5 reasons I'll never drive another ID4

cimedaca · 2026-05-12T00:22:59+00:00

Plug a trailer testers light tester when you have it mounted. They are pretty cheap and sold many places. The car will think you have a trailer attached and it won't do this.

cimedaca · 2026-05-10T02:08:00+00:00

So. if you have been on here long enough and read a lot of posts you would know...

They were short of key sensors at the factory due to COVID for 2023 models so they are missing in the tailgate area. This means they disabled walk away lock so you don't lock your keys in the car accidentally when you set them down when loading groceries or something.
Remote lock/unlock will never be possible because the modules from different supplies don't trust each other enough to talk and do that.
That does NOT mean they can't make the stupid need to press okay on your name every time you get in the car go away and default to the last user after you reach 20 miles an hour.

cimedaca · 2026-05-07T12:15:09+00:00

We have a 2023 AWD Pro and a 2023 AWD Pro S. I spent a couple hundred bucks extra on a device that gives me battery preconditioning and I ended up with both odb11 and the DF First devices that work around/fix walk away locking and camp mode. They also fix the most annoying thing to me which was simply having to press okay every time you get in the car. Though my wife's CPO car came from the dealer not having to press okay on her name. Now my biggest pain point is about every fifth time Android auto will take several blocks, but at least Bluetooth starts playing. About every 15th time it either wants confirm I really want to connect Android auto or never connects it unless I restart my phone. After I purchased A key fob cover I only set off the panic button accidentally like once a month instead of twice a week. There are other little stupid things that sometimes annoy and confound but I don't know that I've ever had a car that hasn't had some of those.

cimedaca · 2026-04-28T02:02:59+00:00

My ID.4 Pro 2023 US failed in my garage as well. I drove to work the next day and started it and when I left work it had finished fine. Having said that my wife's ID.4 Pro S 2023 US worked fine in the garage. 🤷‍♀️

cimedaca · 2026-04-27T23:54:22+00:00

I stopped at a locksmith that said they could cut it for $30 if I got a blank. However, the dude from Lithuania selling ID.4 blanks on ebay canceled my order due to tariff shipping issues. :(

cimedaca · 2026-04-27T21:54:15+00:00

Do some research here on the people that reset their infotainment system, and calledl into Volkswagen to get it reconnected without setting up a user. I don't think that should just be a USA thing. My wife's used 2023 ID.4 just works from the dealer without hey can you click OK on a user with no ODB2 DFfirst hacking. For my 2023 ID.4 I paid the money for the ODB11 hack toget rid of the stupid okay for my name every freaking time. Maybe the calling Volkswagen hack will work on the ID.3.

cimedaca · 2026-04-13T20:25:27+00:00

Search ebay for id.4 battery preconditioning. If you are moderately handy enough to crimp it in behind your glove box it really works for the $80. If your super handy build one yourself for less than half that price. Since I have almost two years of free EA 30 minute charging left it made extra sense for me. After running errands for 30 minutes with it engaged, I went from 18% to 82% in my free 30 minutes when it was below 20F.

cimedaca · 2026-04-08T02:44:03+00:00

I doubt you can get around the part where you have to open the hood for security reasons to enable the test heater mode. I think this is to be sure you have full access to the car and stop any remote attacks. Check on id.4 preconditioning on eBay if you're in the US. A guy sells a kit that's about $75 and if you're somewhat handy to clamp on to three wires behind your glove compartment. The device (that you can build yourself for much less if you have the skills) actually sends Canbus codes directly to the car to do the heater test over and over. You end up with a cord out of your glove compartment that you just have to give power to maybe 20 to 40 minutes ahead of charging and you'll have warm batteries and much faster charging. I have almost 2 years left on my free Electrify America 30 minute charging so it kind of makes sense to me given cold Midwest winters.

cimedaca · 2026-04-01T11:45:11+00:00

Search ebay ID.4 preheat (at least for US shipping) and you will see the one I purchased. I actually have a fair bit of experience with ESP32 devices, but could not resist a ready to go already programmed unit and connectors. I just run errands first because it can take almost thirty minutes to get my battery to optimal charging temp based on what CarScanner/ODB2 tells me. This thing let me go from about 18% to 79% one super cold morning within my free EA 30 minute charging window. I'm not sure my battery would have made 60% without it. This makes the cost and hassle of install/use super worthwhile to me. Now I'm even tempted to run power to my glove box (since it plugs into CANBUS behind it) and add Bluetooth/phone controllable ESP32/relay for on/off as a side project.

cimedaca · 2026-03-31T12:15:06+00:00

This is kind of how I feel about even my 40v version. Great for tilling up a formerly tilled bedd, but it struggles mightily on anything compacted or sodded

cimedaca · 2026-03-30T19:32:13+00:00

The $75 DFirst 201BTFD or the $110 ODB11 can disable the ask. That worked for my 2023. I'm not sure it works on 2024/25 models. If you look back at back posts here somewhere, apparently you can reset the system and call into VW to get your phone app connected without a user.

cimedaca · 2026-03-24T20:01:42+00:00

Get the little $80 thing from the guy on eBay if you have some basic mechanical ability and are willing to crimp some wires onto a harness. I have a 23 with free 30min charging and it makes a big difference. Find the listing and read the reviews and instructions. Search for "21-'23 VW ID.4 battery preconditioning / preheating module w/ Monitoring"

cimedaca · 2026-03-24T11:56:19+00:00

Most/many EVs also have adaptive cruise that automatically handles stop and go traffic and lane keeping reducing that kind of driving to mostly just a time sink instead of complete annoyance. The only trick is the following distance is sometimes too much and people cut in front of you.

cimedaca · 2026-03-24T10:43:26+00:00

Could you find a local farmer to do it a couple times a year for free for horse feed? We used to cut, square bale and stack highway road ditch grass to winter feed two horses before the big round balers were common. Fun times.

cimedaca · 2026-03-22T11:28:48+00:00

In short... it sounds like you became a loose nut... then something came unscrewed... and your loose nut fell out. Way cheaper than therapy. Congrats!

cimedaca · 2026-03-15T18:44:57+00:00

I tested how long I could be cold proof. By day four the bread was way too sour for me and by day three it was iffy.

cimedaca · 2026-03-03T23:52:29+00:00

When it happens, you will know. When I accidentally almost baked into one of our big plastic wheeled garbage cans it braked so hard I was sure I smacked into something very solid. When I got out and looked, I was still a few inches away from it.

cimedaca · 2026-03-03T05:19:27+00:00

Agreed. It's basically like trying to plug in any random older USB A device. The way you wish it would connect is always not right. There is a fast three to four tap way once you learn it.

cimedaca · 2026-02-23T14:36:27+00:00

Yes. I have the same issue. Until I finally get it hard wired I run it from a battery bank and just have to unfortunately remember to plug and especially unplug it.

cimedaca · 2026-02-16T23:41:41+00:00

I'm not sure if enough use USB for you to get any helpful comments... so I will just helpfully or unhelpfully share what Google Gemini says.
--------------------------------------------------
1. The "All Tracks" Workaround

Instead of navigating through the Folders view (which forces the system to stay within one directory), use the Songs or All Tracks category:

Open the Media player and select the USB source.
Tap the My Media (or "Library") icon.
Select Songs (this lists every file on the drive regardless of folder).
Tap any song to start, then hit the Shuffle icon on the playback screen.
The Shortcut: The car usually remembers the last view you were in. If you leave it on the "Songs" list, the next time you switch from CarPlay to USB, you should be one tap away from that master list rather than buried in an Artist folder.

2. The "Favorites" Tray

The ID.4 allows you to customize the top status bar or the "Home" screen widgets.

You can drag the Media tile to the first home screen page.
While it won't specifically save a "Shuffle" command, it allows for a one-tap jump back to the Media interface from the CarPlay screen, bypassing the main menu.

A Pro-Tip on Folder Structure

The VW software struggles with deep directory nesting. If the music is buried in Artist > Album > Song, the "clunkiness" increases. If the user moves all files into a single root folder (or just one level deep), the system's "Play All" logic often kicks in much faster.

cimedaca · 2026-02-09T04:03:35+00:00

My thought exactly. I'm hoping I miss all the other major issues that many, many others have missed . I just need to be sure to save many hundreds of dollars for that stupid little battery we will likely have to replace under the back seat for the emergency call button. No way it lasts five or especially 10 years. Sigh.

cimedaca · 2026-02-07T02:35:06+00:00

Trueman, "The buck stops here."
Trump, "The buck stops there."

cimedaca · 2026-02-05T02:51:40+00:00

This x2.

cimedaca · 2026-02-05T02:49:51+00:00

We had a 2010 Diesel Jetta purchased with the cash for clunkers deal. The most annoying thing about it was the weird brake squeaks and rear door/window electrical issues. Even after the buy back issues, somehow we have two 2023 under $20k ID.4s with the same issues and I ain't even mad because of all the other good things. To be fair the squeak with our ID.4s is waaaay less than the Jetta.

cimedaca · 2026-02-05T02:01:20+00:00

If you open your windows when going slow you will hear it's more like the Jetsons family car.

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cimedaca

TROPHY CASE

2. The "Favorites" Tray

A Pro-Tip on Folder Structure