Volvo is preparing an all-electric version of its flagship SUV, the XC90. It would be reasonable too assume the idea is for the EV to replace the current combustion-engine XC90 in the lineup. Eventually that will be the case, but it won’t be immediate. Volvo will continue to market the two versions side-by-side for a few years.
The news was confirmed by Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson, as reported by Automotive News. The executive said there were several reasons for the decision to keep the current model when the electric version comes out. Chief among them is the popularity of hybrid models in both China and the United States. The current XC90, it should be remembered, is partially electrified.
The future all-electric XC90, first presented in 2021 in the form of the Recharge concept, will be built at Volvo's plant in South Carolina. Since the gas-engine version is assembled in Sweden, there will be no scheduling conflicts for production, making a cohabitation possible if Volvo wants to go that route.
What's more, Volvo has just announced it is investing in the Swedish plant in Torslanda in anticipation of the brand's next generation of electric vehicles. That will take time, of course, and recall that Volvo’s plan calls for a switch to an all-electric lineup by 2030, so eight years from now.
In other words, Volvo will continue to offer the gasoline-only or hybrid XC90 as long as it sells well.
And sell well it continues to do. Last year in the U.S., Volvo sold 38,657 units of the CX90, which was a 13 percent increase over the first pandemic year, 2020. It was second in sales only to the XC60, which Volvo moved 41,582 units of in the U.S.
Here in Canada, sales of the XC90 also rebounded in 2021 to 2,855 units compared to 2,389 in 2020. And like in the U.S., it is outpaced only by the XC60, which sold for 3,398 units in Canada in 2021.
CEO Samuelsson also mentioned that an aesthetic update is planned for the XC90. Volvo might also decide at some point to drop some engine configurations and retain only the plug-in hybrid alongside the EV until that 2030 deadline rolls around.