Volvo has revealed its all-electric XC40 crossover, and the battery car will be known as the XC40 Recharge.
Recharge will be the name for all of Volvo's electric range
The name will be applied across Volvo's upcoming lineup of electric models. The XC40 also represents two important markers for the Swedish luxury brand - its first all-electric car, and its first to use an ultra-high tech new Google Android based infotainment system.
Volvo wants to make sure that, by 2025, half of all of its global sales will be of fully-electric models, and so will launch a new battery car every year for the next five. The rest of its sales, by then, will be a hybrid or mild-hybrid model, as Volvo seeks to meet its promise of an all-electrified lineup. The Recharge name will apply to both fully-electric cars and plug-in hybrids.
"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."
400+km and 408hp
Volvo claims that the XC40 Recharge has a WLTP-certified one-charge range of 'over 400km' (quite how much over Volvo isn't saying yet) and uses two electric motors to develop 408hp with four-wheel drive. The Swedes say that the XC40 Recharge's 78kWh battery can be topped up to 80 per cent battery capacity in just 40 minutes at a fast charger.
The XC40 Recharge should be able to hit 100km/h from rest in just 4.9 seconds, and has a limited top speed of 180km/h.
Extra boot at the front
In terms of styling, you'll be able to easily spot the Recharge model in a lineup of other XC40 models by its blanked-off radiator grille, and as with Tesla's electric cars, it will have a small, auxiliary 'frunk' or front-trunk luggage area. At the front. That will help to make up for the fact that the regular boot is a little smaller than that of the petrol or diesel-engined models.
Along with the XC40 Recharge, Volvo has also announced today that it intends to cut the CO2 emissions footprints of all of its cars - from manufacturing through to use - by 40 per cent over the next two decades.