It is nice to able to report on something that costs less in these times of rampant price increases. Volvo has knocked €3,255 off the price of its standard spec EX40 electric SUV.
The compact EV now starts from €48,990. That is a psychological ball-park number: a car of this size for under €50,000 even if 99-percent of prospective customers know well that they will spend more on a few extras.
That said, the entry-level model is heavily imbued with loads of equipment (especially safety), and comfort, enhancements for trouble-free journeys, so maybe there isn’t great need to go adding faddish items.
Just to put the car in context: the EX used to be called the XC40 Recharge. It is now the EX40, an imposing sort of motor whose distinctive features are its pronounced ‘hips’ and strong design lines. For all that it doesn’t catch the eye, especially in the Black Edition EX40, I was driving.
But what did prick up my ears is the fact that the automaker has lowered the starting price for this as well. It now costs from €50,995.
They couldn’t resist adding in the bits and pieces to dolly it up a bit more so I had the privilege of driving at an elevated price level – €65,895 for the single motor edition range.
A fair bit of the extra expense, I’d say, went on adorning the Black Edition. It has Onyx Black paint, high-gloss black badging, 20ins five-spoke alloys in – you’ve guessed it – high gloss black.
I have to say I am not a fan of cars being darkened. But I notice this treatment being given to the likes of the Range Rover Sport and can see how the likes of Volvo would use it to strengthen their upmarket status.
Anyway, it is a matter of taste and I obviously don’t chime with every nuance of modernity. But there are new Black Edition exterior colours would you believe – Crystal White, Denim Blue and Vapour Grey. It would look great in Denim Blue.
Apart from the money side of things, there is the consideration of the extended range in this model. It is now capable, they say, of covering up to 556kms between charges. I seem to remember when its XC40 Recharge Single Motor FWD precursor had a maximum claimed range of 422kms So there is quite a stretch.
But despite the longer range, I do know there is no way it will cover 556kms. It is almost impossible to see it do 500kms judging by my series of drives. Fair enough one journey took us from south county Dublin to Belfast and it really soaked up the power.
By the same token and in the interests of balance, I must report that I managed to get the ‘charge remaining’ estimate to increase by a few kilometres as I slithered to a meeting with fear in my stomach at being left stranded for the journey back on the Stillorgan dual carriageway. It is surprising how slowly you will drive when you see the battery (82kWh in my test car) with only 9-percent left. Maybe if I had driven like that during the rest of my drives I’d have got much nearer the 556kms.
On the other hand, if you’d like to give the 252hp/420Nm a chance to shine, the electric rear-axle drive motor gives this a serious boost.
The cabin wasn’t dark at all despite the presence of Onyx Black inlay and it held out the prospect of a comfortable drive with large seats and lots of head/elbow/knee room. The only caveat I would make at this stage is that the centre rear seat is small enough and in the real world you would carry just two adults back there.
There are 410 litres of boot space, with a nifty underfloor slot at the rear. If you’re moving big items you can increase the volume to 1,286 litres by folding the rear seats.
Look out for the handy little bin with its own lid which is great for dumping empty bags of crisps, chocolate wrappers and coffee-cup lids and keeping the interior clean.
You know, we rarely mention it these days but the government, much maligned and deservedly so in many cases, has kept the road tax for vehicles like this at a mere yearly stipend of €120.
It was not the greatest drive; even on the motorway I felt the steering was a bit vague. The dampening was a bit too rigid on less well-catered for roads where I felt it lacked the sophistication to absorb the bumps in quieter, less thumpy fashion.
Meanwhile inside, an excellent command-driving seat awaits you and how wonderful it can be to have such good visibility at the back.
Designs, but not the EX40’s, can often diminish decent vision be it a blocked-up tailgate, or big thick rear-and-side pillars. Hence the proliferation of alerts and actions to avoid being side-swiped by over-takers or rear-ended in bumper-to bumper traffic.
There are safety appliances in abundance: speed sensitive steering, driver assistance (Pilot Assist adaptive cruise control), City Safety (pedestrian, cyclist detection etc), driver awareness (Blind Spot information system), automatic LED headlights and so on. Not to mention a plethora of airbags.
For your comfort there are front seat cushion extensions, multi-directional lumbar support, 2-zone climate control with rear air vents. And for your information there is a 12.3ins driver display, while a 9ins portrait touchscreen (quite small compared with segment rivals), is there for you to use like a lap-top – when you are stationary only please. You also get 2-front, 2-rear Type C USB sockets, 4-year safety and security package, heat-pump, voice recognition with Google Assistant, Touring chassis, high-gloss black window trim, front and rear skid-plate and a high-gloss black centre tunnel.
In addition to the Plus spec, Ultimate adds active bending Pixel LED headlights with adaptive shadow technology. There is also a panoramic sunroof, parking camera 360º surround View with side proximity sensors,
On top of all that Black Edition models get 20ins alloys, Onyx Black metallic paint, high gloss black rear badging in the rear, and high-gloss black grille.
Overall, the EX40 puts together a seriously impressive electric SUV that is mindful of its occupants and those of other road users. It is not set up to be anything other than a thoroughly well-thought out, sensible and solid piece of work – with the added bonus of now kicking off with a lower price.
