The Volvo XC70 is back, but this time it’s an SUV

We last saw the XC70 name on the back of a Volvo in 2016, but now the Swedish firm has given us a teaser of the badge’s return – on an SUV. 

The new Volvo XC70 is expected to be launched in the coming months, but initially at least it’ll be limited to the Chinese market. A Volvo spokesperson told Auto Express that "there are no current plans to sell the XC70 in the UK market”. However, the firm says it is “exploring potential additional markets at a later stage” and if there is demand, it’ll look into bringing the new model to the UK. 

While the old XC70 was a jacked-up estate with the ‘XC’ part of its name showing it was part of Volvo’s ‘Cross Country’ family, the new car is a fully fledged SUV. Volvo says the XC70 is slightly larger than the current XC60 and, to our eyes, it looks like a shrunken version of the recently facelifted XC90. 

Unlike the XC90, which sits on Volvo’s SPA (Scalable Product Architecture) platform, the XC70 is underpinned by the new SMA (Scalable Modular Architecture), which Volvo calls a “premium extended-range plug-in hybrid architecture”. There’s no word yet if this new platform will form the basis of any further models in the future.

Volvo says the new XC70’s range-extending powertrain “is designed to meet the demand for longer-range plug-in hybrids in China, where it will be available for order later this year”. Full technical details on the range-extender have yet to be released, but we know it’ll provide an electric-only range of 124 miles - albeit under China’s CLTC testing regime, which is more lenient than the WLTP system generally used in Europe.

It’s clear that the XC70’s design has been heavily influenced by the updated XC90 and the all-new EX90. Volvo’s trademark ‘Thor’s Hammer’ matrix LED headlights are a prominent feature, as is a blanked-off upper grille with cooling coming through a lower air intake, which houses active shutters to optimise aerodynamics. At the rear, the XC70 has vertical C-shaped taillights similar to the EX90’s. 

According to Volvo CEO Håkan Samuelsson, “the XC70 marks our strategic entry into the extended-range plug-in hybrid segment, a perfect bridge to full electrification, offering a highly attractive alternative to customers who are not yet ready for fully electric cars.”

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