2023 Volkswagen ID.4 vs 2023 Nissan Ariya

By 2023, it should be clear that electric vehicles (EVs) are here to stay. Companies that got started early on EVs have a head start, and when considering the current era of electric mobility, no major automaker got out of the starting blocks faster than Nissan. The 2010 Nissan Leaf invited the masses to experience quiet, efficient motoring—but in the decade-plus since its debut, it has been caught by more impressive competition.

The all-new 2023 Nissan Ariya aims to retake market share in the electric vehicle space. With front- and all-wheel-drive powertrain options, slick design, immersive technology, and a competitive price tag, the Ariya looks capable of putting Nissan back into the EV conversation. We tested a single-motor Ariya in the fall of 2022 and have since evaluated the dual-motor e-4ORCE model for this updated review.

The Volkswagen ID.4 electric car is still relatively new to the marketplace (it debuted for the 2021 model year) but VW is already making some important updates to keep it competitive and fulfil goals set when this compact electric SUV first launched.

The 2023 Volkswagen ID.4 adds a new base model and a smaller 62-kilowatt-hour battery pack alongside the carryover 82-kWh to increase affordability. VW will also begin sourcing cars for its North American dealerships from the same Chattanooga, Tennessee, factory that builds the gasoline-powered Atlas and Atlas Cross Sport. The automaker has been discussing this since the ID.4 was unveiled, but at first cars for our market came from Zwickau, Germany.

The 2023 ID.4 retains single-motor rear-wheel drive (RWD) and dual-motor all-wheel drive (AWD) powertrain options, but gets revised exterior and interior styling, some software changes, and a few more standard tech features and driver aids.

The new-for-2023 base model is dubbed simply ID.4, slotting below the ID.4 Pro and ID.4 Pro AWD. We recently spent a day on a test drive with the U.S. equivalent of the ID.4 Pro AWD model, along with a shorter drive in a base ID.4 model.