[estebin]

Hello all,
I am thinking of taking on an ID 4 project but I need some guidance, I may tackle the project of creating a front trunk “frunk” liner for the EV VW. However I need some help, any aid would be greatly appreciated. Are there sensitive areas in the front trunk area to be aware of, maybe spot that heat up and need ventilation or spots that should not have things touch it. Maybe areas that should not be covered. Thanks and I look forward to your comments.

 

[Nai3t]

I'm thinking the same thing. Just a place to store the included EVSE and an extension cord. So far I haven't noticed any warmth on the hood after a morning drive, so I believe the area stays cool. There's no airflow directed to that compartment, and it hasn't shown signs of collecting dust, so I don't even think there's residual airflow circulating through there. And there seems to be an adequate amount of space between the bulbous underside of the hood and the big plastic block in the center of the compartment. So for me, it's just a question of how to best utilize it while keeping it uncluttered.

 

[estebin]

I'm thinking the same thing. Just a place to store the included EVSE and an extension cord. Do far I haven't noticed any warmth on the hood after a morning drive, so I believe the area stays cool. There's no airflow directed to that compartment, and it hasn't shown signs of collecting dust, so I don't even think there's residual airflow circulating through there. And there seems to be an adequate amount of space between the bulbous underside of the hood and the big plastic block in the center of the compartment. So for me, it's just a question of how to best utilize it while keeping it uncluttered.

Thank you for confirming some of the things I noticed as well. Now I just have to pay attention to the sensitive areas were maybe nothing should touch it or maybe they should not be any weight on that area.

 

[Andy at Ross-Tech.com]

I would keep stuff away from the fan shroud, but otherwise all I can add is that pizza boxes already fit.

 

[PacNWStateofMind]

View attachment 3393
I would keep stuff away from the fan shroud, but otherwise all I can add is that pizza boxes already fit.

At first I wasn't sure why the push for adding a frunk, but as a space to store the rarely to be used 110v evse that makes sense. I know there is already a spot in the underfloor in the trunk, but I agree that any extra space, especially since the 110v is so rarely going to get used, is worth it.

Additionally, I am curious as to what classifies something a "Boston Style Pizza".
I lived in Boston for 4 years after a previous 4 in Chicago, and I am originally from New York. I'm not going to go as far as to say I am a pizza snob, but I have been able to partake in the many location based styles, and I am struggling to put together what I would consider a particular Boston identity for the tomato + Cheese wonder of modern man.

 

[estebin]

View attachment 3393
I would keep stuff away from the fan shroud, but otherwise all I can add is that pizza boxes already fit.

That is a good suggestion and I was gonna look into that little bit more however just to make sure however air just passes through that unit and does not taken air in that area. The section is really just for the filter and to have access to the filter?

 

[estebin]

At first I wasn't sure why the push for adding a frunk, but as a space to store the rarely to be used 110v evse that makes sense. I know there is already a spot in the underfloor in the trunk, but I agree that any extra space, especially since the 110v is so rarely going to get used, is worth it.

Additionally, I am curious as to what classifies something a "Boston Style Pizza".
I lived in Boston for 4 years after a previous 4 in Chicago, and I am originally from New York. I'm not going to go as far as to say I am a pizza snob, but I have been able to partake in the many location based styles, and I am struggling to put together what I would consider a particular Boston identity for the tomato + Cheese wonder of modern man.

Hahahaha good point, I did not notice that it said “ Boston style” on it.

 

[TT97]

Additionally, I am curious as to what classifies something a "Boston Style Pizza".
I lived in Boston for 4 years after a previous 4 in Chicago, and I am originally from New York. I'm not going to go as far as to say I am a pizza snob, but I have been able to partake in the many location based styles, and I am struggling to put together what I would consider a particular Boston identity for the tomato + Cheese wonder of modern man.

I used to live in Philly and they would have "Boston Style" pizza but have never seen Boston Style Pizza anywhere else. That pizza box is from Philly (215 area code). My assumption was that it was just NY style pizza but no one in Philly would buy anything labeled "NY".

 

[Andy at Ross-Tech.com]

My wife lived in Boston before we moved down here and we both got a chuckle out of "Boston Style Pizza". As far as we can tell it's just good, normal pizza, which we have been getting for about 15 years: Boston Style Pizza

The radiator and condenser definitely need to be able to have air flow into and out of them but it's not like there are vents in the hood that could get blocked.

 

[PandaZ]

I like the idea of someone making a drop in storage area for under the bonnet. But VW haven't done this for a reason. If VW wanted you to have space under the front they would have made it at the factory. The front area needs plenty of ventilation for cooling. Also adding any extra weight will effect the range performance.

 

[ozkayamur]

Isn't the HVAC air inside of that hood with the filter? Where does it get the air from? I don't have my ID4 yet but first thing I would check is if it would restrict air from something that needs it in there

 

[estebin]

I like the idea of someone making a drop in storage area for under the bonnet. But VW haven't done this for a reason. If the wanted you to have space under the front they would have made it at the factory. The front area needs plenty of ventilation for cooling. Also adding any extra weight will effect the range performance.

I find this interesting and thank you adding to the conversation however many reviewers mention that it was just cost/design that keeps there not being a front trunk. As someone else stated there are no vents in the front or hood so what needs to be cooled? I ask cause I need to know this if I want to cover everything before I attempt this. Also I am to understand that the bottom area is what heats up die to the battery not under the hood.
About the weight this is a good point but made from proper materials would not add anything substantial.

 

[Nai3t]

Munro said there is excess space under the hood to make it pedestrian friendly in the event of a collision, to meet EU regulations. I don't completely understand this, but it seems the sheet metal has a place to collapse into if a torso impacts it.

 

[Spin]

Additionally, I am curious as to what classifies something a "Boston Style Pizza".

The way you can tell "Boston Style Pizza" is that the box will have "Boston Style Pizza" written on it!

 

[Huey52]

I've lived in suburban Boston areas most of my life and didn't even know there was a Boston Style pizza, until now. 🤷‍♂️

I would side with PandaZ on this one. There has to be a reason VW designed without a "frunk." It could be a volume to dissipate heat radiating up and through the hood. Or it could be to provide the pedestrian-hit crumple zone volume. Or both. I doubt it was cost cutting as same design worldwide.
Note: As an automation designer there was always a reason for what I did and again I presume same for VW. Historically there's been a reason for the unique way VW's have been designed, typically elegant 'sum of the parts' oriented. And this one was well planned for the long haul.

 

[ChristophW]

I will respectfully disagree with PandaZ and Huey52. As far as I know VW puts the same equipment under the much smaller and lower hood of the ID.3. Surely there is no major airflow issue in the ID.3, and therefore even less so in the ID.4. My own belief is that the fairly high hood of the ID.4 is purely for design and appearance reasons in the SUV segment.
If your storage "cover" simply lowers the air space between the hood and equipment I would expect there to be no issue. Personally, I would not get in between equipment pieces.
Caveat: We are all armchair quarterbacks here.

 

[theboomr]

I will respectfully disagree with PandaZ and Huey52. As far as I know VW puts the same equipment under the much smaller and lower hood of the ID.3. Surely there is no major airflow issue in the ID.3, and therefore even less so in the ID.4. My own belief is that the fairly high hood of the ID.4 is purely for design and appearance reasons in the SUV segment.
If your storage "cover" simply lowers the air space between the hood and equipment I would expect there to be no issue. Personally, I would not get in between equipment pieces.
Caveat: We are all armchair quarterbacks here.

There's also the matter of the AWD model, we don't know for sure how much space that will take up in the front, and they may have just put filler plastics in that extra space in the RWD version rather than offer a frunk for RWD but not for AWD.

 

[Nai3t]

If direction to engineering had been "we have to have a frunk of X volume," they would have strived to rearrange everything, and maybe would have come back with, "well need to redesign such-and-such" or "the 12v will be inaccessible" or we need to extend the firewall."

If VW's driving goal was to control costs, which seems likely, then they would prefer to use parts already in the system, or not over-complicate assembly. So I think it's reasonable they decided to eliminate the frunk to retain the small footprint and reign in design costs.

All speculation of course. But I also believe the available space for EVSE and cord storage is adequate for some of us, probably would have been scoffed at by the press as an unusable afterthought, and I seriously doubt disrupts any airflow.

 

[ElectricBlue]

I only have my ID.4 in my dreams so far, but from what I've seen there isn't a whole lot of extra space up there. I suppose they could have scrunched everything over to one side and created a bit of a storage volume. That's a very good point about airflow though. How well sealed is the front area? Of course in a regular ICE car there would be all sorts of air flowing around inside (and water too, in the rain) even if the bottom had a fairly good cover on it. (ah, remember those heavy duty bottom armored covers we could get for our TDI's...)

If I saw it correctly, the refreshed Tesla's lost some frunk area due to the larger volume heat pump mechanism. Personally I don't get the frunk as a requirement. Sure, if you have some dead space and can make it storage, great. I'd just as soon have one access door to open to get my stuff rather than running to the front, then to the back.

 

[Nai3t]

... I don't get the frunk as a requirement. Sure, if you have some dead space and can make it storage, great. I'd just as soon have one access door to open to get my stuff rather than running to the front, then to the back.

Yesterday, to repair my wife's flat, i wanted to get to her tire kit to see what tools they have us (turns out I needed the driver for the security lug).

She had a load of groceries in the cargo area. Unloaded those, lifted the false floor, and there's the wipes, umbrellas, stomp rockets, tote bags, and whatever else doesn't fit in her purse.

Unloaded / moved that to get to the tire kit.

My i3 I charge at work every day. The EVSE and cord live in the frunk. I drag one cord out to the receptacle. I drag the other cord out to the charging port. The excess cord stays coiled in the frunk, as does the EVSE. Tidy.

In the Mach E the frunk doubles as a cooler. I suppose I could do the same in my i3. Dump a bag of ice in there and the ice cream can survive an extended trip home from the grocery store on a hot day, or cold drinks can be at the ready at a picnic or after a bike ride without lugging a cooler.

For somebody carrying camera equipment or a computer in a city, it's a smart place to stash something to avoid a smash and grab.

So there are a few use cases for a frunk. Not a requirement, but convenient.