Volvo has mounted ‘lower than 10’ hearth danger EVs two months after issuing security recall for 10,365 UK automobiles – sluggish supply of components from China in charge
Owners of Volvo’s smallest electric car have been unable to fully charge their vehicles for four months due to a fire risk warning that’s yet to be resolved for 99.9 per cent of affected models.
This has left over 10,000 UK motorists unable to extract the full range from their EVs while also gambling on using cars that could potentially catch on fire.
In December, the Swedish car firm – which is synonymous with vehicle safety – told drivers of its £33,000 EX30 electric SUV to not charge above 70 per cent. This is because it had identified instances of battery overheating that could potentially trigger blazes in ‘rare cases’.
In February, it issued a formal safety recall for 40,323 examples of the EV sold across global markets to replace parts linked to the problem. Of these, Volvo Cars UK confirmed to Daily Mail and This is Money that 10,365 are on Britain’s roads.
But some two months after owners received recall notices in the post, fewer than 0.1 per cent of the affected cars have been repaired due to delayed delivery of parts from China.
The car maker says ‘less than 10’ UK EX30s have so far been inspected and fixed.
A Volvo spokesperson told us it has ‘been working tirelessly’ to access the parts needed and confirmed that the first components arrived in Britain in recent days.
Just 0.1% of UK Volvo EX30 electric cars recalled over battery overheating and potential fire risks have been inspected and repaired some four months after the issue first came to light
‘It takes time for parts to arrive from the other side of the world,’ the spokesperson told Daily Mail and This is Money.
‘We have fixed less than 10 cars because the first parts only arrived last week, and it takes time to contact customers, schedule a suitable time for them to bring their cars in, and find space in the workshop to replace the parts.
‘Now that the parts are coming in every day, we expect repairs to ramp up from this week.’
Affected customers will be contacted as soon as parts become available at their local Volvo dealerships so their EX30 can be booked in to have them fitted, they added.
However, with some 10,365 EVs to process, it will likely take some time to clear every vehicle that’s been recalled.
Owners of the Single Motor Extended Range and Twin Motor Performance EX30 – which both use a 69kWh battery pack – produced between 2024 and 2026 have been told not to charge the battery over 70 per cent until their vehicles have been scrutinised by the car firm.
Volvo stated that the chances of the ‘rare issue happening is significantly reduced below this level of charge’.
With customers only able to charge to 70 per cent, the range of the cars ‘Extended Range’ model is likely to fall from a claimed 295 miles to around 207 miles, while the 280-mile ‘Twin Motor Performance’ will only be good for an estimated 196 miles.
Volvo says that customers covering higher daily mileages have been offered charging vouchers to cover the cost of having to plug-in at public devices en route, having been unable to fully-charge their EX30s using cheaper domestic tariffs at home.
In ‘exceptional cases’ where drivers are reliant on their Volvos to cover long repeat journeys, some motorists have been provided replacement courtesy cars.
The recall, which will come at a significant cost to the car maker, could put a severe dent in the brand’s reputation for vehicle safety as well as its finances
Recall to come at a big cost
The warning comes amid ongoing concerns about the difficulty putting out EV fires, which typically burn hotter and longer than blazes in traditional petrol and diesel cars.
A spokesperson for the car firm told us in February that Volvo will ‘inspect and replace affected battery modules, free-of-charge, on all cars within the scope of the recall’.
They added: ‘We aim to fix all affected cars as soon as possible.’
The move, which will come at a significant cost to the car maker, is likely to put a severe dent in the brand’s reputation for vehicle safety as well as its finances.
Sam Fiorani, vice president for global vehicle forecasting at research firm AutoForecast Solutions, said the importance of the EX30 to Volvo – which was launched to go head-to-head with new Chinese EV rivals launching across Europe – means the car maker ‘has to get it [the recall] right’ to protect its long-standing reputation for safety.
This includes its optimistic ‘Zero 2020’ target, where it aims to have no recorded road deaths in its vehicles commencing from six years ago.
The Swedish car firm – which is synonymous with vehicle safety – originally issued a warning to EX30 owners in December to not charge them above 70% due to ‘fire risks’
The Single Motor Extended Range and Twin Motor Performance versions of the EX30 with the 69kWh battery produced between 2024 and 2026 are affected
Andy Palmer, an industry veteran who as Nissan CEO oversaw the launch of the first ‘mainstream’ EV – the Leaf – in 2010 said Volvo has less room for missteps than rivals as its reputation for safety is central to its identity.
‘Volvo can’t afford a safety issue because that strikes at the heart of their brand,’ he said.
Reuters reported that new replacement battery modules could cost Volvo $195million (approximately £144million), excluding logistics and repair costs at a time when its Chinese owner Geely has ordered a $1.9billion savings drive.
Volvo said the calculations were ‘speculative in nature’, and that the auto maker was in talks with its official battery supplier, Shandong Geely Sunwoda Power Battery Company, which is part of a joint venture with the parent group.
Matthew Owen an insurance agent who is one of the 10,440 UK owners of the EX30, said he chose the EV for its range and Volvo’s safety reputation.
He told Reuters that Volvo must take responsibility for putting the issue right because it had ‘produced a car that is dangerous’.
