Volvo has announced it will launch no fewer than 13 new cars by the end of 2030 in what is set to be the biggest and most ambitious product offensive in the Swedish brand’s history. And bosses have hinted that estate cars are part of that plan. “Our ambition is to be the leading premium car brand,” said Volvo CEO Håkan Samuelsson as he outlined the company’s new strategy. A key part of the new product plan is a more regionalised range of cars; seven of the new models are for western markets including the US, Europe and the UK, with the remaining six just for China. The plan includes both hybrids and EVs. Volvo hasn’t confirmed yet what these each of these new models will be, but did announce that its next electric car will launching in 2027 and will utilise the capability of the new SPA3 architecture – the uncompromising, highly flexible EV platform that underpins the Volvo EX60 SUV – to be used for low cars, like saloons and, you guessed it, estate cars. Thomas Ingenlath, who recently returned to the role of Volvo’s chief designer after leading sister brand Polestar, promised a new concept will be revealed in spring next year to preview the next era of the brand’s design. He didn’t give much away, but images of the classic Volvo P1800 ES shooting brake estate from the Sixties were showing in the background as the design boss talked about what’s to come. Ingenlath also hinted at how the brand’s history and heritage will inspire some of its new design direction, and spoke of a desire to bring back physical buttons – something more recent Volvos have been severely lacking. On top of that, when asked about the possibility for a new estate car, Volvo’s chief technical officer Alexander Petrofski said: “I think it would be fantastic if a brand like Volvo could bring back wagons, so stay tuned, more to come.” The timing would be ideal too, as Volvo – universally recognised as the king of estate cars – celebrates its centenary next year. Plus, the new product plan will see the brand expand into new segments that it is not currently active in, and the electric estate car sector is one of these. The design boss explained that while skateboard platforms that many EVs sit on work well for electric SUVs, they had limits for making less high-riding models. Ingenlath said: “The limits were just recently very much displayed when Ferrari launched the Luce. You can see how difficult it is for a sports car company to deal with electrification and them having just a skateboard architecture. There definitely was a mixed feedback on that result…” However, with the SPA3 platform, Ingenlath says Volvo doesn’t have any such problems and can create “really attractive proportioned low cars, and we will fully embrace it and have very exciting products coming up for that”. He continued: “We have the ambition to add to our history some more legendary cars and car designs coming, and with the product line-up that we’re building here, I'm really hopeful that we manage to add to this.” Elsewhere, one of the models that we do know is coming is a new ‘sizable electric D-segment SUV’ for the American market, which should also use the SPA3 architecture and will need to sit in between the EX60 that just launched and the larger, seven-seater Volvo EX90. Petrol-powered models for the western markets are going to be based on the SPA2 platform, which the Volvo XC60 and XC90 use. The pair were updated this week with a brand-new ‘long-range plug-in hybrid’ powertrain that delivers a class-leading zero-emission driving range of up to 124 miles. However, Volvo confirmed it’s already working on new, even more advanced third-generation hybrids as part of its latest product strategy. The six new models for China will be developed in collaboration with Volvo’s parent company Geely, using shared platforms, a dedicated tech stack and a shared supply chain, allowing these cars to be developed cost-efficiently. They’ll also be delivered with “true China speed” to keep pace with the competition over there. Volvo already has two China-only models: the EM90 MPV and the XC70 SUV. However, even though Volvo is heading in a new direction with its product plan and business strategies, chief strategy and product officer Michael Fleiss gave an assurance that the brand’s core principles will not change – particularly its focus on design, safety and quality standards. Our dealer network has 1,000s of great value new cars in stock and available now right across the UK. Find your new car… Get the latest car news in your inbox, for FREE! Sign up to the Auto Express email newsletter...
