Volvo EX40

Features: If you’re one of the wealthy younglings in the market for a luxury SUV, we’d bet you’d want something unique. That begins with the platform of the EX40. This SUV is the first model ever to be based on Volvo’s Compact Modular Architecture or CMA. That aside, the design does have distinctive Volvo elements like the concave front grille and “Thor’s Hammer” DRLs but the latter gets its own little styling tweak. The profile doesn't look like any other Volvo either. The short and stout stance, flat bonnet and squared off pillars make the look, say SUV, not crossover, which automatically gives it a distinctive allure. It even sits tall on a cool set of 18-inch alloy wheels and offers a full 211mm of ground clearance. For an SUV targeted towards new and millennial luxury car buyers, the driving position has some old-school charm. You do sit perched up while overlooking the bonnet, so this certainly won't give you the hatchback-on-tippy-toes vibe. Fit and finish quality is appreciable too, and feels premium, especially because of the Alcantara + faux leather-draped seats. But Volvo has made some minor concessions for costs. The plastic quality, for example, isn't as rich as it is in larger Volvos. The features list is long though. The 9-inch touchscreen has been carried over from big Volvos and includes Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Safety features like the lane-keeping aid, radar-guided cruise control, hill start and hill descent control, and park pilot assist all come as standard. Other features include 2-zone climate control with rear AC vents, heated front and rear seats, an inductive phone charger, a panoramic sunroof and a 13-speaker Harman Kardon sound system.

Motor: The Volvo EX40 gets two powertrain options. It is powered by either a 69kWh battery paired with a single-motor front-wheel-drive(FWD) setup that produces 238PS of power and 420Nm of torque or a 78kWh battery paired with a dual-motor all-wheel-drive(AWD) setup that produces 408PS of power and 660Nm of torque. The Volvo EX40 measures 4400 mm in length, 1873 mm in width and has a wheelbase of 2702 mm

Rivals: Kia EV6: The Kia EV6 is the EX40's key electric rival. It has a low, wide stance and can be had in rear-wheel drive and all-wheel drive variants.

Range: EX40 can go upto 418 km/charge after a full charge.

Charging Time: Using an 11kW AC charger, the EX40 can do a 0-100 per cent charge in around 8-10 hours. A 150kW DC fast charger takes 40 minutes to do a 0-80 per cent charge.

Variants: The EX40 is offered in two fully-loaded variants: Plus (69kWh battery pack) and Ultimate (78kWh battery pack). It's available in 8 colours- Crystal White, Cloud Blue, Silver Dawn, Vapor Grey, Bright Dusk, Fjord Blue, Onyx Black and Sage Green paint shades.

Do note that Volvo has changed the name of the XC40 Recharge to EX40.

Volvo Cars India announced it has sold over 1,000 electric vehicles in India, including the EX40 and C40 Recharge. The EX40 was Volvo's first electric vehicle in India, launched in November 2022. Volvo EV cars constituted 28 percent of the overall cars sold by the Swedish carmaker in India. Also, Volvo’s overall sales grew by 31 percent in 2023 as compared to 2022.