Around the World: Volvo XC40 Recharge P8

Volvo has just started production of this all electric compact SUV with the first European customers to get it later this month, while it’s good news for Kiwis that we’ll get it late 2021.

With a range of 400km, the XC40 Recharge P8 is going to be a big player for Volvo as it competes against the Jaguar I-Pace and newcomers BMW iX3, Tesla Model Y and Volkswagen ID.4.

Volvo’s CEO, Hakån Samuelsson, reckons electric vehicles will account for 50 per cent of the brand’s sales volumes by 2025, and the company is also aiming to reduce its life-cycle carbon footprint per vehicle by 40 per cent by the same year. It wants to be climate neutral by 2040.

A few motoring journalists got to test the prototype of the XC40 Recharge P8.

The Volvo XC40 P8 Recharge has a range of a range of 400km. Photos: Volvo

Top Gear UK

The British magazine and website gave it 9/10.

“The XC40 P8 looks identical to its petrol and PHEV brothers, bar the now obligatory blanked-off body colour grille and Recharge branding on the C-pillar. The charging port is on the nearside front wing, there’s a bespoke alloy wheel design, and some new exterior colours including a green that has an inappropriately militaristic overtone.

(The XC40’s exterior, as an aside, is the work of British designer Ian Kettle, who was lured away to Tesla not long after its reveal.) 

Underneath is the same Common Modular Architecture (CMA) that underpins the Polestar 2, various Lynk&Co models, and the Geely Xingyue. Importantly, it was conceived to accept an electric powertrain so the XC40’s functionality is uncorrupted.

 The P8 is powered by a 78kWh lithium ion battery pack mounted under the floor, that feeds two electric motors, with one on each axle to provide all-wheel drive.”

The P8 is powered by a 78kWh lithium ion battery pack mounted under the floor.

Auto Car UK

“As with Audi e-tron, the intention here has clearly been to offer buyers coming from the company’s internal-combustion models a familiar experience. Beyond some very subtle badging, the only obvious visual difference from other XC40s is the Recharge P8’s lack of a conventional radiator grille, which has been replaced by a body-coloured cover.

The cabin is similarly familiar, with a redesigned digital instrumentation pack that does away with the rev counter, but the same combination of space and trim that feels more durable than upmarket. Volvo is proud that the Recharge has nearly as much boot space as the regular XC40 – 413 litres – with another 31-litre ‘frunk’ under the bonnet, although this is mostly filled by the car’s charging cable.

The Recharge is also the debut vehicle for Volvo’s new Android-based infotainment system, with large and crisply rendered icons for various apps and an intuitive interface. But despite Google’s brainpower, the map app of our test car looked and worked less well than the best manufacturer systems, failing to clearly label major conurbations when zoomed out, and with minor roads looking like black cracks on the high-definition screen. Volvo says it wasn't the final spec, which is good because it still needs work.”

The XC40 Recharge P8 gets Volvo’s new Android-based infotainment system.

Motor Trend

“Globally, the compact SUV market is big and still growing, and the regular XC40, distinctively designed, well packaged and well equipped, is an appealing player in the segment.

With its taut ride, the XC40 Recharge P8 feels a bit like a hot hatch on stilts, particularly on the 235/45 Pirelli PZero Elect tires wrapped around the optional 20-inch wheels fitted to our test car. But only to a point: There's not a lot of feel in the steering, which is best in the firmer of the two selectable modes to counter the tendency of the tires to follow contours in the road surface, and the brake pedal gets a little wooden after a stint of enthusiastic driving.

The Recharge P8 driveline has only two modes: Normal, in which the car coasts when you lift off, and One Pedal, which does exactly as it says, using regen to slow the car dramatically the instant you release pressure on the accelerator pedal. One Pedal mode is sometimes useful around town, but Normal mode gives the electric XC40 a nicer, more free-flowing demeanor that makes it less tiring to drive (you don't have to constantly keep pressure on the accelerator just to keep the car moving) and more efficient (converting kinetic energy into energy stored in the battery invariably means some energy is lost). In Normal mode, all braking up to 0.3g is done via regen anyway, and though a little more initial bite would be nice, the blending between regen and mechanical braking is smoothly done.

Despite the battery pack under the floor, the Recharge P8 cabin feels as roomy as that of the regular XC40, and Volvo claims the rear load space area is identical. ”

The Volvo XC40 Recharge P8 also gets a frunk (front truck) where the engine would be.