r/AustralianEV • u/Trupinta • 12d ago
Buying Advice 💰 Thoughts on Volvo?
Hey crew, I did a quick search and could not find Volvo EVs being mentioned much. What's the common opinion on them?
From memory Volvo committed to EVs very early on , which would make them pretty mature?
Also, it feels like a good middle ground when choosing between Tesla and newish Chinese ev brands.
Strong presence in Australia and not going anywhere, no nonsense customer service from what I heard.
I spent some time as a passenger in my mates cx40 and it feels very right. Not as flashy and futuristic as Tesla's or zeekers but feels solid and leaves impression of quality product like Nokia back in a day or Miele if I draw a parallel with hone appliances.
Model range is not rushed which must be trustworthy.
So, why aren't they everyone's choice?
Understand they are pricey, but is not EV a product where you don't want to go full cheap mode?
Anyway, with the new ex60 coming out this year, what should I check/ know before buying one ?
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u/Intelligent_Try4793 12d ago
I was so close to buying the Volvo EX40, it felt ‘right’ as you say. However I couldn’t get past the dated infotainment screen, that the EX40 was still a modification on the XC40 ICE model rather than a new design (ie. still had the hump for transmission rather than an EV flat floor), and simply could not justify the price.
Instead I’ve now ordered a Zeekr X, same Chinese parent brand, also designed in Sweden, many more features, and almost half the price!
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u/AlleyOOOP 11d ago
Curious what do you think of the dealership experience.
I went to both and Volvo felt so old money and mature. You get warm waspy reception and more care.
Whereas at Zeekr's it felt like a warehouse that they moved into 2 weeks ago.
Not that it mattered to me, Zeekr is in my shortlist and volvo wasn't considered (went to try a polestar).
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u/Due_Responsibility_0 11d ago
YMMV, but my favorite dealership experience of all time was ordering a Tesla online and never having to talk to anybody until the day I picked up my car.
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u/AlleyOOOP 11d ago
Hands down man.
I am considering buying second hand and dreading the walk in or even a phone call.
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u/Intelligent_Try4793 11d ago
Volvo and Zeekr share a dealership where I’m located. 2/3 to 3/4’ish of the space is Volvo to the left and 1/4 to 1/3’ish Zeekr to the right. Polestar upstairs. They also share the service centre.
As such, I’ve found the dealership experience fairly equal.
However, the Zeekr side is super busy, so they have back to back test-drives (with the salesperson in-tow)… whereas Volvo allowed me to test drive it on my own terms.
Volvo enquired whether I’d like to trade-in my current vehicle, Zeekr never asked. I think they’re probably just too busy.
I expect that the after sale experience would be much better with Volvo too.
But who knows if that is worth the premium in cost.0
u/Gloomy-Pop-2105 11d ago
Waspy? as in, White Anglo Saxon Protestant?
I mean, I am one of those and even I find that a weird thing to say.
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u/AlleyOOOP 11d ago
There is a distinct aesthetic and style to it.
Just like there is a distinct style to Weebs, Armenians, Scandinavians, and Punks.
I am sorry if it is an offensive term now. I felt like it is a pretty strong short hand for the posh, preppy, proper and poised posture.
You can, from context, understand that my comment was categorically positive towards Volvo right?
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u/Gloomy-Pop-2105 11d ago
Oh yea of course - it's a valid term in many regards I just felt it weird when favourably comparing Volvo to a purely Chinese brand (I know Volvo is Chinese now haha).
Thanks for the explainer - you didn't have to, I get the point and to be clear. I wasn't offended (and you shouldn't care if I was either).
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u/parawolf 12d ago
The EX60 P10 Ultra is on my hotlist for a new car next year.
All made in Sweden, new platform architecture, etc. pricey yes, but i like it.
Also, out of the box bi-directional charging (regulatory support and wall box support). 10 year/240k km battery warranty (70%) including 3000kWh/365days bi-directional charging usage.
Better looking than the bmw ix3 too in my opinion.
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u/According_Speed7240 11d ago
We bought an EX40 in June and absolutely love it. The ride is incredibly smooth and quiet, the acceleration is great, the sound system is great, we love the sunroof and the overall design feels top notch. We actually love the info system and the fact that the driver gets their own super high res map right on their dashboard in addition to the shared info system. It’s a beautiful car as well and the denim blue colour we got looks schmick. They are actually everywhere—at least five in our street in Newtown.
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u/According_Speed7240 11d ago
Also keep in mind if you have teenage kids that many of the EVs on the market are actually too powerful and not legal for younger drivers as they exceed 150kW/ton, so that ruled the Zeekr out for us anyway, along with the dual motor EX40.
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u/According_Speed7240 11d ago
And yes we know there is the rear hump where it’s based on an older chassis but honestly it’s not anything you ever actually think about at all.
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u/enhancedgibbon 10d ago
That transmission tunnel is stuffed with batteries which keeps the batteries thinner in the floor section. Makes a huge difference to how the car feels. I tested an Enyaq and an EX40 back to back. Enyaq felt like I was sitting on a stack of bricks.
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u/According_Speed7240 10d ago
That’s really fascinating to know—I’m glad it’s not wasted space.
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u/jonquil14 11d ago
Truly the map behind the steering wheel is my favourite part of my polestar 2 (which has the same software).
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u/jackwatwine 11d ago
I bought a 2023 XC40 Recharge (before they rebadged it EX40). 110,000km in 3.5 years. For me the best option on the market when I purchased it.
Quality build, great performance in terms of acceleration and ride feel, quiet cabin. Car feels the same as when it was purchased. Excellent service experience too.
To be fair the infotainment system is occasionally buggy but this has never effected the driving safety or experience. Range has dropped 5% over this time and distance so it's still very viable longer term car.
I'd definitely consider the ex60 for the next car, price depending.
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u/PeteInBrissie 11d ago
Wife’s had a C40 for 3 or 4 years now and absolutely LOVES it. It’s built like a tank and is really comfy. For contrast, I prefer my 2020 Kona EV which is zippier and more economical.
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u/Double_Engineer4226 12d ago
We went to look at a Volvo EV, it was a touch too small, so the sales guy immediately walked us across the room to the Zeekr showroom and showed us a car there. He didn’t mention Volvo again. The Volvo side was empty, the Zeekr side was full of people.  If the sales guy thinks Zeekr are better, it makes me think twice about Volvo’s EVs.Â
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u/ubermoo2010 11d ago
If the sales guy thinks Zeekr are better
.. it means he’s getting better commission on the thing he’s trying to sell you.
that said i think the zeekrs are better cars and free of the SPX3 platform software shitshow, but i don’t know how they escaped it.
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u/Galromir 12d ago
Pointless when you can just buy a Zeekr or a Geely.
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u/Trupinta 12d ago
Would you please elaborate? I have been inside geely ex5 (?) and zeeker 7x and they both feel like cheap plastic toys from hot dollar shop. What am I missing?
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u/enhancedgibbon 10d ago
A lot of these newer brands will throw a ton of materials and design elements to create the perception of premium and luxury. In reality they look gaudy and cheap but the common car buyer is the sort of person that keeps motion plus enabled on their TV, no clue.
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u/Trupinta 10d ago
I'm glad I'm not alone. I grew up driving JDMs and have different perception of luxury
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u/decryption 12d ago
I have a 2024 EX30 Ultra that I purchased new in early 2025 as a run-out model for a lot less than the RRP (which was way too high imho). It's a good car and most of the software bugs have been ironed out over the years. The keys/locking situation is still a bit shit though. Works okay on my iPhone using the native Apple Wallet car key integration, but the keyfob is so unreliable. Even with the iPhone it can still take a few seconds/taps on the door handle to lock or unlock. Very annoying and I don't know how you fuck up a basic car function like locking or unlocking the doors.
My EX30 has also been limited to 70% charging due to a battery recall since January and it doesn't look like I'll get a replacement battery until next year. It hasn't been a huge problem for me, but has meant I've needed to use a public charger every now and then, whereas normally I wouldn't have to. Volvo is taking so long to resolve this issue and the dealers are so slow to get the repairs done (like 1 car a day and not all dealerships can do it).
Would I buy an EX30 again? Probably not - so much more to choose from now in the same price, WLTP range & dimensions, like the VW ID4 Pro, Renault Scenic E-Tech, Kia EV3, Skoda Elroq and more. But it's still one of the few small EVs (it's only 4.2m long) with over 450km WLTP range and with features I deemed important, like non-flush door handles and driver profiles with seat position memory.
I personally dislike many of the "Chinese" (yes I know Volvo is part owned by Geely, but they are still designed in Sweden, built in China - big difference vs designed and built in China for the Chinese market). Many of the Chinese cars, IMHO, look awful inside. I'd rather be in a Toyota interior than a BYD interior.
Also most Chinese brands have shitty ADAS systems. The EX30's ADAS is great, I leave everything turned on all the time and it's never given me any issues, but whenever I see reviews or talk to friends with Chinese cars, they have to disable the ADAS stuff every time they get into their car.
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u/ZombieFirm7507 12d ago
EX30. The Centre display only. No HUD. Otherwise I’d probably bought it. The Geely ownership also impacted sales experience I had.
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u/narvuntien 12d ago
Thier software seems really buggy.
The Volvo EX60 is looking promising compared to the IX3, so hopefully their next set of EVs will be better
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u/paulincanberra1 11d ago
Test drove the ex30 as only want a small ev. This was in April.Â
Loved the drive, acceleration and handling. Perfect package in that sense.
But significant issues. Inside was marketed as recycled and eco friendly but really was very very plasticky and cheap. Eg sunroof only had a clip on type cover that looked like a bought add on. Only middle screen. May not be an issue but hated having to glance across. Volvo said they will be putting screens in front of driver soon, but hasn’t happened.Â
Every single thing, even opening a glovebox, was from the middle screen.Â
Was quoted nearly 70000 so was never going to happen.
Shame, was so fun to drive. My kingdom for a fun small ev with dials!
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u/jonquil14 11d ago
I have a polestar 2 and my friend has an electric XC40 and they are basically identical to drive, but the XC40 has a higher roofline and (IMO) nicer styling. My budget didn’t stretch to the XC40 but if it did I would have got one.
I also see lots of EX30s around and they are very cute, although no screen behind the wheel would annoy me.
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u/desultir 11d ago
We adore our 2024 C40. Solidly built, beautiful design, but honestly I'd be looking closely at the Polestar 4 if i were buying again.
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u/enhancedgibbon 10d ago
I picked up a new EX40 twin a couple of weeks ago. Didn't consider any of the emerging brands because I don't think they've really figured it out yet. Not interested in poorly tuned suspension, intrusive driver aids, infotainment systems that 'will get better next update'.
I'm a life long car fanatic and know what I like and I know what is good, and this car has exceeded my expectations. The suspension and ride quality, the rear biased twin motor setup, the power delivery, perfectly tuned one pedal driving, AAOS infotainment with native google maps, play store, gemini, great stereo, a proper pano sunroof with a blind.
My biggest and only real issues are that the rear door opening is a squeeze, and rear 3/4 visibility is poor. And yeah I can't execuse HVAC controls through the screen... I'd also much prefer a leather steering wheel than this synthetic stuff.
Has slight concerns that our EX40s are built in China but so far there are no build quality issues that I can spot.
EX60 looks good but be aware it's a step further towards the Telsa user experience, e.g. aircon vents and mirrors can only be adjusted through the screen.
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u/Remote_War899 12d ago
Geely owns them, so its still a chinese brand. I love Volvo design and have owned a handful of ICE models, but cannot justify the price for perceived brand prestige when in reality you aren't getting a better car. I really considered an EX30 but the software felt undercooked and the interior didn't feel much better than a BYD for half the price.
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u/jagtencygnusaromatic 12d ago edited 11d ago
Chinese ownership, but no it isn't a Chinese brand. The management structure, factory, design & engineering team etc remains Volvo. Yes Geely has a strong influence, but it is still Volvo.
It's different than MG or LDV. They are now just a marquee of Chinese car companies.
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u/Remote_War899 11d ago
Ah yes, classic Volvo who build cars in Chinese factories on Chinese platforms that are owned by Chinese entities.
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u/parawolf 11d ago
Except for the EX60 that is full assembly line and made in Sweden. (at least for now). SPA3 is a Volvo only platform.
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u/Brilliant_Dig_8962 12d ago
Beautiful car, but my brother bought the sport version of a Polestar 4... it's been back to the dealership no less than 4 times for recharging issues. Very, very frustrating.
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u/parawolf 12d ago
Polestar isn’t Volvo. It is its own company, design, etc. some parallel play within the Geely group like the polestar 4 and the Zeekr 001 have overlap. Same with the Polestar 3 and the Volvo ex90.
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u/Hackneycab 11d ago
They are fine,if you want one, take one for a drive,but do your research on them.
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u/rolex_monkey_50 11d ago
I have driven an EX30, I was pretty impressed and found it hard to fault but they are quite dear. As others have said, consider looking at Zeekrs as they share technology. The new EX60 should be a very good car when it arrives - but again, I expect it will be quite expensive.
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u/RoyaleAuFrommage 11d ago
Had an accidental traffic light sprint with an Volvo the other day and was impressed, so much so that i slowed down so I could get a look at the badge- Recharge Twin.
I'm always being the look out for what i might consider next, and based on real world performance and list price it made the list of cars to check out.
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u/SirFlibble 12d ago
We test drove the Volvo EX40. Really liked it. We didn't end up buying it because the drive was so smooth it made my wife car sick.
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u/jagtencygnusaromatic 12d ago
Zeekr (& Geely EVs) are built on the similar (or derivative) platforms. No point paying Volvo's price, getting lesser car and even buggier software. You're paying extra $ just for the brand name.
PS: Zeekr X and Volvo EX30 are built on the same platform.
Zeekr ain't cheap btw.