The arrival of the Scandinavian living room on wheels – that’s how Volvo names its first ever family minivan – was announced by the brand with an official trailer at the end of the summer, the official unveiling was supposed to take place on November 12. But the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, from which the first photos of the news leaked ahead of time, was against it.
The new Volvo EM90 will soon become part of the segment of luxury-oriented passenger vans, which Hyundai Staria or Lexus LM entered some time ago. And now the Swedish brand, which finally has a suitable technical basis from the Chinese concern Geely. It is no secret that the EM90 will be a blood sibling of the Zeekr 009 model with similar technology but a unique design.
The side panels of the body are very similar (okay, completely identical), but the front and rear are diametrically different. Volvo also has its own design of nineteen- and twenty-inch wheels. And the almost blinded front part of the body gives an idea of what technology will probably be hidden in the guts. A moment of tension… yes, electric!
Photo: Volvo
The designers also transferred the sleek elegance to the family MPV.
According to data from the Chinese authorities, the 3.2-ton EM90 has a single rear-mounted electric motor with a power output of 200 kW. We will see if the offer will be expanded in the future, the sister Zeekr 009 can produce up to 400 kW from two electric motors (which also drive all wheels). The maximum speed of the largest passenger Volvo is limited to 180 km/h, following the pattern of other models.
And the battery? The Geely concern uses nickel-manganese-cobalt technology and it will most likely be a 116kWh storage also shared with the “nine”. By the way, it can get an even bigger battery with a capacity of 140 kWh. However, the basic one promises a nice 702 kilometers of range (albeit according to the more benevolent Chinese methodology), and we’re still talking about a four-wheeler. The Volvo hatchback could therefore go even further on a single charge.
Photo: Zeekr
And here is the donor Zeekr 009. Except for the hips, they are not so similar, what do you say?
The only thing that has been kept secret so far is the cabin. But we expect to find a lot of identical parts with the Chinese minivan here as well. It is available to customers with three rows of seats in a 2 + 2 + 2 arrangement, or a more luxurious concept with four seats and a huge portion of space for all passengers can be purchased. There will certainly be an army of safety and assistance systems (Zeekr offers up to 30 of them) and advanced online connectivity features that run on the Android Automotive platform.
We should find out all the remaining details at the November 12 launch event. It is already clear that the Chinese plant will take care of the production and the sale of the car will start in the local market. It is not yet confirmed whether the EM90 will also be offered in Europe, but if it is, it won’t be until the end of next year at the earliest.
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2023-10-17 06:04:40
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