The mid-size crossover will have at least 400 miles of estimated range when it goes into production later this year. Volvo is starting to reveal some details about its upcoming mid-size electric SUV, the EX60, ahead of its official unveiling on January 21. The EX60 will have an estimated range of 400 miles (or 810 km).
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That's significantly more range than any previous Volvo electric vehicle — at least until the ES90 . The EX60 will be the first vehicle to benefit from the automaker's new megacasting to reduce weight and improve manufacturing efficiency.
“One of the things we wanted to do was create an electric vehicle without compromise,” said Akhil Krishnan, head of program management for the EX60. “It shouldn’t be a compromise for you to choose to drive electric, so that was very, very important to us.”
To that end, improving vehicle range and charging time were among Krishnan and his team’s main goals. They wanted to turn “range anxiety” into “range comfort,” meaning that the driver would have so much range that it would no longer be a hindrance — similar to how consumers don’t choose gas-powered cars based on the size of the tank.
But range alone isn’t enough; charging speed was also critical. Krishnan noted that Volvo conducted extensive customer research and found that many electric vehicle owners felt compelled to plan their lives around charging stations, often waiting 40 minutes or more. Volvo wanted the EX60 to fit into natural human breaks.
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For example, if a driver stops for 10 minutes to get coffee or use the restroom, the car should be ready to continue within that time.
The EX60 should meet that standard thanks to its 800-volt architecture, a first for Volvo. Other automakers, such as Hyundai and Kia, have stood out amid the slump in demand for electric vehicles thanks to their 800-volt fast-charging vehicles, and now Volvo wants to do the same. The EX60 can charge from 10–80 percent in 19 minutes, or add 168 miles of range in just 10 minutes when using a 400 kW fast charger.
Of course, finding a charger that can produce such speeds can be a problem, especially in the U.S. — but it’s certainly improving. Krishnan said Volvo’s goal is to offer excellent charging performance not only on 400 kW chargers but also on more common 250 kW units.
The vehicle is built on Volvo's new SPA3 platform, designed exclusively for electric vehicles, without the constraints of internal combustion engines. The EX60 doesn't rely on any battery breakthroughs to achieve its improved range — the nickel-cobalt-manganese chemistry is the same as the rest of the EV range — but rather on manufacturing advances, such as megacasting and the use of a structural battery pack, to reduce weight and improve vehicle integrity.
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It will also include preparing the battery to be at the correct temperature for optimal charging.
