Volvo Car Malaysia steps into an all-electric future with the introduction of the XC40 Recharge Pure Electric locally.
As part to its commitment to help reduce carbon emissions, Volvo’s global mission is to become a fully electric company by 2030. However, Volvo Car Malaysia have also helped slightly accelerate becoming carbon neutral by being an automotive maker in Malaysia with a full range of locally assembled plug-in hybrids.
The XC40 Recharge Pure Electric is Volvo’s first electric vehicle in Malaysia, on top of being fully assembled here. The fully electric all-wheel-drive powertrain that offers a range of around 400km on a single charge. However, the price of the SUV will only be announced on 4 April.
During the press conference to announce the launch of the XC40 Recharge Pure Electric, Charles Frump, managing director of Volvo Car Malaysia also made other major announcements. Among them were a tease for another upcoming electric model Volvo to be launched within this year!
The premium automotive maker will also export fully electric vehicles, from its local plant here, to markets within the ASEAN region soon. With its capabilities to assemble pure electric vehicles through its Malaysian assembly plant, Volvo Car Malaysia will now launch a new electric vehicle in Malaysia every year for the next five years. In line with Volvo Car Malaysia’s goal to accelerate its transformation towards electrification with a 75% contribution from its pure electric line-up by 2025.
The Volvo XC40 Recharge Pure Electric will be available for viewing at all authorised Volvo dealers in Malaysia from 4 April 2022. Deliveries of the XC40 Recharge Pure Electric will start from the end of April 2022 onwards, for all locations throughout Malaysia.
The Volvo XC40 Recharge Pure Electric #AMTestDrive
While awaiting the price reveal of the latest Volvo EV, we managed to get our hands on one of the models for a media test drive session from Ara Damansara to Janda Baik and back – all of which was done on a single charge!
The XC40 Recharge Pure Electric brings a whole new driving experience as well for users, with its one pedal option. That’s right, you just need to press down on one pedal to accelerate, and when you release pressure, you’re essentially braking. Of course, this option, which is better for the battery range, can be turned off, should you prefer using the more conventional brake.
And trust us, the car is fast, it can hit 100km/h in just under five seconds and the torque is amazing, as expected of an electric vehicle. Which made driving up windy hills relatively easy, and definitely comfy.
All this power despite its size is astounding, and the lack of an engine also means that you get more cargo space – a whopping 419 litres of space to be exact.
We also got to test out some of the renowned safety aspects of the brand, as a vehicle in front stopped suddenly and had us having to jam the brake (while on the one pedal system, which makes the brake pedal highly effective and function essentially like a handbrake.) In the moment, all the sensors fired and warned up of an impending crash, the seatbelts pulled us back, and the brakes were on point to stop the car before causing an accident. Thankfully we didn’t get to test the airbags!
The SUV comes fitted with a Google system, which makes it more assessable to Android users, but also equally functional for iOS users. That being said, the Google maps function on the car puts away the need for relying on your phone for GPS; rather, you can just connect to the infotainment system and enjoy your music.
The silent Volvo XC40 EV drives like a dream, needless to say. And all in, the cost of our 120km or so journey only cost us a tiny fraction of the price it would normally take for petrol users; it costs less than a cent per km! And we had more than enough charge left once we arrived back. So while we wait to see how much the SUV will cost, we believe that it would definitely be worth it.
For more information, please visit the official website for Volvo Car Malaysia
Volvo Cars Unveils The Concept Recharge, It’s Carbon-Neutral Car Of The Future
(Images from Volvo Car Malaysia)
