Volvo to be all electric

[MichaelB]

Electric engines are a frequent topic of discussion at E-R forum so this announcement should be of interest. Volvo announced that in two years, every car it manufactures will use an electric motor. https://www.media.volvocars.com/us/en-us/media/pressreleases/210058/volvo-cars-to-go-all-electric

Volvo Cars, the premium car maker, has announced that every Volvo it launches from 2019 will have an electric motor, marking the historic end of cars that only have an internal combustion engine (ICE) and placing electrification at the core of its future business.
./.
Volvo Cars will introduce a portfolio of electrified cars across its model range, embracing fully electric cars, plug in hybrid cars and mild hybrid cars.

 

[Midpack]

I didn't know Volvo even had any production hybrids, but evidently they do. Seems like a radical change, but I'm not buying a Volvo anyway, so I can watch from the sidelines.

 

[braumeister]

Volvo was on the ropes for a while, but since they were bought by the Chinese firm Geely, they have been coming back stronger than ever.

Great cars, just expensive.

 

[Rustic23]

As the major auto makers leap into the electric car business, I believe this will have an adverse effect of Tesla stock. Only question is how much.

 

[Dawg52]

Worst car I have ever owned. Bought a brand new one in the 80's and it ran fine for 3 years then started dying mid-stream. Got towed in twice. Before the cell phone days and had to go knocking on doors to borrow a phone. Anyway....had electrical problems that they never fully figured out. Had to trade it in for something more reliable.

 

[Rustic23]

Bought a 1980 244 when we were in Germany. Had it for 8 years. The starter switch/wire had trouble within the first three weeks. After that nothing other than oil change and tires. It did have a lousy AC, but hey the Sweeds did not need AC. I think it is different now. Neighbor has a new one, and it is his third. He says they get a new one about every five to eight years.

 

[ERD50]

I'm not sure everyone (including me!) is clear on what they are saying there (and it may be intentionally worded to make you think they are going all-electric), but they include even "mild hybrids" as being "electrified", and not relying solely on an ICE (which means they do rely on an ICE, just not 'solely')!

And when they say "every Volvo it launches from 2019", I don't think that is the same as saying "every car they sell in 2019", is it? I think they mean new models? Well, some car models have been around for decades.

Ahh, here they say "in the future", with no date specified...

This means that there will in future be no Volvo cars without an electric motor, as pure ICE cars are gradually phased out and replaced by ICE cars that are enhanced with electrified options.

Volvo Cars will introduce a portfolio of electrified cars across its model range, embracing fully electric cars, plug in hybrid cars and mild hybrid cars.

And a "mild hybrid" can be very mild - nothing more than turning the alternator off when accelerating, and using it as a small motor to boost acceleration, using power from the regular starting battery.


To the extent that this helps mileage and the environment, it's all good (though of course, it is very questionable if plug in and full electrics are really good for the environment). But the copy seems a bit slanted to me.

-ERD50

 

[walkinwood]

Nice headlines, but Volvo is a bit player in the car industry.

 

[Texas Proud]

I am with ERD50 on this....

A big announcement that makes it seem like it is more than it really is...

IIRC, Chevy had a very mild hybrid car a few years ago... had an electric motor to help accelerate it, but the increase in gas mileage was not that great...


Plus, from what I think ERD50 has been saying for awhile, and I kinda agree, is that Hybrids are looking like the best option... and it looks like Volvo is jumping in to Hybrids more than electric....


So, my point being... 'going in all electric' is a stmt that is not supported by the story....

 

[Totoro]

Yup, it's not a watershed moment, but still reinforces the direction the world is taking. Also of note this is Volvo cars, not trucks.

One eyebrow raiser for me was diesel plugin hybrids, that just doesn't make sense to me ..

 

[Totoro]

And when they say "every Volvo it launches from 2019", I don't think that is the same as saying "every car they sell in 2019", is it? I think they mean new models? Well, some car models have been around for decades.

From the wiki page it seems that their oldest currently selling model dates from 2011. So by 2025 they'll indeed probably still be selling good old gas guzzlers.

 

[Alan]

France have announced they will ban the sale of ICE only cars by 2040

https://www.theguardian.com/busines...-emmanuel-macron-volvo?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other


From the same article Norway have a similar target target but by 2025.

Norway, which has the highest penetration of electric cars in the world, has set a target of only allowing sales of 100% electric or plug-in hybrid cars by 2025.

 

[Koolau]

Not sure this is such a big deal having electric motors in every car 2019 and beyond. A friend of mine had a Volvo, ca. 1962 and it had at least THREE electric motors. It had an electric fan for the heater, it had electric wipers (IIRC) and it had a starter motor - that's where the troubles began. My friend owned the 3 cylinder 2 cycle engine (mix oil and gasoline into the tank). He ran it out of gas but insisted on trying to start it (apparently, he didn't check to see if it had fuel.) No gas means no oil and he burnt up the engine which was expensive. Once fixed, he parked it under a tree which promptly fell on his car. I think he finally got the message. Something in the cosmos did not want him in that car.

To Alan's point about countries specifying what vehicular power plants will be mandated by a certain date, I've always thought this was foolish. Better to state the intended "goals" (fleet fuel mileage, or fleet pollution targets, etc.) than to specify how such things must be done.

Imagine France in 2040. Probably every one of their nuke plants will be beyond their service life - they'll be simply radioactive waste lands that no one knows what to do with. All electric rates will include horrendous legacy costs of figuring out how to get rid of these unloved nuke dinosaurs. Suddenly, everyone will expect to "plug in" and the windmills and solar panels will not be up to the job of replacing several million barrels of oil per day. The other issue is that France (or any other country) does not exist in a vacuum (all evidence to the contrary, heh, heh.) Mandating in one country may effectively put smaller car manufacturers out of business or at least reduce the countries where they can sell (possibly far superior) products.

I laughed my @$$ off back when Calif. went back on it's first zero-emissions mandate. Turned out that mandating something into law doesn't actually make it happen or even suddenly make it possible (at least given the lead time and current technology.) I'm not a luddite on this subject. I'm all for lower emissions, better fuel efficiency and even a smaller carbon foot print where it makes sense. But picking "winners and losers" has always been a fools errand in my humble opinion. YMMV of course.

 

[Bamaman]

I was talking to my nephew the other day, and he's driving a Lexus ES hybrid. Says he absolutely loves it and it gets about 44 mpg on the open highway.

I understand that our $1.87 per gallon gasoline takes some of the value out of hybrids, however such low fuel prices are not permanent. Hybrid gas/electric motors are the future of the car industry, and those in the business may just get used to it. Volvo is just ahead of some of the other manufacturers in going 100% hybrid and full electric on vehicles.

Owners that jumped on the Prius bandwagon early have a different mentality. They go around our town trying to run on batteries all the time--or as often as they can. They spend very little on gasoline. Since they require such little maintenance, their Toyota dealers seldom see them back in the dealership. Rather than trade every 3 years, hybrid owners run the wheels off their vehicles and then they pass them on to their kids before buying another hybrid.


Right now, I guess they could be considered a cult of sorts--albeit a Green Cult. New car dealers would like to see hybrid owners a little more often so they could do some business with them.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Anyway....had electrical problems that they never fully figured out. Had to trade it in for something more reliable.

Did Volvo use the same electrical system as MG? You know "Lucas Electrics" who over the years have had some wonderful catch phrases...

The Lucas motto: "Get home before dark."

Lucas denies having invented darkness. But they still claim "sudden, unexpected darkness"

Lucas--inventor of the first intermittent wiper.

Lucas--inventor of the self-dimming headlamp.

The three-position Lucas switch--DIM, FLICKER and OFF.

The other three switch settings--SMOKE, SMOLDER and IGNITE.

The original anti-theft devices--Lucas Electric products.

 

[braumeister]

Joe Lucas -- Prince of Darkness

Don't forget the acronym
Loose Unsoldered Connections And Splices

 

[Totoro]

Imagine France in 2040. Probably every one of their nuke plants will be beyond their service life - they'll be simply radioactive waste lands that no one knows what to do with. All electric rates will include horrendous legacy costs of figuring out how to get rid of these unloved nuke dinosaurs.

Is this tongue-in-cheek or serious?

The other issue is that France (or any other country) does not exist in a vacuum (all evidence to the contrary, heh, heh.) Mandating in one country may effectively put smaller car manufacturers out of business or at least reduce the countries where they can sell (possibly far superior) products

Don't underestimate France in this one. They are very able to create and support worldwide competitive businesses, via shrewd government 'guidance'. The Renault-Nissan alliance is not a pushover and they know very much what they are doing.

 

[Car-Guy]

I've owned a lot of cars but never a Volvo. With the way they are going, it looks like I never will. As I said in the Tesla thread, electric motors have their place in cars. They make great starter motors and they do pretty well as electric seat adjusters and to open/close my windows. I guess what they say is true in my case, you can't teach an old dog new tricks, especially when they don't want to learn.

 

[gerntz]

Electric engines are a frequent topic of discussion at E-R forum so this announcement should be of interest. Volvo announced that in two years, every car it manufactures will use an electric motor. https://www.media.volvocars.com/us/en-us/media/pressreleases/210058/volvo-cars-to-go-all-electric

Having an electric engine in every car is different than the header of "all electric".

 

[MichaelB]

Having an electric engine in every car is different than the header of "all electric".

I'm pretty sure everyone understood that, but just to be safe, if there was any misunderstanding, beg pardon for the unintentionally misleading headline.

 

[travelover]

Worst car I have ever owned. Bought a brand new one in the 80's .........

You do realize that the people that designed this car are in all likelihood dead or at least long since retired now?

 

[Koolau]

Is this tongue-in-cheek or serious?


Don't underestimate France in this one. They are very able to create and support worldwide competitive businesses, via shrewd government 'guidance'. The Renault-Nissan alliance is not a pushover and they know very much what they are doing.

All power plants have useful life spans. A coal fired plant can be bulldozed and hauled away. Nukes don't bulldoze so well. There is still no protocol that I'm aware of to fully decommission and remove one. If the protocol ever exists, I would bet that it will be expensive and the costs passed along to current electricity consumers. This is speculation on my part but not tongue in cheek.

If France is "good" at "creating" the future through government guidance, I would suggest they still aren't as good as those who invest in companies (with their own money - not public money). When people use their own money they do what makes the best financial sense rather than what is "fashionable" at the time.

If someone could come up with a car that you feed coal into and it produced less CO2 and other pollutants than an electric car (based on how the equivalent amount of electricity is produced) would it be a good idea to STILL demand that all cars be electric? When countries (i.e., governments) decide what the answer is before all the research is complete, it may well preclude the best solution. YMMV

 

[Breedlove]

I always loved Volvo , had a 240 and a 760 Turbo . So easy to work on . I never heard of any electrical problems . Some Saabs and BMW did in the 80s because they were using sugar in the covering of their wiring.

My Volvo's were so good . But once Ford touched them they went down.

 

[Texas Proud]

All power plants have useful life spans. A coal fired plant can be bulldozed and hauled away. Nukes don't bulldoze so well. There is still no protocol that I'm aware of to fully decommission and remove one. If the protocol ever exists, I would bet that it will be expensive and the costs passed along to current electricity consumers. This is speculation on my part but not tongue in cheek.

If France is "good" at "creating" the future through government guidance, I would suggest they still aren't as good as those who invest in companies (with their own money - not public money). When people use their own money they do what makes the best financial sense rather than what is "fashionable" at the time.

If someone could come up with a car that you feed coal into and it produced less CO2 and other pollutants than an electric car (based on how the equivalent amount of electricity is produced) would it be a good idea to STILL demand that all cars be electric? When countries (i.e., governments) decide what the answer is before all the research is complete, it may well preclude the best solution. YMMV

Seems there has been a good number of plants decommissioned....

I do find it interesting that the 'new' method is to entomb them!!! Yea, just bury it and forget about it....

New methods for decommissioning have been developed in order to minimize the usual high decommissioning costs. One of these methods is in situ decommissioning (ISD), meaning that the reactor is entombed instead of dismantled.


​

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_decommissioning

 

[braumeister]

My Volvo's were so good . But once Ford touched them they went down.

Ford nearly wiped them out, which is why they sold to Geely.

Since Geely bought Volvo, the brand has done a 180.
I'm considering an XC60 for my next car.