Volvo XC40 Review 2025

The Volvo XC40 was named Car of the Year at the Honest John Awards way back in 2019, and we still think it’s one of the best small SUVs you can buy. It’s very hard to fault, with the XC40 boasting chunky good looks, a premium interior, enviable safety credentials and a long list of equipment as standard. Throw into the mix a wide range of powertrains offered over the car's several years on sale, including petrol, diesel, mild hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fully electric (take a look at our separate Volvo EX40 review), and you’ve got the hallmarks of one of the best used cars out there, while the current mild hybrids are also cracking new cars. Read our Volvo XC40 review to discover more...

There's no shortage of alternatives. The likes of the Audi Q3, BMW X1, Mercedes-Benz GLB, Jaguar E-Pace, Lexus UX and Range Rover Evoque are just some of the premium rivals after a share of the XC40’s pie, and this is before you consider the plethora of mainstream alternatives. So what makes the Volvo XC40 so special?

Put simply, it’s a terrific all-rounder. It’s a car we struggle to find fault with, beecause it’s almost the perfect package. The build quality is a match for its German rivals, but the exterior and interior styling helps the Volvo XC40 to stand out in a very crowded market. It feels like a compact version of the XC60 and XC90, offering similar levels of safety and technology.

If you're after a brand new XC40, there's not a great deal of choice on engines, with only two mild-hybrid petrols now available. That wasn't always the case, though, and used car buyers can choose between petrol, diesel, a couple of plug-in hybrids and a fully electric version. Depending on the model, you can select from manual or automatic transmissions, and front- and all-wheel-drive. There have also seemingly countless trim levels offered over time, so there's plenty of choice there, too.

Standard equipment includes 17-inch alloy wheels, a 12.3-inch active driver’s information display, 9.0-inch portrait-style touchscreen infotainment system, cruise control, DAB digital radio, sat-nav, keyless start, automatic LED headlights, rain-sensing wipers and rear park assist. There’s also a five-star Euro NCAP safety rating to fall back on, should the worst happen.

It’s a practical car, boasting a large boot and room for five adults in the cabin. The quality of the cabin is first class, but the XC40 shines thanks to the use of sumptuous materials and clever details. Few cars are this good to spend time in, especially at this end of the market.

It’s also safe and predictable on the road, with Volvo focusing on comfort and safety to deliver one of the most satisfying cars in its class. From the comfortable seats to the ambient lighting, you’ll arrive at your destination as relaxed as when you set off, regardless of the distance.

We’re not sure the perfect car exists, but the XC40 comes pretty close. It’s a charming, sophisticated and upmarket car in a family-friendly package. Take a look to see what all the fuss is about.

We lived with a XC40 plug-in hybrid for six months - find out how we got on with it in our Volvo XC40 long term test. 

It’s a thoroughly pleasant car to drive, with Volvo concentrating on ride comfort and safety, rather than sharp handling. It's a fairly cosseting thing to roll along in, although undulating roads can cause the body to bounce up and down a wee bit. And while dynamic handling certainly isn't the focus here, it gets around corners in a thoroughly stable and safe way. If you seek out an R-Design model on the used car market, it'll come with a sports chassis, but it’s still far from sporty.

Over time, Volvo has offered a wide range of alloy wheel sizes, from 17 inches to 21 inches, with the majority of models getting 18-inch rims as standard. These 18s are just about right for the XC40: anything larger simply serves to upset the ride quality, especially if you opt for the - admittedly stylish - 21-inch rims.

The seats are superb, providing a perfect blend of support and comfort. It feels very grown-up for a compact crossover, similar in style to the larger XC60. This is a huge positive, especially if you have children, because few cars feel as safe to travel in as a Volvo. 

Like we've said elsewhere in this review, the Volvo XC40 has been offered with seemingly countless different powertrain options throughout the years, including petrol, diesel, mild hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fully electric. You can have your pick of these if you buy your XC40 on the used car market, but if you buy it brand new, you have the choice of just two mild hybrid powertrains known as the B3 and the B4, so we'll start with those.

Both feature 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engines, the B3 with 163PS and the B4 with 197PS. Both are front-wheel drive and come fitted with an automatic gearbox.

The B3 will see off the 0-62mph dash in 8.6 seconds, and the level of performance it delivers is entirely adequate, shifting the XC40 around at a decent rate and keeping life easy. The B4 shaves a full second off the sprint time, and does feel fractionally more urgent, but we don't think the uptick in performance is really worth the extra money you pay for it, so we'd advise most people to stick with the B3. Like all modern Volvos, both versions are electronically limited to a top speed of 112mph.

And so we get into the older engines, where the variety is borderline bamboozling. Look at the oldest XC40s in the used car listings, and you'll find that the engine choices are prefixed with either a 'T' (T2, T3,T4, etc) or a 'D' (D3, D4, etc). The former stood for 'turbo petrol' (a mixture of 1.5-litre three-cylinder units and and 2.0-litre four-cylinder ones), while the former stood for 'diesel' engine (2.0-litre units, also turbocharged, but there you go).

The T3 was a 1.5 petrol with 158PS (later upgraded to 165PS), which could do 0-62mph in 7.8 seconds. The T4 was a 2.0 petrol with 193PS. When fitted with front wheel drive, it'd do 0-62mph in 8.4 seconds (actually a little slower than the T3 die to the extra weight of the larger engine), or 7.0 seconds when fitted with four-wheel drive. The T5 was a version of the same 2.0-litre petrol engine, this time with 250PS for a sprint time of 6.5 seconds. The entry-level T2 engine was introduced a wee bit later on, and was an even lower-tune version of the 1.5 petrol with just 129PS.

Pretty much omnipresent were the D3 and D4 diesels, both 2.0-litre units, the D3 with 152PS and the D4 with 193PS The D3 could be had with either front- or four-wheel drive, where the D4 was all-wheel-drive only.

Later on, the T4 and T5 petrols were replaced by the B4 and B5, which were essentially the same engines, with pretty much the same power and performance, but this time with mild hybrid tech for better fuel economy. Both the B4 and B5 are fitted with an automatic transmission, but while the B4 is available in front- and all-wheel-drive, the B5 is all-wheel-drive only.

The T4 and T5 names didn't die, though, because these were used - sandwiched between the words 'Recharge' and 'Twin Motor' - in the monikers of the two new plug-in hybrid variants, introduced at roughly the same time. Both combined the 1.5-litre petrol engine with an electric motor and a battery to give an electric range of 30-odd miles or so, with the combined output of the Recharge T4 Twin Motor standing at 214PS, and the Recharge T5 Twin Motor at 265PS.

Confused yet? Well, if not, you soon will be. The Recharge name was also used  - alongside the term P8, which we simply can't explain - to signify the full electric version of the XC40. That was until yet another change of heart on the branding front, where Volvo decided to extricate the all-electric XC40 from the rest of the range, calling it instead the EX40 (this mirrored the naming convention of a couple of all-electric model that had come along since).

The XC40 name was kept for the combustion-engined versions of the car, and at this point, Volvo also took the opportunity to massively cull the range of engines available, leaving just the two we have today, which we talked about at the very top of this section. Which now seems like a very long time ago. Phew.

So, that's a slightly simplified (yes, really!) potted history of the XC40's engine range, but what are they all like? Well, we've tried quite a few, and with the ones we have, these are our thoughts.

The 129PS 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbo T2 is fine if you spend most of your time in town or nipping to the shops. It came with a manual gearbox and front-wheel-drive, and it was the cheapest way into XC40 ownership, so used prices should be affordable, too. 

We’d recommend the T3 for most folk. It offers ample pulling power, plus it could be had with the option of an eight-speed automatic transmission, which was smooth and worked well.

Moving up a level, the B4 and B5 2.0-litre four-cylinder engines feature mild hybrid technology and even better pulling power. This is especially true in the B5, which boasts a diesel-like 350Nm of torque, making it ideal for towing duties. 

The plug-in hybrid versions are both predictably brisk, and very quiet when running solely on electric power. You won't notice a colossal difference between them for performance or refinement, so just buy the one you can get the best price on. The all-electric P8 Recharge feels faster still with its all-at-once torque, but make sure you can live with its limited range of 248 miles.

The moral of this (admittedly very long) story? If you're buying used, pay close attention to all those Ts, Ds and Ps to make sure you know what you're getting. And if buying one with 'Recharge' in the name, make sure you know whether it's a PHEV or a fully electric car, because it could be either.

Predictably, the Volvo XC40 was awarded a maximum five-star safety rating when it was crash-tested by Euro NCAP in 2018. Standard safety equipment includes pedestrian, cyclist and large animal detection, front collision warning with automatic braking, driver alert, multiple airbags, Isofix points on the outer rear seats, road sign information and run-off road mitigation/protection.

We’d recommend the Intellisafe Surround pack, which is standard on the electric XC40, but optional on the others. The pack comprises blind spot information with steer assist, cross traffic alert with autobrake, rear collision warning and mitigation, and auto-dimming door mirrors.

The B4 and B5 versions of the XC40 are the best for towing, with each offering a maximum towing capacity of 2100kg. The figure drops to 1600kg in the T2 and T3, but the T4 and T5 plug-in hybrid models offer a maximum capacity of 1800kg. The figure is just 1500kg in the P8 Recharge electric car. With the current mild hybrid versions, the B3 can pull 1600kg while the B4 can lug 2000kg.

The Volvo XC40's 460-litre boot isn’t the biggest in its class, but it's nevertheless very competitive amongst the competition. The opening to the space is wide, too, and there's barely any load lip, so muscling heavy items in and out occurs unimpeded. With the rear seats folded, the XC40 offers 1,336 litres of boot space.

There’s even better news in the cabin. From the huge door bins to the large central storage cubby, there are loads of storage spaces for your bits and bobs. 

There’s room for five adults, with plentiful headroom and legroom for tall adults. Children, meanwhile, will appreciate the raised rear bench seat, which gives a commanding view ahead and to the sides.

The Volvo XC40 measures 4425mm long, 1873mm wide and 1658mm tall, making it a little shorter than the BMW X1, although it's a touch wider.

Almost faultless. That’s how we’d describe the quality of the Volvo XC40. Excellent paint quality, tight panel gaps and doors that shut with a reassuring thud, the XC40 looks and feels the part. The good vibes continue on the inside, with a cabin that’s rich in quality and high in exquisite details.

From the chrome-tipped dashboard to the chunky leather-trimmed steering wheel, the XC40 oozes quality. Volvo has even used carpets to trim the centre console surround, so we don’t have to complain about the downmarket plastics in the lower part of the cabin.

The dashboard is dominated by a 9.0-inch portrait-style infotainment screen. It uses familiar tablet and smartphone-style swipes, scrolls and pinches to operate. It takes a while to get used to, but it’s no more taxing to operate than your smartphone. It is, however, a bit more distracting to use on-the-move than equivalent systems in other cars that use a rotary dial to navigate the various menus. You also get voice recognition, which is one of the best systems we’ve experienced.

Features include sat-nav with European mapping, DAB digital radio, Bluetooth, USB connectivity and a SIM card. On early XC40s, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto weren’t included as standard. That changed when an updated system co-developed with Google was introduced, but bizarrely, Apple CarPlay became available, but Android Auto still didn't.

If you buy a brand new Volvo XC40, then prices begin at around £36,000 for the B3 version, or from around £40,000 for the B4. The engine upgrade itself only costs a little over £1,000, but the difference in starting prices is made bigger by the fact that the B4 isn't available in entry-level Core trim, and the upgrade to Plus trim costs quite a bit. The range tops out with the B4 in top-spec Ultra trim, which will set you back around £45,000 before you've added any optional extras.

Obviously with the XC40 range having fluctuated and changed so wildly - in terms of both the engines and trim levels on offer - over the car's time on sale, so have brand-new prices, which then also has a knock-on effect with used prices.

It's still true that an XC40 is likely to cost you more than an similarly sized SUV from a non-premium brand, because its residual values are comparatively strong. However, the car has been around long enough that early examples will have shed a fair amount of their original value, and lower-spec cars of a certain age will be looking very tempting these days in terms of price.

Early T3 and D3 examples car be had for around the £15,000 mark, and the mileages on these examples are far from crazy. The cheapest PHEVs we've seen on the used market stand at around the £22,000 mark, and these will be a little newer, but with similar mileages.

One very good thing for used car buyers interested in the Volvo XC40 is that the car's immense popularity means that there is masses of choice on the used market, so you can afford to be picky.

If buying your XC40 brand new, then fuel economy won't play a part in deciding between the two mild hybrid powertrains on offer, because both return an identical 42.2mpg according to official figures.

If considering an older XC40 from the used car market, the much greater choice of powertrain options means much more disparity on fuel economy. The T2 and T3 units can return up to 40.4mpg, but there’s a small penalty for choosing the T3 automatic.

The original petrol-only T4 has an official figure of 40.9mpg when fitted with four-wheel drive, but expect a little more from the front-wheel drive version. The original petrol-only T5 is only a little way behind at 38.2mpg.

The diesels will be best for high-mileage drivers: the D3 returns up to 58.9mpg when in front-wheel-drive form, or 55.4mpg when fitted with four-wheel drive. The four-wheel-drive-only D4 returns the same 55.4mpg figure.

The B4 petrol offers up to 39.2mpg in front-wheel-drive guise, or up to 36.7mpg if you opt for the all-wheel-drive version. The figure is roughly the same for the all-wheel-drive-only B5 petrol.

The later T4 Recharge and T5 Recharge plug-in hybrid models have an all-electric range of 28.6 miles, helping them to a WLTP figure of up to 134.5mpg. We'd place virtually zero faith in that figure, though, because the official tests are flatteringly unrealistic for plug-in hybrids. Keep the battery topped up and your journeys uniformly short enough that you can complete them exclusively on electric power, and the PHEVs will be very cheap to run. Regularly call the petrol engine into action, however, and they won't, frankly.

Finally, the all-electric XC40 T8 Recharge has a projected range of 248.5 miles. Refilling its 78kWh battery will cost around £21 if you charge at home, assuming your power is billed at the UK's national average rate. Charge it overnight on discounted off-peak power, and you'll cut that figure in half, but charge it a a DC public rapid charger, and you can treble it. The maximum DC rapid charging speed it 150kW.

There’s no longer a VED road tax benefit for choosing the EV over a combustion-engined XC40, because electric cars are now liable for the same flat rate as all other cars, which currently stands at £195 per year. Cars that cost more than £40,000 when brand new are also liable for an extra surcharge of £425 per year on top of that between years two and six of the car's life. This can effect some higher-spec versions of the XC40, so it's always a good idea to Google the reg of any used example you're considering to find out what you're letting yourself in for.

Insurance groups range from 18 to 33, so getting cover shouldn’t be expensive.

The Volvo XC40 has been on sale for a very long time now, and during that time, the trim levels available have chopped and changed a fair bit, with the amount of kit that comes with each trim subject to a fair bit of change, too. There have also been numerous high-value special editions and limited-run versions available over time, so these could be worth looking out for on the used market.

For much of the car's life, the core structure of the range was built around Momentum, R-Design and Inscription trims.

Choose the Volvo XC40 Momentum and you got: LED headlights

• 12.3-inch TFT active instrument display
• 9.0-inch portrait-format Sensus touchscreen with built-in sat nav
• cruise control
• power parking brake
• dual-zone climate control
• 18-inch alloys wheels

The sporty Volvo XC40 R-Design trim adds to this with:

• leather and nubuck upholstery
• sports seats
• power tailgate
• firmer suspension
• sharper styling tweaks

If you're looking for something a little more luxurious, then the Volvo XC40 Inscription is the one to go for. It features:

• full leather upholstery
• rear parking camera
• ambient lighting
• Orrefors crystal gear lever

There was an extensive list of extras available the XC40, but many buyers instead opted for one of the 'Pro' packs (available with both the R-Design and Inscription), which bundled a set of popular extras in one pack, and usually worked out cheaper than adding on a couple of individual features.

These days, after several more tweaks to the range, the car is offered in Core, Plus, Plus Pro and Ultra trim levels. The Volvo XC40 Core gets:

• alloy wheels
• two-zone climate control
• heated front seats
• the full infotainment system
• power tailgate
• rain-sensing wipers
• adaptive cruise control
• front- and rear parking sensors
• reversing camera

Volvo XC40 Plus adds:

• keyless entry
• handsfree power tailgate
• blind spot monitoring
• cross traffic alert
• extended ambient lighting

Volvo XC40 Plus Pro adds:

• 360-degree camera
• pixel LED headlights
• tinted rear windows

Volvo XC40 Ultra adds:

• Harman Kardon Premium sound system
• panoramic roof