhp as standard?

    What next – a button to give you the power for 10 seconds and cost you £1 a press?! So “pay per use” rather than “pay per month”? !!

    Reply
11. 

    @MyNameIsJeeeff

    September 17, 2025

    My local VW dealer told me last week that they are really struggling to resell used EVs as they come back off 3 year leases. Some owners have wrapped up their agreements at the end of year 2, with a shock as to what the final value of the car actually is (as in, really low!).

    Reply
12. 

    @britboy70

    September 17, 2025

    I understand the pay to play concept. In app purchases have been a thing for many years. When everyone complains about everything being in screens and not physical buttons it is because it lets manufacturers give you new stuff over the air (hopefully without having to return to the dealer), It’s called SDV (Software Defined Vehicle). However I think the subscription service for things like heated seats etc. is wrong. Maybe you could make a case, that like a tv streaming service, you only pay when there are things you want watch. Maybe I only want heated seats 4 months of the year so I do have an option to not have them and not pay for them for the other 8 months. But I think it will just end up having us all forget to cancel the subscription so just pay more even when we don’t use them. Unlocking power is but it should be a one time cost, not every month to keep it.

    Reply
    1. 

       @GregHarveyUK

       September 17, 2025

       There is a one off charge lifetime payment option.

       Reply
    2. 

       @dannyseville2543

       September 17, 2025

       My audi has upgradecsubs but its for things like map updates which I pointless as I use Google maps anyway. For heated seats, its there all the time and these cars aren’t cheap to start with so putting them behind a paywall is just a blatant cash grab.

       Cars are just catching up with other platforms (photoshop amd the like) and its not a good thing. At least photoshop (and map updates) adds new features not present on original release but a sub for extra power, heated seats and whatever else they decide in the future, maybe things like global opening windows, touch unlock and at an extreme aircon (if they tried heated seats the why not aircon) is just n way to keep drawing money from people, and people are obliging.

       Reply
13. 

    @richardkeane3051

    September 17, 2025

    You’re not wrong! Insurance companies having their money for less power if you don’t upgrade. Totally out of order. BTW, IONIQ 3 looks great when it arrives perhaps…

    Reply
14. 

    @GregHarveyUK

    September 17, 2025

    It should be clarified, since a lot of people are commenting, that VW *have* offered a one off payment possibility.

    Personally, I think if you’ve got a 200bhp car then it’s a bit silly to pay more for a bit more. That’s LOADS ALREADY for the sort of car it is.

    That insurance thing is bullsh*t though, I agree. You shouldn’t have to pay to insure power you don’t have!!

    Reply
15. 

    @robboddcc3003

    September 17, 2025

    These pay walls exist in the motorcycle industry too. In particular, KTM. The bikes were equipped with the hardware (a quick shifter) but required a paid for “dealer update” to make it usable. This annoyed many riders who subsequently bought alternative bikes.

    Reply
16. 

    @decayintheuk

    September 17, 2025

    I ❤engines, all those little explosions propelling me forward and tuning up pipes to create acoustic joy & goosebumps around the back

    Reply
17. 

    @glenhains3513

    September 17, 2025

    Totally agree, exactly what I was thinking! You’re paying the equivalent of someone with the extra power, without benefiting from it yourself 🤷🏻‍♂️
    Love the midweek 180, as well as the regular uploads and of course the Drive Torque Podcast. Keep em coming 😎🤙🏻

    Reply
18. 

    @simondehaas8784

    September 17, 2025

    This has never been provided as standard / for free, it’s a bonus option. I think it’s really good personally. People pay a lot more for a similar power bump in a petrol car. The only problem is I don’t know how it affects insurance premiums.

    Reply
19. 

    @alunjones2550

    September 17, 2025

    The lunacy of forcing you to rent the heated seats, already fitted to your car is the epitome of corporate greed. Companies don’t want to sell you things now that they can force you to spend multiple times more having to rent them instead. Adobe Photoshop amongst many other software packages is a prime example.
    I really believe there’s a massive opportunity within the automotive sector for a company that makes a high quality car that focuses on build quality, longevity, reliability, repairability and customer care and covers the extra cost of all these by doing away with all the needless frippery, and over complication that modern cars have.

    Reply
20. 

    @666666graham

    September 17, 2025

    My Enyaq which is from the VW group has many options you have to pay extra for & some which were included from new but will run out in a couple of years! Not sure if I will renew them I’ll have to see but none are to do with power & as it has nearly 300bh already I’m sure I can cope ok with that!!!

    Reply