Used Volvo XC40 Recharge cars for sale

Used Volvo XC40 Recharge pros and cons

Is a second hand Volvo XC40 Recharge a good car?

The Volvo XC40 Recharge was Volvo’s first all-electric car, and was based on the more conventional petrol, diesel, and hybrid XC40. It was a little compromised because of that, and never had the best all-round range of electric SUV rivals such as the Tesla Model Y and the Audi Q4 e-tron, but the Volvo looks smart, and is very safe (as you’d expect) so there are upsides.

Even when it was new, the XC40 Recharge was a slightly older model, being based on the XC40 which first went on sale in 2017, and while it has technically been replaced now by the Volvo EX40, that’s really just a big update of the old XC40. 

The old XC40 Recharge had its electric motor mounted at the front, driving the front wheels. Unless it was the Recharge Twin, which was four-wheel drive, with two electric motors.

Both versions looked good on paper. The front-wheel drive model offered as much as 261 miles of electric range, with the standard 69kWh battery, while the Twin could get to 333 miles with its bigger 82kWh battery. However, neither was particularly efficient in real-world conditions, with the standard model usually topping out at around 220 miles, and the Twin struggling to get past 250 miles on one charge. There are no visual cues on the outside to tell one model from the other, so you’ll have to do your homework before heading out for test drives. 

At least the charging is rapid — up to 205kW from a DC fast charger depending on the model, and the cabins are well-made and spacious, with that big, square rear bodywork making for a very practical 452-litre boot. There’s a small ‘frunk’ storage area in the nose too, which is handy for stashing a charging cable. 

Space in the cabin is good enough for four six-footers to get comfy, and this being a Volvo the seats are excellent and supportive on long drives. Some of the plastics look and feel a bit cheap, but they’re well-enough put together. 

The big touchscreen infotainment system was given an update in 2022 which brought in a Google-based software setup, so it’s really easy to pair with your phone and save your own Google Maps locations. 

Performance for the Recharge Twin, with its 408hp, is spectacular — 0-62mph in just 4.9 seconds — but it’s a bit much for a family-friendly SUV, so perhaps the standard model’s 7.4 seconds will do.

What to look for when buying a used Volvo XC40 Recharge

Make sure that the battery pack has been tested for its overall health and total charging capacity before you buy. Volvo offers an eight-year, 100,000-mile warranty for the battery, but it’s a good idea to know the health of the battery before you buy to make sure you’re not buying into any problems. Make sure that the charging cable locks into position and that the car charges when it’s connected. 

There is a known issue with the active cornering headlights system, which is supposed to angle the headlights in line with the steering, but which can fail. Some owners have reported issues with the car’s active safety systems. The Volvo XC40 has been recalled 12 times in the UK, but most of those issues affect the combustion-engined models. 

The XC40 finished in 32nd place in the most recent Driver Power ownership survey of the top 50 models to own, on a strong score of 87%, while Volvo as a brand came in 16th place (out of 32) with 26% of owners reporting issues with their cars. 

Volvo XC40 Recharge FAQs