Volvo’s Latest Electric Revolution, and a First Taste of Drone Delivery
Can the EX60 succeed despite the EX90’s struggles?
Good morning from the past, writing this ahead of time as I wing my way back from Sweden. The sun’s just peeking up over the clouds to hit me in the eye through my plane’s icy little window, but I’ve already been on the go for hours, making the long journey home after just over a day in and around the lovely city of Stockholm. There, I got an early look at Volvo’s next and (hopefully) greatest EV yet, the EX60. More on that in just a moment.
It’s a brutally cold one back on the home front, temperatures hovering well below zero. This has been a proper winter, our first in a long time, and while I’m hearing more and more people say they’re already done with it. Personally, I’m loving it -- though I confess I am getting a mite bit sick of the heating bills.
Anyhow, it’s been an eventful week, and I have a few fun features to share with you. Let’s get to it.
Volvo’s EX60 is the latest revolutionary electric SUV
If you’re in the market for a mid-sized electric SUV later this year, hoo boy, did you time things just right. BMW’s iX3 has already dazzled me, and that’s not far off from dealers, while the Mercedes-Benz GLC also looks set to impress. Now, they’ve got some competition from Volvo in the form of the EX60.
As you can guess by the name, it’s meant to be the all-electric alternative to the XC60, Volvo kindly not throwing its entire nomenclature to the wind as the brand soldiers on through this EV transition. I spoke with freshly returned CEO Håkan Samuelsson before the event, whose enthusiasm for battery-powered vehicles is very nearly as strong as it was the last time he held that title.
That said, he now acknowledges that this EV transition is going to take a little longer than he’d initially hoped.
“We need probably now a bridge longer than we thought before for America and China,” he said the morning before unveiling the car. “Let’s wait for the customer.”
So, he’ll be patient, but he’s intent on proving that EVs can go toe-to-toe with internal combustion when they’re priced right, have enough range, and recharge quickly.
He says the EX60 has the right stuff, and a maximum range of 400 miles plus a whopping 670 horsepower certainly sounds impressive. But while Samuelsson repeatedly cited the Model Y as proof that there’s demand for electric SUVs, that thing can be had for as little as $40,000. The EX60, meanwhile, will be priced around $60,000. Worth that not insubstantial delta? I was impressed by what I saw in Sweden, but I’ll need to drive the thing to know for sure. Hopefully soon.
Health from above
I made quite a few trips down to the greater Dallas Fort Worth area for a number of filming opportunities in 2025. In my last journey to the Lone Star State, I made a little detour up to Rowlett, a town that features a curiously oversized red chair that looked all the world like an Adirondack chair to my Yankee eyes, but I figure they’ve got a different name for it down there.
Anyhow, I wasn’t there for the seating. I was there to get me a burrito delivered via drone. Yes, I got some decidedly low-glam Chipotle sent to me through the air. At first blush, this seems like a ridiculously and unnecessarily complicated way of delivering food -- until you consider that the alternative in a town like Rowlett is for someone to roll around in a 4,000-pound vehicle that’s motivated by the controlled explosion of a highly flammable liquid.
I understand why people’s first reaction to this tech would be negative. There are plenty of reasons to hate, but dig a little deeper, and you’ll see Zipline has not only proven itself safe and reliable but has also saved countless lives in the process of building its business. It’s a fascinating and rapidly exploding business segment, and yeah, the burrito was pretty good.
Well, as good as Chipotle can get, anyway.
That’s it from me for now. In the week ahead, I’m blissfully travel-free, and I can’t wait to see just how much snow Mother Nature can pile on. She’s been stingy of late. I’m also looking forward to getting my hands dirty in any number of personal projects that just didn’t happen over the holidays. But, I already have many, many exciting drives on the books for February and March. More on those soon. Until then, be well, do good, and keep warm.