How has Volvo made the EX30 so cheap?

When new cars are revealed, it’s quite common to look at the price and go ‘how much?’. That happened with the Volvo EX30 – but, unusually, it was because the price is (whisper it) surprisingly low.

Now let’s be clear: this is all relative. At £33,795, we’re not in affordable car territory here. Volvo hasn’t suddenly turned into Dacia. But still, that’s a hugely competitive price for a compact but well-proportioned bespoke electric car with Volvo’s popular, premium design and a decent level of standard kit. 

It’s close to what you’d pay for a similar combustion-engined premium small SUV. And consider this: you could pay more for a Vauxhall Corsa Electric, Jeep Avenger or a Kia Niro EV. You actually question if Volvo could have charged more without really hurting demand.

There are some caveats, not least that the headline-grabbing price is for the entry-level model that features a cheaper LFP battery and offers a relatively meagre 214-mile range – substantially less than many of those cars mentioned above. You’ll pay a hefty £5000 more for the bigger battery.

That price is in part down to some of Volvo’s neat design touches, which are driven not only by reducing cost but also by increasing sustainability and maximising interior space. So the decision to use a single soundbar across the dashboard in place of six door-mounted speaker reduces the number of parts and amount of wiring needed, and creates space in the doors.

Moving the window switches from the door panels to the centre console also reduces the wiring needed. And removing the driver info display and merging it with the central touchscreen – a Tesla-esque decision that might raise some eyebrows – also reduces parts and cost. Still, when you sit inside, it doesn’t feel like those decisions were made purely to keep the price down.