Is Volvo’s Electric EX60 Ready to Take on America?Jim Motavalli (Jim Motavalli)Volvo chose to debut its EX60 electric SUV to North America on May 18, in the bowels of New York’s Oculus World Trade Center. The car, first shown in Sweden back in January, was sequestered in a rectangular box, situated among upscale mall stores. The setting seemed appropriate, because the vehicle is aimed at upper-middle-class American consumers, with a starting price of $58,400 for the single-motor P6, a step up from America’s $50k median vehicle price.Moving up in the range, a dual-motor P10 will cost $60,750 as a base Plus, and $67,350 in Ultra form with a fully loaded list of standard features. The top-of-the-range P12 isn’t priced or available yet. The order book is open on the rest of the lineup, with the factory cranking in late summer and deliveries likely in early fall.The 2026 electric EX60 is four inches longer than the gas-powered XC60 it will eventually replace, with rear passengers benefiting the most. It will be built in Sweden for North America and Europe. It won’t be slotted in at Volvo’s plant in Ridgeville, South Carolina—plans there call for a new family-sized vehicle to launch in two or three years. A replacement for the smaller EX40 is also coming, but it hasn’t found a manufacturing home yet. Chinese sales or manufacture of the EX60 aren’t currently in the plans.The EX60 is a two-row SUV with an emphasis on range and fast charge times.Jim Motavalli (Jim Motavalli)Volvo chose not to highlight the EX60’s off-roading potential, or its performance characteristics. But, for the record, the top-of-the-range P12 should deliver zero to 60 mph in 3.8 seconds, and the P10 (available as Plus and Ultra) in 4.4. Both of those are dual-motor trims; the entry-level P6 (also Plus and Ultra) gets by on one.AdvertisementAdvertisementRange is definitely top of mind for Volvo’s EX60. The P12 with 21-inch tires is estimated at 400 miles on EPA testing cycles, and it’s 322 miles for the P10 AWD with 20-inch tires. The P6, also with 20-inchers, is likely to travel 306 miles. That’s a bit of a turnaround, because the single-motor versions of EVs often have greater range. Volvo is also proud of a 16-minute 10-to-80-percent charging time (adding up to 173 miles) at fast-charging stations, including NACS.The EX60, in side view, reveals its four extra inches over the XC60 gas model.Jim Motavalli (Jim Motavalli)Volvo declined to say much about the connection with Geely family electric brand Polestar, but the new EX60 shares the SPA3 platform with the upcoming Polestar 7. The EX60 looks somewhat similar to the Polestar 3, but there are only so many variations you can make on the basic rules of the SUV. The new Volvo design fights air resistance with flush, frameless doors, a smooth, grille-free prow, and tiny “shark fin” door handles.It is noted that during the roundtable discussion of the car, Volvo Cars President and CEO Håkan Samuelsson said that the SUV dominance trend has perhaps “gone too far” and that “lower cars” such as the brand’s traditional station wagons with more aerodynamic shapes could eventually return to the American market. “We are looking into it,” he said. “We may not have only SUVs five years from now.”But it’s SUVs right now. Samuelsson said at the unveiling that the EX60 is “the right electric car for the US market.” He said EVs won’t ascend because of subsidies, but because they will “offer something consumers want,” including fast charge times, long range, prices on the same level as comparable gas models, with great performance/utility. That’s undeniable, though this new Volvo will have plenty of lower-priced competition with comparable or near-comparable range. The Tesla Model Y starts under $40,000, with 321 miles available. The Chevy Equinox EV starts around $36,000, with 319 miles. Ah, you say, but the EX60 is definitely a cut above, with more luxury features.The interior is in muted earth tones.Jim Motavalli (Jim Motavalli)“It’s about the quality of the car, not just the price,” insisted Luis Rezende, president of Volvo Car Americas. The interior quality is definitely there. This being a Volvo, the cockpit on the P10 display vehicle was in muted and tasteful earth tones. It has recycled textiles built into its dash top, and a natural wood dashboard, according to Rekha Meena, the global head of color, material and finish design in a pre-unveiling walk-around. A central bin up front is useful. A free-floating 15.03-inch screen has a central place, and the driver gets an 11-inch display. Google is built in, with the Gemini AI assistant ready to do your bidding.AdvertisementAdvertisementBoth rear seats recline. And in the top trims, according to Gaurang Kalsaria, US head of future vehicles, parents who must have everything for their kids can get heated built-in booster seats. The top models also come with Nappa leather and a 28-speaker Bowers & Wilkins stereo, replacing the lesser 21-speaker Bose unit.The aforementioned Tesla Model Y is the best-selling car in the world, in part, because it has true global reach and a base in China. According to Anders Bell, chief engineering and technology officer at Volvo Cars, “There aren’t many truly global cars, and the EX60 could be one of them.” But that outcome doesn’t seem likely, because Samuelsson doesn’t see the model selling in China without substantial revisions. “The EX60 will be built in Sweden for the western world,” he said.By this fall, EX60s will be taking kids to school, quietly, all over America. It has a host of sterling qualities, if not a let’s-buy-it-today price. It will be very interesting to see what Volvo does, if anything, to replace the electric subcompact EX30 and EX30 Cross Country, which had a troubled two years (2025 and 2026) on the American market. That model had the right price—$35,000 to start—but was built in China and Belgium, which got it caught up in the Trump administration’s tariff wars. Building the successor in South Carolina might help with that problem, but don’t hold your breath.Hearst Owned (Hearst Owned)
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