Volvo

Volvo Cars has announced plans to launch its new Ride Pilot unsupervised autonomous driving feature to customers in the state of California, and it will make its debut in an all-new, all-electric flagship SUV set to make its debut later this year.

Volvo Cars announced to day that Jim Rowan would be taking the helm as CEO & President, but it’s Jim’s background in EVs and autonomous driving tech that should make the rest of the industry sit up and take notice: Volvo is serious about self-driving cars.

Today, Volvo Group, Daimler Truck, and Volkswagen’s AG heavy-truck business the Traton Group announced the official signing of a joint venture to install and operate a high-performance public charging network for electric, heavy-duty, long-haul trucks and buses across Europe.

Volvo CE is giving us a closer look into its research and development process, showing off an autonomous battery-powered prototype construction vehicle that’s currently in the works. Even more interestingly, the in-development Volvo LX03 also originated as part of a collaboration with the LEGO Group, making it the very first Technic set to become an actual machine.

Swedish automaker Volvo is rolling out its latest over-the-air (OTA) software update to its all-electric vehicles to help improve range and efficiency in multiple ways. This includes smart battery management, a preconditioning timer, and a new Range Assistant app to offer drivers advice and assistance in achieving max battery efficiency. Volvo Cars Subsidiary Polestar is rolling out a similar OTA update to its EVs, including the Range Assistant app.

As electric vehicles look to gain an even larger portion of the automobile market in 2021, consumers will look at a number of factors as they choose to go electric. One major specification on any EV data sheet is the estimated range i.e. the amount of miles your new vehicle can travel on a single charge. Naturally, you’re going to want the most battery for your buck. Below is a list of the current EV options for 2021 sorted by longest range.

Following a recent report outlining the future of sustainable luxury materials, Volvo Cars has committed to outfitting all of its upcoming electric vehicles with leather-free materials. This ethical stance by the legacy automaker comes from an aspiration to promote animal welfare and sustainability, by using recycled materials that remain high-quality.

Following a pilot program in Southern California lasting nearly a year, Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE) publicly showcased the capabilities and quietness of its battery electric construction equipment. The results of the pilot were announced live in Los Angeles today alongside a streaming event that featured a live demonstration of Volvo CE’s ECR25 Electric compact excavator.

In a refreshing display of transparency, Polestar has publicly shared details of the carbon footprint of its EV models compared to ICE vehicles. With this data, Polestar looks to better educate consumers and build trust as it pertains to emissions.

Volvo Car USA recently visited the FDNY in Mahwah, New Jersey, to donate a fully electric XC40 Recharge to the department for post-accident safety training. While first responders like the FDNY are no strangers to helping safely remove citizens from damaged vehicles, BEVs present new safety measures to be aware of to keep both EV passengers and firefighters safe.

Volvo Group, Daimler Truck, and the TRATON GROUP have signed a non-binding agreement to implement and operate a high-performance public charging network for electric heavy-duty long-haul trucks throughout Europe. The agreement was signed to accelerate the growth of charging infrastructure and support the EU’s shift toward climate-neutral transportation.

To represent its paradigm shift in design and commitment to selling 100% electric vehicles by 2030, Volvo has shared its Concept Recharge as what the automaker is calling “a manifesto” for its next generation of EVs. The Volvo Concept Recharge introduces new design language and technologies that will be present on production EVs from the Swedish automaker moving forward.

Volvo has announced that its forthcoming XC90 electric SUV will reach consumers in 2022 with Lidar as a standard safety feature for all models. With the state-of-the-art Lidar sensors developed by Luminar, Volvo hopes to set a new standard in automobile safety. Volvo also plans to include other safety features to avoid future collisions, as well as pave the way for potential autonomous driving capabilities.

Volvo has announced a new 50 GWh battery cell gigafactory coming to Europe in partnership with Northvolt.

Swedish automaker Polestar has announced that its upcoming performance SUV, the Polestar 3, will be built in the US and targeted at American consumers. The all-electric SUV will be manufactured at the Volvo Cars production center in South Carolina and supported by retail “Spaces” across the US.

Volvo Cars has announced that its Torslanda site in Sweden has become the company’s first climate neutral car manufacturing plant. The automaker is calling this achievement a significant step toward its goal of making its global manufacturing network climate neutral by 2025.

The Electrification Coalition delivered a letter to Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer Wednesday, backed by 58 businesses, including Rivian, Volvo, EVgo, and Arrival, to name a few. The letter urges the governor to join the Multi-State Medium- and Heavy-Duty Zero Emission Vehicle Memorandum of Understanding, which would expedite the electrification of trucks and buses throughout the state.

The “long-term” partnership announced today is between Volvo Autonomous Solutions and self-driving startup Aurora. The two plan to jointly develop globally-leading autonomous transport solutions at scale, beginning with North America.

Auto manufacturer Geely plans to launch a new premium EV brand called Zeekr in China. Zeekr will exist as a separate brand and marketing strategy under the Geely umbrella. The automaker reportedly hopes to develop premium vehicles like Mercedes-Benz to compete with the likes of Tesla.

We got a limited look at the Volvo C40 Recharge today at the Volvo Cars Manhattan showroom. That’s where the single US C40 currently is residing before its trip to Boston this weekend. Here are our first thoughts.

Volvo is today unveiling the C40 Recharge electric SUV, the Swedish automaker’s second all-electric vehicle and the first built from the ground up to be electric.