Volvo Car Malaysia (VCM) has announced it is now accepting bookings for the facelifted Volvo XC40 Recharge Pure Electric (or XC40 EV for short), which is priced at RM278,888 on-the-road without insurance and offered in Ultimate guise for the 2023 model year (MY2023). This joins the mild hybrid B5 Ultimate and plug-in hybrid Recharge T8 Ultimate – both retailing at RM268,888 – in the local XC40 line-up. For an extra RM10,000, would you make the switch? Comment below.
Anyway, the latest XC40 EV receives some subtle design changes that aligns it with the C40 that is due to be launched here. Highlights include sleeker LED headlamps that are joined by a sportier bumper with shaper contours and triangular fog lamp surrounds as well as a blanked-off grille that loses its trim surround.
Beyond the styling tweaks, the rest of the XC40 EV remains familiar, although the kit list has been revised. According to VCM, the design of the 19-inch five-double spoke black diamond cut wheels has been altered and the largely Charcoal interior now gets Charcoal Connect Suede textile upholstery instead of the previous combination leather/Nubuck textile to go pair with the leather-free gear shifter.
There’s also backlit Topography trim décor in place of the previous R-Design Cutting Edge décor, a PM2.5 air purifier with remote pre-cleaning function and an updated foot movement detection module for the hands-free powered tailgate.
As for available colours, the XC40 EV gains a new Fjord Blue which is also offered for the non-EV variants, along with Black Stone, Thunder Grey, Crystal White and an exclusive Sage Green (non-EV variants get Silver Dawn as their fifth hue instead). Like its non-EV siblings, the XC40 EV also makes the switch to a passive Dynamic Chassis from the previous Touring Chassis.
Beyond these changes, the rest of the equipment appears to be the same as before. You’ll still get an Android Automotive OS-powered infotainment system with a nine-inch touchscreen and built-in Google services, a 12-inch digital instrument cluster, a 600-watt Harman Kardon sound system with 13 speakers, a Qi wireless phone charger, dual-zone climate control with rear vents and powered front seats.
Same goes for safety and driver assistance, which includes the City Safety suite (collision avoidance & mitigation with intersection support; pedestrian, cyclist and large animal detection), front and rear collision warning and mitigation support, Driver Alert Control, Lane Keeping Aid, Run-Off Road Mitigation with Road Edge Detection, Oncoming Lane Mitigation, Blind Spot Information System (BLIS) with Steer Assist and Cross Traffic Alert (CTA) with Autobrake.
The powertrain continues to feature two electric motors – one on each axle – for a total system output of 408 PS (402 hp or 300 kW) and 660 Nm of torque. These enables the XC40 EV to get from 0-100 km/h in just 4.9 seconds and on to a top speed of 180 km/h.
The electric motors draw power from a lithium-ion battery that retains its 78 kWh energy capacity, although VCM notes the SUV will now travel up to 438 km on a single charge following the WLTP cycle, up from 418 km.
For charging, the XC40 supports AC charging at 11 kW with a Type 2 connection, which takes about 7.5 hours for a full charge. Alternatively, there’s DC fast charging up to 150 kW with a CCS2 connection, where a 0-80% state of charge (SoC) is achieved in just 28 minutes.
The all-electric XC40 has been well received since it was first launched here in pre-facelift form in March this year, with VCM announcing later that the entire MY2022 allocation was sold out and that customers who were interested would get the facelifted MY2023 model instead.
According to the company, all MY2022 units were delivered by June, with each retailing at RM262,460. Locally-assembled (CKD) EVs enjoy exemptions for import and excise duties as well as sales tax, so the price of MY2023 XC40 EV has actually gone up by around RM16k.
Nonetheless, the new XC40 EV will continue to enjoy the government’s EV incentives until December 31, 2025 as it is a locally-assembled (CKD) model – fully-imported (CBU) EVs will stop benefitting from incentives at the end of 2024 instead.
Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro.
I think you made an error in the article, CKD BEVs are still exempt from SST. The RM18k is truly a price increase and not due to SST.
Yes, you are right. CKD EVs are exempted from excise duties as well as sales tax (https://paultan.org/2021/10/29/budget-2022-evs-in-malaysia-to-be-completely-tax-free-soon/bajet-ev-2/), while components for local assembly of EVs are exempted from import duty. CBU EVs are exempted from import and excise duties. The article has been edited accordingly.