Long-term report: Long journeys are no stress for our Volvo XC40 Recharge

Electric cars have been getting quite a lot of criticism in recent months. It seems like some in the public domain have a vendetta against these vehicles, and are set out to ruin their existence.

This constant EV bashing seems to have had a small impact as well, as though EV sales are still on the rise, the rate of growth has slowed. In the first six months of 2023, EVs accounted for 16.1 per cent share of new car sales, only a small increase on the 14.4 per cent share for the same period in 2022.

I’d never try and pull the wool over someone’s eyes and claim that electric cars are faultless and should be adopted right now by everyone. But I believe they’re overwhelmingly better than petrol and diesel cars from a day-to-day perspective and don’t deserve the recent criticism they’ve been getting.

Anyway, mini-rant over, because in the last month ‘EV life’ has become the most enjoyable yet in ‘my’ Volvo XC40 Recharge. I’ve had several electric long-termers, and occasionally the public charging infrastructure has been frustrating. But, without tempting fate, it feels like I’ve got the grasp of electric car charging.

Quite often, the cars themselves are great, it’s the chargers that have let the experience down. I’ve often experimented with different charging firms (and there are lots), but got mixed results when it came to reliability and charging speed.

But thanks to Ionity – interestingly, a joint venture charging firm funded by some of the largest car firms, including BMW, Ford, Hyundai Mercedes and the Volkswagen Group – charging has become easy.

You can use the Volvo’s in-built Google touchscreen to search for chargers, and it’s Ionity chargers that I look for every time now. I’ve done several longer trips recently and have charged exclusively with this company. This might sound like an advertisement, but good charging companies are rarer than you’d hope, and when a company – in this case, Ionity – gets it right, they deserve praise.

Using other EVs and chargers, I’ve learned to take the ‘max charging speed’ and ‘it only takes X minutes for a full charge’ claims with a pinch of salt. But the combination of Ionity and this Volvo means I’ve been getting exactly what is claimed.

The maximum charging speed of the XC40 Recharge is supposedly 150kW, but I’ve seen the chargers pulling slightly more than that into the car, which is quite an achievement. It’s meant that around half an hour is enough to get the battery from 10 to 80 per cent charge.

I’ve still been a bit disappointed by the overall range of the XC40, however. It’s not the most efficient of EVs, and a fairly big 77kWh battery resulting in a real-world range of around 200 miles isn’t great. Confusingly, this XC40 is now the older version, with Volvo since revealing a new model that has received a range of tweaks to enhance its efficiency. Though first deliveries of the revised XC40 are yet to commence, Volvo is claiming up to 333 miles, and we reckon a real-world range of 275 miles would be possible – a noticeable improvement.

Given how well-suited the XC40 is to long-distance driving, this extended range will certainly be a big benefit. Volvo has always been known for its safety kit, and its driver assists remain some of the best available. The XC40’s adaptive cruise control is brilliant, not feeling as rushed or aggressive as others in the way it accelerates and brakes automatically.

While there’s quite a bit of road noise generated from this car’s large 20-inch alloy wheels, the general comfort levels are excellent, with supportive seats offering plenty of adjustment as well.

Next up on my task with the XC40 is to explore its practicality capabilities. I’ll report back next month….