Volvo is gearing up to transition away from combustion-powered to battery-powered cars. Like a recovering meth addict making the switch to a new future is going to take some time. Volvo’s plan is to go fully electric by 2030. But why wait that long? why not now? Look at Tesla they are not waiting around for anyone. But that is a discussion for another time. Meanwhile, to keep potential buyers interest awakened, Volvo has revealed the Recharge concept. Behold, a sleek fully electric XC90 of the near distant future.

The design philosophy for the Recharge Concept is… less-equals-more. The door handles are integrated flush into the body and pop up on command when entering or exiting the cabin. The door mirrors are replaced with slim camera-mounted stalks for a fully in-car digital view. Volvo’s Thor’s Hammer headlights and hockey-style rear tail lights are the only recognisable design trends used for Rehcarge Concept.

The panoramic sunroof includes a roof-mounted LiDAR Sensor which means future Volvo’s could be entirely self-drive capable. Rear-hinged doors gain access to a minimalist interior that is focused on driver comfort and dominated by a centrally mounted touchscreen infotainment system. Primary quick access buttons are ditched.

Volvo is yet to fully reveal powertrain specifics. We do know the Recharge Concept will be powered by electric motors and battery technology. That’s fairly easy to deduce. It will be close but not close enough to Tesla Model X performance.

But as we always say here on DCBHQ, automotive concepts are publicity stunts. This sleek-looking Recharge Concept will not make it to production.

The retail-ready version will be significantly toned down because certain elements of this concept may well be too expensive to tool and manufacture on a Just In Time production scale. One or two design elements will be carried over. That being said, the Recharge Concept previews the new design direction of the next-gen XC90 which will be officially revealed in 2022.