Here's What We Know About Volvo's Fully Electric Ride

Volvo has revealed its first all-electric crossover, the fully electric Volvo XC40 Recharge, the first vehicle of the automaker’s grand plan to shift to electrification. As the name suggests, the XC40 Recharge puts its plug-in credentials front and center, with a range of more than 400 kilometers on the WLTP cycle, and a 0-100 km/h time of 4.9 seconds.

It’s based on Volvo’s Compact Modular Architecture, or CMA, a mid-sized unibody platform that the automaker co-developed with Chinese backer Geely. That already underpins the XC40 in petrol and diesel forms, and the Polestar 2, the 5-door all-electric fastback expected to go into production next year. That drivetrain flexibility is because electrification was built into the CMA from the outset.

In the case of the fully electric XC40 Recharge specifically, you’re looking at two electric motors, one for the front and one for the rear. They’re each 150 kW, for 300 kW in total while there’s 660 Nm of torque. As for charging, Volvo says that with a fast charger you should be able to go from flat to 80-percent in 40 minutes.

It’s a mixture of the familiar and the new. From the outside, the XC40 silhouette of a compact crossover is present and correct. That means the automaker’s now-distinctive Thor’s hammer headlamps, though here they flank a blanked-out grille. That body-matching panel leaves the fully electric XC40’s fascia looking unexpectedly different.

Lift the bonnet, and there’s a front trunk – or “frunk” – where the gas engine would normally be. Volvo has slung the battery pack underneath the cabin, built into the floor plan of the CMA platform. Where you’d normally refuel the gas tank, there’s now a charging socket instead.

In the cabin, the fully-electric XC40 will be the first of Volvo’s range to use a brand new Android-based infotainment system. The automaker announced a deal with Google several years back, to completely rebuild its Sensus system on top of Android Automotive OS and use Google services. That means the Google Assistant for voice control, Google Maps for navigation, and access to the Google Play Store for third-party apps.

In the fully-electric XC40, there’ll be support for over-the-air upgrades of the infotainment software and other software, a first for Volvo. It will also integrate with Volvo On Call, the smartphone app which will allow for cabin preconditioning, remote start and locking, car sharing via digital key, and remote battery monitoring and charging. There’ll also be a new version of Volvo’s Pilot Assist system.

This is, of course, only the start of Volvo’s electrification reinvention. The automaker plans to release a new electric car every year now – under this new Recharge range – while also building out its hybrid drivetrains. There’s a new co-venture for drivetrains with Geely that will take responsibility for internal combustion engines, and Volvo says that it’s working to improve the electric range of its T8 plug-in hybrids.

Local introduction, pricing and specifications are yet to be announced.

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#Electric #SUV #Volvo #Volvo Cars #Volvo XC40

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Papi Mabele

Papi Mabele has a marketing background, he is a digital marketing expert with extensive experience in launching and building global brands in the emerging markets. Papi is also an avid tech writer, enthusiast and all round tech junkie. As a freelance writer and analyst he has been numerously published in Popular Mechanics (SA), GQ South Africa, Premier Magazine, Driven Magazine, Bloem News, Courant, The Weekly, Enthooze Magazine and PiE magazine amongst others.