Volvo embraces electrification
A clear signal that the dominance of the internal combustion engine is waning has come from Volvo Cars. The Swedish manufacturer has announced that from 2019 all its cars will have an electric motor – a significant move on the road to embrace the principle of electrification. It means that the company will only produce either hybrid or electric vehicles from that date. “This is about the customer,” said Håkan Samuelsson, president and chief executive of Volvo Cars. “People increasingly demand electrified cars and we want to respond to our customers’ current and future needs. You can now pick and choose whichever electrified Volvo you wish.” For automotive remanufacturers it is a window into the future (see The World Is Going Electric, ReMaTecNews April/May). Electric vehicles (EV) are likely to require less reman than conventional models, and will need different skills. OEMs realise this: specialist EV manufacturer Tesla has been hiring technicians and engineers for positions in reman. Volvo is to launch five fully-electric cars between 2019 and 2021, three of which will be Volvo models and two of which will be high performance electrified cars from Volvo’s subsidiary Polestar.
