Volvo to Adapt Electric Motors in 3 Years

By Amina Faki,

Volvo, the first traditional carmaker, has signaled that the end of the internal combustion engine in all its cars will have an electric motor in three years’ time.

The move made by the Chinese-owned firm will not do away with the use of petrol and diesel altogether, wrote Dominic O’Connell

According to the company, all its cars will be designed to be all-electric or hybrids which combine electric and traditional engines by 2019.

Recently, it was announced that Volvo will start deliveries of its first mass-market car, Model 3, at the end of the month of July.

The move has put more pressure on Tesla the start-up maker of electric cars.

Elon Musk, Tesla’s founder, said the company was on track to make 200,000 Model 3 cars a month by December.

As well as a shift west – from Detroit to California’s Silicon Valley, where Tesla is based – Volvo’s electric move underlines a shift eastwards, to China.

Geely, Volvo’s Chinese owner, has been quietly pushing ahead with electric car development for more than a decade.

“This announcement marks the end of the sole combustion engine-powered car,” said Hakan Samuelsson, chief executive of Volvo’s car-making division.

“People increasingly demand electrified cars, and we want to respond to our customers’ current and future needs,” he said.

Elon Musk’s greatest rival may come from China, rather than closer to his home.