Volvo EVs to land in New Zealand later this year

Friday, 1 July 2022

Volvo’s C40 Recharge EV will go on sale here before the end of the year.

While all the local attention has largely been on Volvo’s all-electric offshoot Polestar after it debuted here late last year, the Chinese-owned Scandinavian brand has announced it will be landing its own EVs here before the end of this year.

Volvo New Zealand will launch a fully-electric version of its XC40 small SUV, along with its first electric-only model – the C40 – locally, with the first examples expected to arrive here in the third quarter of this year.

If you prefer a more traditional SUV shape, then Volvo will also offer the XC40 Recharge locally as well.

The XC40 Recharge and C40 Recharge both sit on the same CMA (compact modular architecture) platform as the ICE and PHEV XC40 and the Polestar 2 (as well as all Lynk & Co. models and the Geely Xingyue) and will pack either a 69kWh battery with a single motor or a 78kWh battery with dual motors, both of which will be good for a range of more than 400km (WLTP) on a single charge.

Both electric Volvos will come in P6 single motor FWD and P8 dual motor AWD guises, with the P6 packing 170kW and 330Nm, while the P8 will pump out an impressive 300kW and 660Nm.

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Unlike its Polestar 2 cousin, no Volvo EV models will make it under the $80k cutoff for a Clean Car rebate, however, with the XC40 P6 starting the range at $83,900, while the C40 P6 will ask a bit more for its swoopy roofline and land at $85,900 in single motor guise. The XC40 P8 will cost $97,900 for the dual motor setup, while the C40 P8 will land at $100,900.

Both the XC40 and C40 feature Volvo’s new Android-based Google infotainment operating system, and come with a 4-year unlimited data plan for online services and over-the-air updates.

“We are looking forward to introducing New Zealand drivers to Volvo’s uniquely Scandinavian fully electric Recharge range,” said Ben Montgomery, Volvo Cars New Zealand general manager.

While the first XC40s will be arriving this year, the first shipment is already accounted for, with Montgomery saying “We are not surprised to see the 2022 allocation of these vehicles already sold out with all new orders taken from this point onwards aligned to 2023 vehicle arrivals.”

As far as the C40 goes, Volvo says that New Zealand customers are “encouraged to secure a vehicle with urgency due to strong customer demand on strictly limited 2022 vehicle deliveries.”