2024 Volvo EX40 Reviews

Sales of new Chinese-made cars in Australia have been on the rise for a number of years now, but 2025 saw it reach new heights.According to VFACTS sales data released by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries, a total of 221,699 new vehicles imported from China were sold in Australia, which is up 25.9 per cent year-on-year.It’s worth noting that this figure doesn’t include Tesla and Polestar sales. Every Polestar and almost every Tesla (excluding the updated Model Y Performance) sold in Australia are made in China.Combining this Electric Vehicle Council (EVC) sales data, it’s understood more than 252,000 Chinese-made cars were sold in Australia during 2025. An exact figure can’t be determined as Tesla doesn’t provide any data indicating how many of its Australian-delivered cars were made in China and Germany.Even despite this, China has now overtaken Thailand as the second largest new vehicle import market in Australia. A total of 249,958 Thai-made new vehicles were sold in Australia during 2025, which is down 8.2 per cent year-on-year.It’s worth noting that this is still behind Japan, which has been the largest new vehicle import market in Australia for decades now. A total of 358,981 Japanese-made new vehicles were sold in Australia last year, which is down 5.3 per cent year-on-year.The large jump in Chinese-made new vehicles in Australia is likely attributable to the wealth of new Chinese brands that launched last year. Examples include Deepal, Geely, JAC, Jaecoo, Leapmotor, Omoda, XPeng and Zeekr.These brands are able to scale quickly in Australia as they view it as a test market for further expansion. Plus, there are no import tariffs to hinder potential sales.There was also astronomical growth in a number of existing Chinese brands in Australia. Sales of Chery vehicles were up 176.8 per cent year-on-year and BYD vehicles were up 156.2 per cent year-on-year.Chinese brands GWM, BYD and MG have all cemented their place in the top 10 best sellers and continue to grow.Although Chinese-made car sales rose a considerable amount last year, the top 10 best-selling models were largely imported from Japan or Thailand. The best-selling Chinese-made car last year was the 10th placed Tesla Model Y with a total of 22,239 examples sold.A number of non-Chinese carmakers have been taking note of how Chinese-made cars have been performing in Australia and are quickly pivoting to producing models in that country.As examples, the Cupra Tavascan, Kia EV5, Lotus Eletre and Emeya, as well as the forthcoming Hyundai Elexio, Mazda 6e and Mazda CX-6e are all made in China.For now we'll have to wait and see, but China could soon topple Japan and become the biggest new vehicle import market in Australia if it continues its trajectory.

Volvo has issued a dire recall notice for one of its popular electric SUVs, but there is no fix in sight.The brand has put a notice out for thousands of its EX30 compact SUV due to a high-voltage battery defect, which could cause a vehicle fire.The recall affects 2815 units of the 2024 model year.According to the recall notice issued via the Federal Government Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development Communications, Sport and the Arts, a manufacturing issue can cause the cell modules installed in the battery to overheat at high charge levels, which could lead to vehicle fire.Without a remedy as of yet, “battery charge level should be kept below 70 per cent,” the notice reads.This can be done through the charging setting menu on the vehicle display.“A vehicle fire could increase the risk of injury or death to vehicle occupants, other road users and bystanders, and/or damage to property,” the recall notice said.Volvo Australia said there have been no reported incidents locally.Volvo Cars has identified a potential issue with high-voltage battery cells manufactured by a particular supplier on certain model year 2024-2026 EX30 Single Motor Extended Range and Twin Motor Performance cars," a spokesperson said."In rare cases, the battery can overheat when charged to a high level, which could in a worst-case scenario lead to a fire starting in the battery. Safety is a top priority for Volvo Cars, and while the number of reported incidents is very small – representing around 0.02% of the cars we have identified as potentially affected – and we have no reports of related personal injuries, we are treating it very seriously. "We plan to roll out a recall as soon as possible to fix the cars in question. In the meantime, we are contacting all affected owners to ask them to limit their cars’ maximum charge level to 70%. We will contact them again as soon as a fix is available. Other models are not affected by this notice, and not all variants of EX30 are affected."Owners of affected vehicles will be contacted by Volvo requesting to schedule an appointment to have the repair work carried out free of charge.The EX30 has proved a solid seller in the compact SUV space in Australia, following its launch in 2024, starting from $59,990 (before on-road costs).Volvo launched a cross country version of the EX30 back in September 2025.

Volvo’s incoming electric car, the new sibling to its popular XC60 mid-size SUV, comes with the cold claim of ‘ending range anxiety’.The 2026 Volvo EX60 is set to be revealed later this month, but the Swedish brand has already confirmed a few of its details, including its claimed 810km electric driving range.Volvo points out that means the mid-size electric SUV could travel from Stockholm to Oslo in its home region, but for us here in Australia a more relatable distance is Melbourne to Adelaide - that’s about 750km.Given EVs aren’t at their most efficient on highways, you’d probably still want a quick top-up of the likely rather large battery. Fear not, Volvo says a 400kW fast-charger can add up to 340km of range in just 10 minutes.Volvo says this means the EX60 will have not only “the longest range of any fully electric Volvo”, but it also charges faster than any previous electric Volvo.“The EX60 is designed to be a gamechanger,” says Anders Bell, Volvo’s Chief Technology Officer. “With our new electric vehicle architecture, we directly address the main worries that customers have when considering a switch to a fully electric car. The result is class-leading range and fast charging speeds, marking the end of range anxiety.”Volvo, under its China-based parent company, will use ‘mega casting’ in the building process of the EX60, a first for a Volvo. The process means large sections of the car are constructed at once rather than in small body panels or parts of the frame.Built on the brand’s “most advanced” EV architecture so far, dubbed SPA3, the EX60 will make the most of its 800-volt electrical system to run the in-house software developed by Volvo for its cars.The full reveal of the EX60, which has until now only been teased in images, will be on January 21, less than three weeks from this story’s publication.

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Speaking at Volvo Cars’ most recent investor briefing in Stockholm, the company’s Chief Commercial Officer Erik Severinson confirmed the upcoming EX60 mid-size EV SUV (scheduled for global launch on January 21, 2026) will be priced at the same level as an equivalent plug-in hybrid (PHEV).Severinson identified charging time and a purchase price premium as two of the strongest impediments to large scale EV adoption and claimed the all-new EX60 addresses both issues comprehensively.“With the EX60 (on a road trip) you will have a car where you will need to go to the toilet long before the battery runs out," he said.“And when you’re back from the toilet, the car is charged. “There will be no penalty for that one per cent journey you take two times a year to the Mountains. It will be as convenient as driving a combustion engine vehicle or a plug-in hybrid,” Severinson said. And in terms of pricing, Severinson added: “People will not get more money to buy cars just because we want to sell them electric cars. “The most sold variant for Volvo Cars in Europe right now is a XC60 T6 PHEV. We know there is a customer demand at those price points. So we will price this vehicle at parity where we are pricing our current best sold cars.“We need to find price points that are equivalent to where we are buying cars today and this car will be priced as a PHEV,” he said. For reference, in Australia the Volvo XC60 T8 plug-in hybrid starts at $92,900, before on-road costs for the Plus grade, rising to $101,990 BOC for the top-spec Ultra model.At the same time Volvo Chief Engineering & Technology Officer Anders Bell referenced some of the tech advancements he said will help facilitate the EX60’s aggressive price position.“My job is to lead Volvo Cars Engineering through the most profound technology shift in the history of automotive.  “On January 21 Volvo will launch the best electric vehicle in the world. An historic moment for us. Arguably the most important launch in the history of the company.“We believe SPA3 (underpinning the EX60) is the best electric vehicle platform in the world,” he said.Bell confirmed the EX60 project is “on time, on cost and on quality” allowing the brand to “scale all the company’s business needs in a completely new way from the smallest electric vehicle to the biggest electric vehicle”.“Whatever needs the (Volvo) team here will have in terms of size, price position (and) markets in the electric vehicle world, we have made a platform that we can deploy to meet those needs in a very clever way” Bell added the EX60’s ‘mega cast’ SPA3 platform replaced 100 welded parts and can be upgraded continuously over time.He said the integrated battery pack reduced cost by 25 per cent, it’s 20 per cent more energy dense and has a 15 per cent shorter charge time.The drive unit is claimed to be 18 per cent cheaper to produce while generating 35 per cent more power and being 11 per cent lighter than Volvo’s previous generation motor.And the software ‘track’ is now uniform across EX90, ES90 and the upcoming EX60 with all new Volvo models, including Gen 2 plug-in hybrids, run from the same ‘software master’.

Volvo's backflip on its plan to only sell electric cars in Australia by 2026 won’t be accompanied by a new target date.Despite the carmaker believing it’s the right thing to do, it says Aussie buyers aren’t ready to go EV only.Speaking to CarsGuide at a brand event, Volvo Australia Managing Director Stephen Connor explained the brand’s decision to step back from its 2026 commitment.“We’re still committed to a fully electric strategy,” he said. “What we identified in this journey is that it can’t be a switch on and switch off kind of view.“Why? Because infrastructure isn’t ready for it, consumers are also not ready for it.“What does the consumer want as opposed to what we want? We’re still committed to being climate neutral by 2040, so those milestones are still there but it may take us a little longer to be fully electrified."Connor detailed how Volvo will eventually reach its goal in Australia.“Every new model that we bring out is fully electric from now onwards. But that doesn’t stop us from refreshing our current line-up, because that’s what the consumer is telling us they really need.“I’d love to tell you today we’ll be there by 2027 or 2028, but it’s not a race, and we can get there gradually and when it suits consumers.“We could have forced it through, no doubt. We’ve got the product to do it, but is it necessarily the right thing for the brand today? Probably not.“It’s the right thing to do, but the world, I think, has shifted so much in the last three-to-four years.”Volvo wants to continue to record solid sales numbers of its popular combustion cars, which it now intends to keep updating. According to Connor, the XC40, XC60, and XC90 SUVs are “big volume cars” that are “selling really well in the marketplace".He confirmed the mid-size EX60, arriving in 2026, will mark Volvo's next step on its electrification journey, adding that the brand may re-assess its progress on electrification at that point as its range of core vehicles will have electric versions.“As soon as that arrives we can sit back and go ‘Okay, what’s the product cycle?’ Then we can redefine whether it’s 2028, 2029, or 2030,” he explained.How does Volvo know its consumers aren’t ready? Connor highlighted the growth in plug-in hybrid sales, as well as feedback at a corporate and dealer level that “not everyone wants to go straight from a petrol or mild hybrid to a fully electric car".“Who would have thought we’d be here talking about plug-in hybrids as the next big thing?“We could have been egotistical and pushed it through, but that’s not Volvo and it’s not who we are.”He said the growth of PHEVs in particular came as a bit of a surprise, given the brand has offered them for some time. However, it seems the shift to longer electric driving range has been a turning point for buyers.“What’s actually changed as part of that surprise is that when we first launched PHEVs the range was probably like 35 to 40km in the real world, now the average range of most PHEVs is more like 70 and then the next generation coming through would be up to 100 to 150km."So what’s really changed is the technology evolving so quickly. All of a sudden, it really makes sense.”There is also an element of what Volvo’s Gothenburg, Sweden head office makes available to the Australian division, which weighs into the equation.“When we made that original announcement, the weren’t going to be made available.” he said.“But because we’re nimble and agile, head office decided to re-invest back into the two staple cars that we’d loved and known, so that also gave us the ability to redefine what we want to do. “That decision though is made at a local level. If we don’t want XC90, we don’t have to take it, but because they refreshed it, we went ‘Yeah, it’s a great car, why wouldn’t we take it.’”In addition, he added HQ offering updated versions of the brand’s core combustion range came at the perfect time, as the scale-up of the EX90 - which the brand had hoped would be a volume seller immediately - was impacted globally by software-related delays and the announcement of an upgraded 800-volt version which will allow faster charging than the current 400-volt version.Volvo sales are down 21 per cent year-on-year in Australia to the end of September, although the company has managed a significant percentage of its yearly volume in just the last month as deliveries start of updated and new models.Next for the brand will be the arrival of the ES90 electric sedan, with the EX60 mid-sizer arriving in 2026.