Likewise, the Honda-E has been the darling of literally every auto event it graces with its presence. It hits all the right buttons for the car-loving world. It’s dripping with nostalgia, it looks amazing, it’s rear-wheel drive, and it’s an EV crammed full of tech in a way that doesn’t feel forced. Unfortunately, it also won’t be coming to the United States.

That cool Honda Fit (aka Jazz, in other parts of the world) hybrid that was unveiled at the Tokyo Auto Show is unlikely to make into the showrooms of the country that actually invented jazz. Oh, and the Golf plug-in hybrid, it’s also not coming to the US. We won’t be able to buy these cool, small cars.

For the automakers, it’s a business decision. The United States is obsessed with larger vehicles. Crossovers, SUVs, and trucks (that never seem to be actually hauling all that much) are what Americans want. But we can change that. I mean you’re never going to give up your SUV, I get it. But what if your second car was a small EV or hybrid? Something to run errands, commute to work and keep around so you’re not putting miles on a vehicle that’s larger than your master bedroom

According to statistics, the average household has 1.8 to 2 cars. It depends on who you ask, but let’s just accept that there are more families that have two cars than have one. The larger-vehicle market (SUVs, crossovers, trucks) continues to eat away at the sedan market. So there’s a good chance most of those vehicles are big.

I get it. The population is aging and getting in and out of an SUV is easier on our old joints. Or if you have a young family, it’s way easier to put a car seat in a crossover than a sedan. Also, you can haul a ton of stuff with an SUV or truck. (Although the Honda Fit has a remarkable amount of cargo space.) Plus, you can’t tow the boat to the lake with an E-Golf. But you’re not always doing these things — except getting old. That never stops. (Well, it does, but the endgame only requires one type of vehicle, and it’s more of a wagon than an SUV.)

But that second car doesn’t need to be huge. So make it small. Make it an EV. Make it something that’s fun to drive. Because SUVs are not all that fun to drive. Sure, they’ve improved. Gone are the days when being behind the wheel of a large vehicle was like driving a city bus. But very few trips in a crossover end with a smile on the driver’s face.

Electric cars are a blast. They have incredible torque so every time you leave a stoplight it’s like a tiny drag race (Do not drag race). They have a very low center of gravity so even when you’re cruising the Target parking lot it feels like you’re navigating a sports car.

Finally, thanks to tax incentives, you can get these cars for relatively cheap.

That is, if they’re available, and sadly, most aren’t. Volkswagen told me that it’s bringing the larger ID.4 crossover to the US first because it wants to make a strong introduction to the EV world. I’ve talked to multiple Honda representatives about the Honda-E and they tell me that the car just doesn’t make sense here because it won’t sell that well. The current Honda Fit’s US sales (2018: 35,300) are nothing compared to the automaker’s CRV sales (2018: 379,013) in the US. Meanwhile, in Europe, the Jazz (aka Fit) outsold the CRV 37,894 to 28,576 in 2018.

But there are still options. The E-Golf is going away, but you can snap one up before they are discontinued. It’s a fun little EV that’s the bridge between the Golf and the new ID.3. The $37,000 Chevy Bolt is still out there, even though Chevy doesn’t seem to do any marketing for it.

Plus there’s the upcoming $29,000 Mini SE electric vehicle. While others are retreating from the market, Mini is happy to bring its EV to the United States. It doesn’t expect it to be a huge seller though. Pat McKenna, head of product for US Mini, said that the company is “cautiously optimistic” for the midrange EV. It’s a global vehicle, and Mini expects it will do better in other regions.

I had the opportunity to drive (at only a frustratingly slow 50 mph) the Mini SE a few months ago on a track. I can’t offer up a complete feel for the car, but in my short time behind the wheel, it felt like it had the go-kart characteristics of a typical Mini. In other words, it’ll be fun to drive around town.

Plus there’s the Tesla Model 3, starting at $39,500. This is the bestselling of all the electric cars and there’s no chance Tesla will stop selling it in the United States. Oh, and behind the wheel, it’s also a blast.

So keep your SUVs and trucks. But let’s start convincing automakers to bring more small EVs to the States because diversity in the driveway is good. Driving should be more than a chore; it can be a delight and small EVs have increasingly become some of the most fun you can have behind the wheel. Even when you’re just running to the store to get some milk.

The ID.3 is Volkswagen’s future. The automaker considers this vehicle to be as important to the company as the Beetle and Golf. It’s so important that the Zwickau factory where we’re standing is being transformed from producing Golfs to electric vehicles. It’s about halfway there but this entire journey started in shame.

In 2015, authorities were informed by researchers that Volkswagen’s diesel engines were cheating emissions tests. When hooked up to emissions equipment the cars would go into a special mode and reduce the amount of pollution they spewed. But during regular driving, the cars were adding more pollution to the air then they should have been.

The automaker was cheating. Huge fines, incarcerations, resignations and apologies followed. For a few years, nearly every Volkswagen group member (which includes: Volkswagen, Audi, Buggati, Lamborghini, Seat, Bentley, Skoda, and Porsche) event began with an apology.

But judges, governments and customers rightfully wanted more. In additional to buyback programs, and paying hefty fines, the automaker had to do things like produce ads touting how great EVs were and building charging infrastructure in the United States. But the scar on Volkswagen also kick-started the company’s transition to EVs.

That’s where the ID.3 comes in. It’s not the first EV from the company. It currently sells the impressive E-Golf mid-range BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle). But this new car and all the electric vehicles after it are based on the MEB platform. A modular floor that’s built from the ground up specifically for battery packs of varying sizes.

That MEB platform will be the basis of the upcoming crossover ID.4, the retro Buzz bus, the whimsical Buggy and a whole host of new Volkswagen vehicles. The platform will also be used by Ford to help the US automaker make its transition to electrification. The automaker wants to be a global powerhouse of electrification and it already has a plant putting the first car together.

The ID.3 will be available in three battery sizes (45kWh, 58kWh, 77kWh). The lowest will start at €30,000 (about the price of a Diesel Golf). Zwickau is already producing the ID.3 and it’s the first of four factories that will build vehicles on the MEB platform.

At Zwickau, the change over will cost €1.2 billion and requires the retraining of the facility’s 8,000 employees. Getting employees up to speed started two years ago and continues as the company transitions the entire plant to MEB vehicle production. The plan is to complete the change over by the end of 2021. At that point, 90 percent of Zwickau will have undergone a production line transformation

On the factory floor, first editions of the ID.3 move along the line. Newly trained employees and robots marry the body to what’s essentially a skateboard that consists of the battery pack, suspension and motor. In the future, more of these tasks will be automated but all 8,000 employees are guaranteed positions until at least 2029. Building cars still needs, and will continue to need, people.

Currently, only one of the two lines has been replaced. It happened over a 12-week period this summer. But by 2022, both lines will be producing ID vehicles. The first will be the ID.3 followed by the ID.4.

The area around the factory is filled with Golfs. The vehicle has done very well for Volkswagen. More than any other car in its lineup, the Golf is iconic. Replacing a best-seller with EVs at Zwickau is a sign of the automaker’s commitment to electrification.

At an event this week, Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess said that “Zwickau is steeped in German automotive tradition and as of today, it’s also very much set for the future.” The plant has been producing vehicles for 105 years.

At the end of the transformation, the facility will produce 330,000 electric vehicles a year (A capacity increase of 10 percent over current production) and be the largest factory of its kind in Europe.

The automaker also stated that each vehicle will be carbon neutral when it lands in the hands of customers. Volkswagen will rely on a combination of renewable energy sources for the plant, reducing the energy needed to build a car, tree planting initiatives and other schemes to make each car as ecologically friendly as possible.

Zwickau is just the beginning. Two more German factories will spin up MEB production. Elsewhere, the Chattanooga factory in the US and two factories in China will start producing EVs. In all, Volkswagen says it will invest €30 billion on electric mobility.

“We can determine the rate of innovation ourselves,” Diess said. “Without the electric car, we will not win the fight against climate change” The CEO added that the company plans on building one million electric cars by 2025.

Building and selling are two different things. EVs are still a small part of the total vehicles sold worldwide. It’s growing, but Volkswagen and other automakers will have to convince more than first adopters why an electric vehicle fits into their life.

Volkswagen board member for e-mobility, Thomas Ulbrich, believes that with the ID lineup, the automaker can convince the normal customer how an EV fits into their average day. Offering three battery sizes that fit into every type of driving lifestyle and giving drivers the ability to quickly charge their cars are a huge part of that.

In the United States, that still means growing the charging infrastructure. While a majority of charging will happen at the homes of those with driveways and garages, city dwellers that street park and anyone out running errands that push the car beyond its range will need chargers. Volkswagen’s Electrify America is aggressively trying to expand its reach.

Even then, some US drivers will be hard-pressed to give up the pump for a cable. While owners might not drive 200 to 300 miles in a day, the option to do so and refuel quickly is a huge barrier for EV adoption that may take years to overcome. Plus, Americans want SUVs.

Because of our desire for larger vehicles, the ID.3 will not be landing stateside (boo). Instead, we will get the ID.4 crossover that will appear at the end of 2020. Whether it makes sense or not, bigger is still better in America. But range anxiety isn’t purely a US problem. Volkswagen has to convince Europeans that an EV will fit into their life.

Ulbrich said that right now the current “best range” is between 450 and 500 kilometers. But he followed up that if you ask him again in three to four years, he believes that those range numbers will decrease. “Right now they (customers) are anxious. As soon as the charging infrastructure grows, they will accept a lower range (vehicles).” He continued, “if charging is easy like fueling, why take a heavier, bigger battery inside a car that is more expensive?”

A few years ago, Volkswagen tricked the world into buying diesel engines that polluted more than their fair share. Now its CEO is on stage talking about battling climate change, promising carbon-neutral cars and factories, and saying that its future business is electric. It’s a commitment that’s costing billions and requires a restructuring of its manufacturing. Volkswagen is continuing its long apology, except now, it’s more than words and cash settlements, it’s a promise of a cleaner future delivered to your driveway.

It’s important to note (once again) that the ID.3 is not coming to the United States (boo). But, the layout we’re seeing in this car will more than likely end up in the ID.4. Or at least a very close variant of it will show up stateside. Either way, Volkswagen has produced a clean, easy to use and more importantly, easy to understand system that should offer up what people care about the most while driving.

When you sit down in the ID.3, its infotainment system exudes clean design. Most of that has to do with the white background and floating displays. The center display is a 10-inch touchscreen that floats above the dashboard.

Two home screens contain the features users will use most while a third has a tablet-like layout of all the options available. Navigation was mostly quick with very little latency. There were a few moments when the system didn’t respond to taps or swipes. Chances are that’s more of an issue with it being pre-production than anything.

Under the display are simple climate controls with touch-sensitive buttons. Users can tap to raise or lower the temperature or tap and hold and move their finger left or right to adjust the heat or cooling. There are tiny ridges at the end of the “buttons” so that should help when you want to cool the car down without having to take your eyes off the road.

More robust controls are in the touch display. But in addition to the usual hot, cold, fan speed etcetera, Volkswagen added more conversational-type controls like “cool feet” or “warm hands.” It’s a nice touch and shows that automakers are closer to understanding how actual humans think.

To that effect, the automaker is also adding a voice assistant. The “Hey ID” wake word offers up access to navigation, climate control, media and other features. Two mics in the ceiling of the car help the system determine who is talking so if the passenger says they’re too hot, it’ll only adjust their temperature.

One interesting aspect that’s not on other cars is the ID Light which is essentially an LED strip that’s positioned right below the windshield. It can help with navigation by telling you when to turn, give you charging status and flash red when you need to apply the brakes. As drivers get used to it, I can see it being a useful way to share simple (but sometimes vital) information without the driver taking their eyes off the road.

Meanwhile, behind the actual wheel, Volkswagen is using touch-sensitive buttons on the steering wheel for ADAS and media controls. With the controls on the right, you can adjust the view of the dash cluster. Swiping left and right toggles between either navigation, speed or ADAS being enlarged. While the speedometer is always visible, ADAS and navigation can be swiped away.

On the left side of the steering wheel, driving modes can be selected with a quick swipe. As someone that changes driving modes quite a lot while cruising around, this is a far better solution than a button in the center console or on the dash.

While the touch-sensitive controls are cool in theory, it’ll be interesting to try them out on the road. Without any real physical feedback from your actions on the steering wheel, it might not be as innovative as VW hopes it will be.

Overall though, the interior of the ID.3 is quite spacious for a car its size and I had no trouble fitting into the back seat while others were in the front. Like the display, it feels light and airy in the car and presents itself interior-wise as a larger vehicle.

Again, it’s important to point out that we will not be getting this car in the US. But it’s the first MEB platform vehicle from Volkswagen and what happens here will permeate the rest of the coming line up. But for now, we’ll wait for the ID.4 which should be available in the US in 2020.

Much like Mercedes’ newer cars, the ID.3 will apparently have natural-language voice commands to handle common tasks. You can say “hello ID,” mention that you’re feeling cold and expect your car to turn up the heat. There isn’t an extensive demo of the functionality, but it’s promising if you hate reaching over to tweak the AC or make a phone call.

VW quickly pulled the clip from its own channels, but we wouldn’t rule out a swift return. The promo video still shows the ID.3’s exterior wrapped in the neon-hued camouflage used to pitch the car in recent months. It wouldn’t be surprising if the video was meant to build up hype in the last weeks before the ID.3’s official reveal at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September. If nothing else, it suggests that VW’s first from-scratch EV will feel fresh for the brand, if not out of line with what you get from rivals.