Volvo XC40 Recharge Plug-in Hybrid: carsales Car of the Year 2020 contender

It’s our usual practice to leave a new powertrain variant out of contention for Car of the Year, but for 2020 we’ve made some exceptions, and the Volvo XC40 Recharge Plug-in Hybrid is one of those.

Unlike the conventional XC40, this variant is a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle featuring a 1.5-litre turbocharged three-cylinder petrol engine driving through a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission to the front wheels. In addition to the engine output of 132kW and 265Nm, the XC40 Recharge can draw upon 60kW and 160Nm from the car’s electric motor for a combined total of 195kW.

Driven in electric mode alone, the XC40 Recharge will travel up to 46km without firing up the petrol engine to replenish the 10.7kWh lithium-ion battery.

At $64,990 plus on-road costs, the XC40 Recharge tops the XC40 range, and that nameplate has already won once, but can history repeat for the plug-in variant in the 2020 carsales Car of the Year, proudly presented by Bingle?

Only about $8000 separates the Volvo XC40 Recharge and the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV Exceed, but few buyers will cross-shop the two plug-in SUVs.

The XC40 Recharge is smaller, front-drive only and short-changed for EV range. But it does offer a lot of safety equipment for the money. And its design is visually engaging for many buyers.

Anyone who loves the Volvo brand, and there are a lot of them, is sure to be drawn to the XC40 Recharge.
Some buyers will be cashed-up mavericks purchasing the Volvo with a novated lease. Others will be younger couples – perhaps in their 30s – with one or just two smaller kids, living in the inner to intermediate suburbs, where the EV range will be more than adequate for trips to the shops or dropping the kids at school.

They like the Volvo badge, the design presentation and all the creature comforts, plus Volvo’s renowned safety features. Buyers will be pragmatists, enjoying ownership of a car that’s electric most of the time, but can also drive down the coast for the weekend and fill up at a service station for the return journey.

As noted already, the price of admission to the Volvo XC40 Recharge is $64,990 plus on-road costs.

Volvo offers the XC40 Recharge with a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty and roadside assistance for the duration of the warranty. Service intervals are limited to 12 months, although owners can travel up to 15,000km between services during any 12-month period.

As standard, the XC40 Recharge comes equipped with 20-inch alloy wheels, a 14-speaker audio system with digital radio, dual-zone climate control, satellite navigation, an alarm, electrically-adjustable front seats (with position memory for the driver), electric sunroof, LED headlights, keyless entry/starting, leather upholstery, electric tailgate, electric fold-in side mirrors, voice recognition and wireless smartphone charging.

Safety and driver assist features for the XC40 Recharge comprise seven airbags (including one for the driver’s knee), blind spot monitoring, all-speeds autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian detection, emergency braking display, rear collision warning, rear cross traffic alert, driver fatigue monitoring, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, rain-sensing wipers, tyre pressure monitoring and traffic sign recognition.

Reviewer Sam Charlwood concluded in his local launch review of the new Volvo XC40 Recharge that history will look back on it as a case of baby steps for the Swedish brand in the world of green motoring.

Volvo has made no secret of its ambition to end design and production of exclusively internal-combustion vehicles, and plug-in hybrids are the stepping stones along the path to something more significant.

“Yet, as it stands,” Charlwood also noted, “it’s hard to think of a more relevant green solution on our roads – especially when charging infrastructure is still in its infancy, at least outside of capital cities.

“Like all electrified models on the Australian market, the XC40 T5 PHEV isn’t cheap.

“However, the technology clearly works – and best of all, it does so without changing Volvo’s successful compact SUV blueprint.”

But that suggests the XC40 Recharge is a car that stands or falls by what many currently judge to be niche-market powertrain technology.

The question remaining is whether the XC40 Recharge can win over the judges across all the criteria for the carsales Car of the Year for 2020, proudly presented by Bingle.

Volvo XC40 Recharge Plug-in Hybrid at a glance:
Price: From $64,990
Engine: 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbo petrol-electric
Output: 132kW/265Nm (electric motor: 60kW/160Nm)
Fuel: 2.2L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 50g/km (ADR Combined)