Confirmed! Volvo ES90 electric car teased as sleek sedan rival to the Tesla Model 3, Polestar 4, BYD Seal and BMW i4

Whoever said sedans were a thing of the past clearly didn’t get the memo.

Electric sedans have invigorated the segment and it looks like another one is set to join the growing throng of EV sedans.

At the very end of a livestream reveal of its refreshed XC90 SUV, Volvo dropped a teaser for a new model, with the caption confirming the ‘ES90’ nameplate.

The brief video showed the silhouette of a sleek four-door model with a sloping, almost fastback-like rear and a boot lip, but beyond that it’s difficult to make out any other details.

This model has long been rumoured but now it looks set to join the growing Volvo line-up to take on the likes of the Tesla Model S or Model 3, depending on its eventual size, the Mercedes-Benz EQE and BMW i4.

Volvo didn’t reveal any other details but it’s highly likely the ES90 will be based on the same SPA2 architecture that underpins the similarly positioned Polestar 4 sedan, as well as the Volvo EX90 SUV.

That model is offered with two powertrains that could point to what the ES90 will get. The rear-drive single-motor Polestar has a rear-mounted motor delivering 200kW/343Nm, and a 100kWh battery for a driving range of 620km. The Dual Motor Polestar 4 adds another motor to the front for all-wheel drive and ups the outputs to 400kW/686Nm. Driving range is 590km.

Volvo has another large sedan in its line-up, the S90, and while it remains in production for some markets, it was discontinued in Australia in 2019. The related V90 wagon and the smaller V60 wagon were dropped from the local line-up in 2021. The S60 medium sedan remains on sale Down Under.

Whether the ES90 completely replaces the S90 remains to be seen, but given Volvo’s push to full electrification by 2030, and the slowing market for internal combustion sedans, it’s likely.

Pre-production has already begun in China, suggesting that it will be built there. Volvo is owned by Chinese automotive giant, Geely Holdings. 

While sedan sales have dropped in recent years, electric sedans have given the old school body style a second chance against the influx of high-riding SUVs.

Some of the biggest selling EVs in Australia are sedans. This year alone, Tesla has sold 14,600 examples of the Model 3, while the relatively new BYD Seal has already found 5033 homes. Even the more premium BMW i4 has shifted 1454 units.

Given the teaser campaign for the ES90 has just begun, expect more tidbits to be dropped by Volvo in the coming months.