an affordable small electric SUV made in China

Volvo boss Jim Rowan confirms the imminent arrival of an electric SUV that is more affordable than the electric cars the brand currently sells. His name: Volvo EX30. It will be made in China.

Article updated December 5, 2022 : In a long interview given to the media Automotive News Europe, Jim Rowan, the CEO of Volvo has confirmed the existence of the Volvo EX30. This small electric SUV would be produced exclusively in China, in Volvo’s three factories.

By 2025, the Swedish manufacturer hopes to dramatically increase its sales (by 70%) to 1.2 million cars per year, with 50% electric cars and 50% online purchases.

When asked about Volvo’s willingness to offer their batteries for rent, or even compatible with exchange services (change battery) allowing them to be “charged” in five minutes, as Nio does in Europe, Jim Rowan got in touch. Volvo indicates that this is currently not on the agenda for safety reasons: the manufacturer’s boss fears that interchangeable batteries will reduce crash resistance.

Article updated November 9, 2022: On the occasion of the presentation of the Volvo EX90, the Swedish manufacturer started the tease of its future electric cars, as shown in the image above. It can be the Volvo EX30, EX40 or EX60.

Original article from November 7, 2022 : Although Volvo just unveiled its EX90, the Swedish company confirms that it is working on developing other electric SUVs. One of the two would be the EX30, which would then sit below the current XC40 Recharge in the lineup. It could travel nearly 440 kilometers on a single charge.

Like many other builders, Volvo plans to drive 100% electric in the coming years. As it announced in a press release last March, this deadline is set for 2030, while the brand already wants its electric vehicles to represent 50% of its sales by 2025.

An ambitious goal, but one that must be achieved, while the range already offers two models of this type, namely the XC40 and C40 Recharge. Since September, the manufacturer has only been selling electrified models in France.

An electric “baby SUV”

But of course Volvo does not intend to stop there. In a few days, and after an extensive teasing campaign, it will indeed lift the veil on its brand new XC60, a large electric SUV that will have the difficult task of replacing the current XC90 that covers the range. Equipped with many technologies, including bidirectional charging, it will position itself as the flagship of the manufacturer.

But it is also working on developing another model, quite the opposite. In fact, this time it’s abouta small SUV, which will be placed under the XC40 Recharge according to the site’s English journalists AutoExpress.

Announced under the name EX30, this SUV has already been hinted at by Volvo boss Hakan Samuelsson, who confirmed thata new model would be launched, with a raised silhouette and sitting on a new platform. If the name is not confirmed, everything suggests that this is the name that will appear on the back of this future arrival in the range, while the brand has registered a series of names under this new nomenclature. , already adopted by the EX90.

For now, no information has been released about the style of this future vehicle, but it should display dimensions smaller than the XC40 Recharge, which measures 4.43 long as a reminder.

An interesting autonomy

This future Volvo EX30 will therefore not be based on the current CMA platform, but instead, it would use the technical foundation of Geely Group’s Sustainable Experience Architecture (SEA).. As a reminder, this modular platform that allows different architectures is already equipped with the new Smart #1, which will compete with the electric SUV, and will also be present on future Polestar models.

According to AutoExpress, this newcomer to the range should have a range of about 440 kilometers approximately in one charge according to the WLTP cycle. However, we will have to wait before we have an official confirmation. The power and data related to charging were not communicated. As a reminder, a range of 400 km allows long journeys, as we have seen, provided that the recharging is fast.

For now, Volvo has not yet given a launch date, but everything points to it this EX30 should see the light of day in the course of the year 2024. That should play an important role for the brand, which wants to see its sales increase from 800,000 to 1.2 million units per year by 2025. Its very compact dimensions should not let it compete with the Tesla Model Y, while it should rather hunt for the land of the Hyundai Kona Electric.

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