Volvo XC40 Recharge – electric SUV enters production

Volvo XC40 Recharge – electric SUV enters production

Production of the Volvo XC40 Recharge Pure Electric P8 has commenced. According to the Swedish automaker, demand for its compact electric SUV has been so strong that every unit scheduled to be built this calendar year has already been sold.

Volvo head of global industrial operations and quality, Javier Varela said: “Today is a momentous occasion for Volvo Cars and for all employees here in Ghent (Belgium). As we continue to electrify our line-up, the Ghent plant is a real trailblazer for our global manufacturing network.” The XC40 Recharge is the first of many full electric Volvo models to come.

To recap, the EV is based on the Compact Modular Architecture (CMA) platform that was co-developed with Geely. The P8 variant is powered by two electric motors, one powering each drive axle. This provides all-wheel drive and a combined system output of 408 PS and 660 Nm, numbers which are good for a 4.9-second century sprint and 180 km/h top speed.

A 78 kWh lithium-ion battery resides under the floor, offering around 400 km of range (WLTP cycle) on a full charge. This battery pack adds around 400-500 kg of weight over a regular XC40 (the XC40 Recharge weighs up to 2,250 kg), and would take around 7.5 hours to juice up when plugged into an 11 kW three-phase charger.

It also supports 150 kW DC charging via the CCS connection (AC charging uses a Type 2 connection). Here, it only takes 40 minutes to achieve a 0-80% state-of-charge. Introducing the XC40 Recharge represents Volvo’s commitment to reduce CO2 emissions by 40% per car by 2025. By then, it expects 50% of global sales to consist of electrified cars.

GALLERY: Volvo XC40 Recharge P8

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Matthew H Tong

An ardent believer that fun cars need not be fast and fast cars may not always be fun. Matt advocates the purity and simplicity of manually swapping cogs while coping in silence of its impending doom. Matt's not hot. Never hot.

 

Comments

  • lilytan on Oct 02, 2020 at 4:15 pm

    Look what volvo have become. Top notch under geely. Out of all car brands under Geely Group, Proton is at the lowest tier. Ironically, despite its proven expertise, it is positioned lower than newer brands like lynk n co and geometry. Proton shld at least aim to be a brand like what SEAT have become under VW. For now Proton has long way to go to even call it a success. Rebadging geely cars wont cut it.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 9
    • Lets See on Oct 02, 2020 at 6:32 pm

      SEAT? Haven’t you heard that SEAT is so low on the pecking order that VW Group is considering to kill this brand? Under Geely’s arrangement of equal partnerships, there are no big or small no matter how old or young they may be. If follow your logic, Volvo Cars with 100 year history shld be ashamed to be under much younger Geely! Geely has a need for Proton and they are truly genuine in wanting them to succeed in all aspects that is why so soon after taking over Geely has embedded Proton’s R&D and design development teams into Geely fold from the get go.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 2
      • Equal partnership? Dream on. Partnership, yes. But definitely not as equals.

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 1
        • Unknown on Oct 04, 2020 at 5:35 pm

          Geely welcomed Proton’s development team into their fold as family there are no discrimination or subtle bullying that you find inside VW group that treated sub brands as nothing more than assemblers. Their input into car platform are absolutely Zero. Basically these sub brands(SEAT, Skoda) are limited to building their bodies on VW chassis. Deep engineering involvement = Kosong.

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Li Peng on Oct 04, 2020 at 9:30 pm

    “would take around 7.5 hours to juice up when plugged into an 11 kW three-phase charger.”

    And in Malaysia we usually have one-phase only, meaning the charging will even take longer…

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 1
  • seancorr (Member) on Oct 05, 2020 at 10:46 am

    Dayum that 500kg weight penalty is a huge drawback – it’s as heavy as a RR Ghost and that would mean more wear and tear on the suspension and tyres.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
 

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