Volvo is not just preparing new models, but literally rewriting the rules of what a plug-in hybrid should be. During the premiere of the electric flagship EX60, CEO Håkan Samuelsson threw down the gauntlet to the industry, admitting that previous hybrids were a compromise - just gasoline cars with a "grafted" small battery. However, the Swedes' new strategy envisages a radical turn: creating cars that feel and drive like fully electric, but have an internal combustion engine as "insurance" for a long journey.
The next generation of PHEV models of Volvo will offer an impressive range of about 160 km on electricity alone, which practically covers the needs of 90% of drivers in everyday life. The idea is that the electric part of the drivetrain will be so powerful that the gasoline unit will not turn on even during more dynamic acceleration. This way, owners will only have to fill up at a gas station a few times a year, turning their car into an “electric with a backup plan”. The total mileage of these machines will vary between 800 and almost 1000 km, putting an end to any worries about the destination.
Interestingly, Volvo categorically refuses to call these models “extended range electric” (EREV). Unlike Chinese competitors, where the engine works only as a generator, in Volvo it will retain its mechanical connection to the wheels. According to strategy director Michael Fleiss, this solution is much more efficient at high speed on the highway - where pure electric vehicles often lose energy the fastest. The first bearer of this philosophy is the new Volvo XC70, which has already debuted with the promised 200 km of electric range and fast charging support.
As the world smoothly transitions to full electrification, Volvo is building the strongest “technological bridge“. The company's plant in South Carolina is already being reconfigured to produce a new hybrid model based on this architecture. The Swedish brand clearly shows that it does not want to pressure its customers into drastic steps, but offers them an evolution that combines the silence and ecology of the future with the security of familiar fuel.