► Volvo not ruling out an electric estate
► Still key to the brand.
► Should run on SPA2 platform
Electric SUVs are currently on trend for car makers and consumers alike, partly because of their high practicality, profit margins and powertrain packaging benefits – but that hasn’t stopped Volvo pondering estate. Although it’s committed to bringing us new electric SUVs such as the upcoming EX90, an upcoming electric wagon (as shown in our artist’s impression above) isn’t out of the question.
Falling demand on estates
The current S60 saloon and V60 estate are nearing the end of their life, and have been withdrawn from sale in the UK. ‘Appetite for our saloon and estate models has fallen to very low levels,’ says Volvo UK, as it ‘evolves and consolidates’ its line-up. The focus for now is on SUVs. But there are signs that a new estate is being planned.
Keeping the option open
Volvo CEO Jim Rowan says: ‘Can we do a nicely designed and intelligent wagon? Of course we can. Should we? Is there enough demand for it? We sell a lot more SUVs these days, and we need to look at the market intelligence we have. We’ll do a new EV every year for the next five years, so watch this space.’
Wagons aren’t out of the question
Global design chief Jeremy Offer says: ‘I think all the vehicles we currently have on the road kind of points the way to the sort of vehicles we will be designing, including the wagon and sedan. There is this feeling that exterior design is sort of secondary now to the user experience, but it’s absolutely not.’
What will it run on?
If an electric estate goes ahead, it’s likely to be underpinned by Volvo’s versatile Scalable Product Architecture 2. Electric power outputs can top 500bhp (as seen in the EX90) and twin-motor all-wheel-drive options and Lidar could be applied here for sophisticated driver assistance.