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Volvo EVs to Start with XC40 and XC90 Variants

Volvo Car Corp.’s first full electric models will be modified versions of the company’s XC40 compact crossover vehicle and larger XC90 crossover.
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Volvo Car Corp.’s first full electric models will be modified versions of the company’s XC40 compact crossover vehicle and larger XC90 crossover.

The electric XC40 will debut shortly after Volvo’s Polestar sub-brand launches its first EV in 2019, Polestar boss Thomas Ingenlath tells Autocar. Riding on Volvo’s compact modular architecture, the XC40 EV is expected to have a base driving range of more than 250 miles. A high output battery option also may be offered that extends range, according to the magazine.
 
The electric XC90 will follow when the next-generation base model bows in 2021. Volvo will produce all versions of the XC90 at its new factory in Charleston, S.C., which will begin making the S60 midsize sport sedan this autumn.
 
Last year Volvo announced it will offer electrified versions of all its future vehicles, with EVs accounting for half of the carmaker’s sales volume by 2025. But Ingenlath says there are no immediate plans for a stand-alone Volvo EV that isn’t derived from a piston-only or hybrid-electric model. The carmaker already offers a plug-in hybrid version (pictured) of the XC40.
 

Volvo’s custom-designed EVs will be handled exclusively by Polestar. The brand’s first model, the $155,000 Polestar 1 coupe due later this year, has a hybrid-electric powertrain. All future Polestar models are expected to be full EVs, starting with a small sedan in 2019.

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