Volvo EX30 to become a best-seller as the first models reach EU buyers
Don’t underestimate the Volvo EX30’s small size. As the first EX30 models reach European buyers, Volvo sees it as a best-seller over the next few years.
In June, Volvo unveiled its smallest and cheapest SUV, the EX30 (see our review). The Swedish automaker calls the electric SUV a “cornerstone” of its EV plans.
Starting at $34,950 (36,000 euros), it will be one of the most affordable electric cars on the market. With “above-expected order rates,” Volvo will build the EX30 at its Ghent, Belgium plant (in addition to China) to meet the growing demand in Europe for low-cost EVS.
Although EU production isn’t expected to begin until 2025, Volvo revealed the first EX30 models were handed over to customers last month.
In December, Volvo began deliveries in Belgium, The Netherlands, Spain, and Portugal in one of the most highly anticipated EV rollouts.
The company said the first EX30 deliveries mark a “significant milestone” in the company’s growth and EV strategies. Volvo expects the EX30 to become “one of your best sellers in the coming years.”
Volvo expects the EX30 to become a best-seller.
With “above-expected order rates,” the EX30 is drawing significant attention. Despite a slowdown in December, Volvo hit a new sales record in 2023. Volvo’s EV sales were up 70% last year, with over 113K purely electric vehicles sold.
Volvo’s EVs accounted for 16% of total sales, up from 10.9% in 2022. However, Volvo expects to turn things up this year with a full year of EX30 sales.
CEO Jim Rowan said he expects “reasonably decent volumes” in 2024 with new models launching in key segments.
Volvo’s first three-row electric SUV, the EX90, will go on sale soon. It will start at $76,695 in the US as a direct rival to the Rivian R1S and Mercedes EQS.
In China, Volvo is also launching its first electric minivan, the EM90. The EV minivan features a “Scandinavian living room” and up to 450 mi CLTC range.
Rowan confirmed the company is “not seeing any order cancellations or any slowdown in order intake” last month when asked about the “reported slowdown.”
Volvo Car USA spokesperson Russell Datz told Electrek Volvo EX30 deliveries are still on track to begin in the US this summer.
The electric SUV will be available in two powertrains: Single Motor Extended Range and Twin Motor Performance. The extended range model features up to 275 miles range while the Performance variant gets 265 miles.
Meanwhile, with 422 hp and 400 lb-ft of torque, the performance version is Volvo’s quickest car yet. It can go from 0 to 60 mph in 3.4 seconds.
You can learn more about the EX30 and reserve your model on Volvo’s website. Volvo says a dealer will help finalize the process ahead of deliveries.
Electrek’s Take
Volvo is launching the EX30 at the perfect time. Demand for affordable electric cars continues building.
In the US, two of the cheapest EVs, the Chevy Bolt and Nissan LEAF, are due for replacements. GM already stopped building the low-cost Bolt at the end of 2023 (although you can still get it for under $20K while in stock).
The Bolt EVs replacement isn’t due out until next year, giving the EX30 a full sales year to get ahead.
The same situation is happening in Europe. Several automakers are targetting the low-cost EV market, including Stellantis with the Citroen e-C3. The electric car starts at around 23,000 euros (24,500) as one of Europe’s most affordable EVs.
Volkswagen also plans to launch its $27,000 (25,000 euro) EV, the ID 2all. However, a recent local media report suggests VW may delay ID 2all volume production by another year, giving Volvo a bigger window to expand.
What do you guys think? Will the Volvo EX30 become a best-seller? Let us know what you think in the comments.
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Paris’ bike-share system, Vélib has long been considered one of the shining success stories of urban micromobility. With a massive fleet of over 20,000 pedal and electric-assist bicycles around Paris, the service has helped millions of residents and tourists get around the City of Light without needing a car or scooter. But lately, a growing problem is threatening to knock the wheels off this urban mobility marvel: theft and joyriding.
According to city officials and the service operator, more than 600 Vélib bikes are now going missing every single week. That’s over 30 bikes a day simply vanishing from the system – some stolen outright, others taken on “joy rides” and never returned.
“At the moment we’re missing 3,000 bikes,” explained Sylvain Raifaud, head of the Agemob company that currently operates the Velib system. That’s nearly 15% of over 20,000 Vélib bikes across Paris.
The sticky-fingered culprits aren’t necessarily professional thieves or organized crime rings. Instead, they’re often regular users who treat the shared bikes like disposable toys.
The city estimates that many people have figured out how to pry the bikes out of the system’s parking docks, unlocking one for a casual cruise and then ditching it somewhere far from a docking station.
Once pried free, the bikes are technically usable for the next 24 hours until their automatic locking feature kicks in. At that point, the bikes are often simply abandoned. Some end up in alleyways. Others get tossed in rivers. A few just disappear completely.
And since the bikes are intended to be parked at their many docking stations around the city, they don’t have GPS chips, further complicating recovery of “liberated” bikes.
The issue started small but has grown into more than an inconvenience – it’s beginning to undermine the entire purpose of the service. With bikes going missing at such a high rate, many Vélib docking stations are left empty, especially during rush hours.
Riders looking for a quick commute or a convenient hop across town are increasingly finding themselves without available bikes, or having to walk long distances to find a functioning one.
That kind of unreliability chips away at user confidence and threatens to drive potential riders back into cars, cabs, or other less sustainable forms of transport at a time when Paris has already made great strides to dramatically reduce car usage in the city.
The losses are financially painful, too. Replacing stolen or vandalized bikes isn’t cheap, and the resources spent on tracking down missing equipment or reinforcing anti-theft measures are stretching thin. Vélib has faced theft and vandalism issues before, especially during its early years, but this latest surge has officials sounding the alarm with renewed urgency.
Officials acknowledge that there’s no easy fix. Paris, like many cities with bike-share systems, walks a fine line between accessibility and accountability. Part of what makes Vélib so successful is its ease of use and widespread availability. But those same features make it vulnerable to misuse – especially when enforcement is limited and the consequences for abuse are minimal.
The timing of the problem is especially unfortunate. In recent years, Paris has seen impressive results in reducing car traffic, expanding bike lanes, and promoting cycling as a key part of its sustainable transport strategy. Vélib is a cornerstone of that plan. But if the system becomes too unreliable, it risks losing the very people it was designed to serve.
Meanwhile, as Parisians increasingly find themselves staring at empty docks, the challenge for the city and Vélib will be to restore confidence in the system without making it harder to use. That means striking the right balance between freedom and responsibility, between open access and protection against abuse.
In a city where cycling is supposed to be the future of mobility, losing thousands of bikes to joyriders and sticky fingers isn’t just frustrating; it’s unsustainable.
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