You will never get me to dislike Volvo. No amount of disdain for Swedish roadblocks or ‘bloody Volvo drivers’ will eliminate the fact in my mind that Volvo has done genuine good for this world – particularly with the company’s design and free patent use of the three-point seatbelt (designed by Nils Bohlin, and now used in pretty much every modern car anywhere). Not to mention Volvo’s commitment to going all-electric in Australia in 2026 (worldwide by 2030). All of this said, my impression of the company is that it leans heavily toward older people – and maybe that’s okay for a car like the Volvo XC40 Pure Electric.
The first electric vehicle I ever reviewed for Gizmodo Australia was the 2022 Polestar 2, the first mass-production car built by Polestar. This was after the company split off from Volvo, and was transformed into a luxury electric brand, instead of Volvo’s performance arm. FYI, both companies are owned by Chinese parent company Geely.
Initial reaction
First stepping into the Volvo electric vehicle, it was daunting just how futuristic it was. While the iPad-sized screen in the middle through me off, I quickly fell in love with the operating system.
With the Volvo XC40, you won’t be surprised to hear the operating system is almost entirely identical to the Polestar, and the two cars are built on the same vehicle platform, although I think Volvo’s trying to target an older, perhaps more cabin-conservative demographic with its cars.
While Polestar thrives on comparisons to Tesla, Volvo’s XC40 is more reserved. The touchscreen in the middle is much smaller, there are more buttons in the centre console, and it just seems more like a typical car. The Volvo XC40 seems like the perfect luxury car for some drivers if they don’t want the transition to electric to be daunting.
Polestar for older people
Polestar might not be a brand focused on young people like Cupra is, but its cars certainly look newer and have a more youthful aesthetic. Volvo, on the inside and out, really wants to cling to expectations that older drivers might have. This car is built as an electrified version of a petrol-engine vehicle (the standard Volvo XC40) explains why it looks so… Well, normal. That is except for the flat front on the vehicle, a stylistic choice that looks much better on a Volvo than on a Polestar.
In traffic, you wouldn’t look at the XC40 and think “that car is electric!” – much less than a Hyundai Ioniq 5 or a Tesla Model Y, at least. Internally, while the screen is small, it’s not too distracting; it’s perfectly oriented towards drivers who don’t want a gigantic display in their side vision when they’re driving.
And it feels very safe being in the XC40, perhaps to a fault. The giant airbag-stuffed A-pillars at the front, along with the small windows in the backseat and its great big crumple zone-aiding doors make you feel very secure on the road. Despite this, somehow it still achieves lower ANCAP scores than the Model Y. Both are five stars on safety, like most EVs in Australia, but across the assessment categories, the XC40 appears outpaced.
Those gigantic A-pillars did annoy me a little when driving, as they took up a lot of my vision, and in the rear seats, the lower side of the doors is quite narrow. It’s a comfortable car to sit in, sure, but little things can add up.
This is also one of the few EVs in Australia with an openable sunroof, something I quite love in a car – though this is controlled with a capacitive switch that can be quite awkward to use. It takes some practice, but although there isn’t much glass on the top, it’s still enough to make the car feel more comfortable.
Boot space was satisfying for a mid-size SUV, although frunk space was less than I had imagined it would be.
I will always love returning to this OS
The best part of the XC40 is its operating system, Android Automotive. That’s not ‘Android Auto’ the phone-based car OS that activates when you plug an Android phone into your car, Android Automotive is different because it is built into the car.
And that rocks so hard. You can download any of the car-built apps that you want from the Google Play Store, and access your Spotify and maps history through the car without even needing to touch your phone. It’s fast, responsive, intuitive, and it doesn’t look bad.
We ran into an issue with the 2024 Polestar 2 last year, however, that would have been partially resolved if the car had Android Auto (it doesn’t, and it’s not in the XC40 either), but thankfully we didn’t encounter the same issue this time.
The in-car experience is certainly enhanced by the behind-wheel maps in the instrument cluster (another thing the car has in common with Polestar), though this can be disabled if you find it distracting. It’s also smaller in the XC40 than in the Polestar 2, likely for the same reason the centre display is, to not overwhelm the driver.
In terms of performance, we reviewed the dual motor variant, the only variant currently available in Australia. Its 0-100km/h speed is a comfortable 4.8 seconds, and it has an 82kWh battery, capable of a WLTP range of 485km (it reported as 420km to me at a full charge). The AWD model can charge at a maximum of 200kW on a public DC charger, which we found perfect, though that speed is outpaced by many cheaper alternatives (such as from Tesla and Hyundai).
It’s a comfortable car to drive, sitting on 20-inch wheels, and loaded up with a lot of the safety features you’d expect, like blind spot assistance on the wing mirrors, a brilliant 360 birds-eye camera, and exceptionally strong lane-keeping assist (Polestar/Volvos lane keeping assist is still my favourite of any carmaker). I did encounter one issue with the 360 camera, where the cameras were all reporting a fault, though this was resolved with a car restart.
What’s going on in Sweden?
I find it interesting where we are at with Volvo and Polestar, and in the electric car space I don’t think you can talk about one without the other. While Volvo is gearing up to release a Tesla Model 3 contender on price, the EX30, and Polestar is readjusting its range in the pricier direction. Its first SUV, the 3, will launch at $132,900, and its smaller SUV, the 4, will start at $81,500.
I wouldn’t be surprised if this is one of the last incarnations of the ‘XC40’ we ever see – at least in this form, while Volvo adjusts to being Geely’s entry-level electric car company, and Polestar the luxury (though the XC40 did get a price bump with this revision). The interior of the XC40 feels a bit old, even if it’s meant to skew towards more sandstone automaker expectations, and besides the EX30, there’s a wealth of aesthetic differences.
With all of this in mind, as much as I truly loved the XC40, and think that anybody who bought it would likely be satisfied, I can’t help but feel a little underwhelmed when you look at what’s coming out soon. This car is a hot contender against the Tesla Model Y and the BMW iX1, but I would highly encourage you to try out these models before committing to a purchase.
The Volvo XC40 is a great car, but it’s not for me. It starts at $85,265 for the RWD model and $94,921 for the AWD model.
Image: Zachariah Kelly/Gizmodo Australia
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