After much ado, Volvo has finally revealed the all-electric XC40 and as they recently announced it will be called the XC40 Recharge. As Volvo had mentioned, their fully-electric and plug-in hybrid models will be a part of a new car line which will feature the ‘Recharge’ suffix and the XC40 is the first one to receive it.
Based on what looks like from the outside and the cabin as a regular XC40, the all-electric model has been reengineered underneath all that body work. The XC40 Recharge uses a skateboard-type architecture with the batteries placed under the floor and two electric motors, one at the front axle and other at the rear, that drive the vehicle. Volvo claims that the all-wheel drive electric vehicle is capable of 400km range on the WLTP cycle on a single charge which also takes just 40mins to reach 80% on a fast charger, but also that the electric motors are capable of 408hp! That’s sports sort of sports car-like performance, especially for a car of its size.
While the overall design of the car remains pretty much identical, there are some cues that give away that it’s powered by electricity. For example, the radiator front grille has been revised for a more-flush design to reduce aero drag and improve the range. Additionally, the rear sees minimal changes as the cut outs for the exhaust pipes have been removed for a flush rear bumper. On the tailgate is a new badge that reads ‘P8 AWD Recharge’. To accommodate the electric motors at the front, Volvo has also re-engineered the structure of the XC40 underneath to not only create additional luggage space at the front and rear but also help it be a safer car with better crash structures.
The interior is pretty much identical in terms of its design, however, the big new changes include the brand new Google’s Android OS based infotainment system and the new all-digital driver instrument panel.
In terms of driving dynamics, the XC40 also features regenerative braking which helps charge the batteries as you drive along which helps in adding to the vehicle’s range. This means that it can deliver single pedal drive. In order to promote electric vehicles and its EVs, Volvo will provide every Volvo Recharge plug-in hybrid model with free electricity for a year through a refund of the average electricity cost for the time period.
As Volvo aims to half its global sales of ICE and plug-in hybrid models and shifts the rest to its EV line up 2025, Volvo will introduce a new full EV model every year over the next five years.
“We have said this several times before: for Volvo Cars, the future is electric,” said Håkan Samuelsson, chief executive. “Today we take a major new step in that direction with the launch of our fully electric XC40 and the Recharge car line.”
Recently, Volvo announced plans to reduce its overall carbon-footprint per car by 40% and become carbon neutral by 2040.
