Volkswagen ID.4

The key change made as part of this further ID.4 update lies with a bigger entry-level battery pack, increased from 52kWh to 58kWh in size.

That's improved range of course - from 222 to 265 miles.

The slightly bigger pack necessitated the need for slightly more output from the rear-mounted motor, which previously delivered 170PS but now offers 190PS.

The larger battery pack is now 79kWh in size but works with the same 286PS rear motor and the range figure is unchanged at up to 342 miles.

The old 77kWh battery is retained only for the top twin motor GTX 4MOTION variant, which offers 340PS and a range of up to 325 miles. The whole ID.4 experience should be familiar if you've tried one previously.

If you haven't, there's a bit to adapt to if this is your first experience of EV motoring.

No gearstick, no handbrake, no ignition key and just the sound of silence as the fixed ratio transmission blends an almost endless wave of torque into meaningful and surprisingly rapid forward progress.

Like Volkswagen's original post-war Beetle, most versions of this car are rear-driven and when you drive such an ID.4 in town, you quickly realise the real advantages of placing the powertrain - the electric motor and its associated single-speed auto gearbox - on the back axle, thereby freeing up the front wheels for steering duties; the result is a London taxi-like 10.2-metre turning circle.

Beyond the city limits, that drive format allows for a near-50:50 almost perfect weight distribution which, together with the low centre of gravity provided by the central battery pack placement, helps disguise the portly weight this SUV must carry around.

Traction through the turns is excellent and body roll is checked by firm damping cleverly engineered for suppleness over poor surfaces.

All of which ought to provide the recipe for a decently sporting EV - and in some ways it does. There are four drive settings common across the model line-up - 'Comfort', 'Sport' and 'Individual'.

Plus you get an 'Eco' setting that, to maximise range, you'll need to frequently use in combination with the available 'B' regenerative braking function, which slows the car significantly when you come off the accelerator.

The GTX model has an extra 'Traction' mode too - and can now tow up to 1,800kg.

No significant exterior visual changes were made to this ID.4 as part of this further update.

As before, it's one of the bigger VW Group mid-sized EV crossovers, 4,584mm long, 1,852mm wide and 1,612mm tall.

To give you some perspective, that makes it a little longer and wider than Volkswagen's more conventional Tiguan mid-sized SUV.

Full-LED headlights are standard and top models get big 20 or 21-inch wheels. Inside, there's a 12.9-inch infotainment central touchscreen, with simple menus, an intuitive control structure and a responsive IDA voice assistant.

This offers functions including cloud-based weather information and the status of sporting events or stock market prices.

You still have to put up with a very small (5.3-inch) instrument display. The wheel's thankfully no longer embellished with fiddly touch-sensitive buttons, finally replaced by physical switches.

Once you're settled behind that wheel, the wide, narrow 'ID.Light' strip that's fitted to plusher models will indicate the car's readiness to drive - it's difficult to see in day light but will be a real talking point at night as it colourfully indicates key driving functions.

You sit quite high, on top of all those batteries, and as usual with the brand's ID models, a minimalist, open plan but rather clinical feel persists, which Volkswagen has tried unsuccessfully to lift by imprinting 'Play' and 'Pause' symbols on the two footwell pedals.

Overall, build quality is generally good but cheaper plastics still betray the cost cutting necessary to undergird all that sophisticated EV technology.

At the back, as before, there's comfortable space for a couple of adults (it'd be a squash for three).

And there's a very decently-sized 543-litre boot, extendable to 1,575-litres with the rear seat folded.

A tonne of weight can be towed too if you specify the optional tow bar.

Prices start from around £37,000, but Volkswagen expects to be able to qualify for the government's £1,500 Electric Car Grant with the smaller 58kWh battery models and the base-spec version with the larger 79kWh battery.

Talking of spec, eight trim levels are currently available in the UK, with most sales accounted for by the most affordable variants, badged 'Pure Essential', 'Pure Match' and 'Pro Essential'.

Beyond that there's no grant aid, so a big price jump to the plusher 'Pro Match', 'Pro Black Edition' and 'GTX Edition 4MOTION' models, the latter costing nearly £53,000.

The GTX is the only variant that can be had with Volkswagen's (desirable) DCC adaptive damping system. All ID.4s come with full-LED headlamps, LED tail lights, rain sensing wipers, all-round parking sensors, heated windscreen washer jets, an alarm and wheels of at least 19-inches in size.

Inside, all versions feature the 'ID.Light', a wide, narrow light strip under the windscreen that assists the driver by flashing or moving in different colours to draw attention to various functions.

There's also an 'Air Care Climatronic' 2-Zone air conditioning system, a leather-trimmed and a heated multi-function steering wheel.

The upholstery is a smart alcantara-like 'Art Velours' microfleece and the front seats are heated, plus there's an auto-dimming rear view mirror, an electric auxiliary air heater, a wireless smartphone charger and an ambient lighting set-up with up to 30 colour options.

And you get a Vehicle-to-Load system that allows you to plug external devices into the vehicle's drive battery.

As we said in our 'Driving' section, driving range with the smaller-battery 58kWh version of this improved ID.4 has increased significantly to as much as 265 miles, 77 miles less than the 79kWh version.

To achieve the quoted range figures, you'll need to frequently use the provided 'Eco' drive mode setting, ideally in combination with the available 'B' regenerative braking function, which slows the car significantly when you come off the accelerator.

DC charging speeds aren't particularly fast, rated at just 105kWh for the 58kWh model.

The 79kWh battery DC-charges at up to 183kW and the 77kWh GTX AWD model DC-charges at up to 185kW. If you're AC charging from home, then for a full charge with the smaller battery 58kWh model, you'll need 7 hours 30 minutes (or 5 hours 30 minutes with an 11kW three-phase supply).

With the 79kWh battery, you'll need 12 hours 40 minutes (or 8 hours with an 11kW three-phase supply). As always with any EV, you'll also make savings in BiK payments (rated at 4% until April 2027).

There's a fixed servicing schedule, with a basic inspection after two years (unlimited mileage) and subsequent services every year or 20,000 miles.

There's the usual unremarkable three year / 60,000 mile Volkswagen warranty (the third year operated by the retailer).

And as usual with an EV, the battery pack is warrantied to have at least 70% of its usable capacity after eight years or 100,000 miles.

These further updates to the ID.4 won't be enough to persuade you into the car if you didn't already want one, but if you had it on your shortlist already, the changes made here are worth taking note of.

Almost everyone who chooses this car gets it with the smaller battery drivetrain and it's this that's benefitted most from this final update. If this had been the kind of ID.4 we'd had from the very beginning, this Volkswagen's UK sales fortunes with this model might have been rather different.

As it is, this car has finally become a very complete all-round mid-sized EV crossover package - as it very much needs to be given the vastly increased competition in this segment.

Arguably, there are still more interesting and visually arresting choices you could make in the class.

But the ID.4 is now one of the most sensible contenders in its category.

Which makes it difficult to ignore.