Following on from Volvo’s recent Volvo Cars Tech Moment event, the Swedish carmaker is launching its Volvo Concept Recharge electric car to mark their move towards all-electric powertrains. Volvo plans to only offer electric cars by 2030 and expects 50 percent of its global sales to be electric by 20225.
For Volvo Cars, electrification is more than simply a shift in powertrains. It represents a new paradigm in car design, and the Volvo Concept Recharge is a manifesto for the next generation of all-electric Volvos. It is the next step on from Volvo’s C40 Recharge.
Volvo’s first generation of electric cars shared a floor with combustion engine-powered cars. This required a balance in proportions and space to be able to accommodate both a battery pack and an internal combustion engine (ICE).
The Concept Recharge removes the complexity of the internal combustion engine. This allows the designers to evolve the car’s proportions to increase interior space while also improving aerodynamic efficiency.
The next generation of Volvo’s fully electric cars, the first of which is the company’s first SUV on a completely new electric-only technology base, will feature flat floors, as shown in the Concept Recharge here.
By removing the engine and replacing it with a full battery pack under the flat floor, the designers have extended the wheelbase and the wheel size of the car. The result is shorter overhangs, as well as more interior space, including a large storage area between the front seats.
The designers were also able to reposition the seats, optimise the roof profile and lower the bonnet of the car. This approach creates efficiency gains in aerodynamics which ultimately improves the range. Even the signature vertical rear lamps are reimagined with a set of wings that extend at higher cruising speeds to further improve overall aerodynamics.
Robin Page, head of Design at Volvo Cars, said: “Our Concept Recharge represents a manifesto for the all-electric future of Volvo Cars, as well as a new type of vehicle.
“It displays new and modern proportions that go hand in hand with increased versatility and shows what technology can enable in terms of design.”
The Concept Recharge also reflects Volvo Cars’ safety ambitions for the coming years. A LiDAR sensor, built by technology company Luminar and a critical part of Volvo Cars’ plan for forthcoming safe autonomous drive technology, is placed on the roof to collect data on the environment around the car.
Page added: “With the Concept Recharge, we continue the rich roots of Volvo’s design DNA in a modern and fresh way as we move into our all-electric future.
“It represents everything we believe customers expect from a pure electric Volvo and we’re excited to take this philosophy into our next generation of cars.”