Swedish automaker, Volvo, is making a smaller, less expensive all-electric SUV to help convince budget-minded buyers to go electric. The company revealed the EX30 all-electric SUV that is significantly smaller than its seven-seater cousin, the EX90– due to start rolling out of the factories in 2024.
By 2030, the carmaker expects to sell solely EVs and to be carbon-neutral a decade later. Volvo has made substantial progress in converting its fleet to EVs with several plug-ins, including the XC40, C40, and the currently delayed EX90.
As a result, the EX30 will move many vehicles off of lots by starting at $35,000. In addition, it will be outfitted with a lithium battery, making it slightly more affordable than the gasoline-powered XC40 and much more affordable than the electric XC40, which was formerly Volvo’s least expensive electric vehicle.
Volvo hopes that the EX90, which starts at over $109,000 in Europe and as low as $80,000 in the U.S., will compete with vehicles from Tesla, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Audi for wealthy buyers. Meanwhile, the smaller EX30 is aimed at more cost-conscious consumers, like college graduates shopping for their first new car, or households needing a second car.
Volvo’s EX30 is the most recent illustration of how automakers are introducing less expensive electric SUVs to meet the rising demand for these cars and give buyers a more inexpensive entry point into the world of electric automobiles.
As the cost of other plug-in models rises, General Motors has already stated that it intends to deliver an electric Chevrolet SUV for roughly $30,000.
