Volvo EX30 review – Reliability & safety

The Volvo EX30’s launch didn’t get off to the best start  leading to some receiving full refunds. The issues included not being able to see the speed readout on the infotainment screen, which has since been rectified with an over-the-air software update, or owners can also take it into a dealership for it to be updated.

As a brand, Volvo finished a middling 16th in our 2024 Driver Power customer satisfaction survey, a slight slip from 13th in 2023 and a worrying decline from eighth in 2022. Reliability wasn’t one of the areas in which the Swedish brand particularly impressed, with 26% of owners reporting some form of fault within their first year of ownership. Volvo was marked down for its powertrains, running costs and value, areas where the EX30 should at least perform convincingly.

The EX30 is built on the same SEA (Sustainable Experience Architecture) platform that underpins a number of models from Volvo’s owners, Chinese company Geely, and that includes the forthcoming Smart #1. You’d hope that with such investment in the architecture, Geely would've taken the time to get it right. The car will be built in China initially, but production will be moved to Ghent in Belgium from 2025.

As well as feeling suitably posh, the cabin also feels sturdy and solid, so it should stand the test of time well.

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How safe is the Volvo EX30?

Being a Volvo, anyone who finds themselves in an EX30 can expect it to be an immensely safe car. Pretty much every driver aid you expect is present and correct, along with a few you might not. This being an urban-focused Volvo, the EX30 comes with a suite of systems – known as Safe Space Technology – that’s designed to improve safety in such an environment. This includes front and rear cross-traffic alert (which warns the driver of other vehicles approaching at either end of the car that they might not be able to see, and applies the brakes automatically if no action is taken), and door opening alert (which gives visual and audible warnings if someone attempts to open a door into the path of a cyclist or other road user.

The EX30 was crash-tested by Euro NCAP in 2024 and given the same five star rating as its Smart #1 sibling, putting it above the MINI Countryman Electric in some key categories. 

What is the warranty on the Volvo EX30?

Volvo’s three-year, 60,000-mile warranty is the bare minimum any new car buyer should expect, with rivals like Kia and BYD offering longer as standard. The EX30 does at least have a separate battery warranty lasting for eight years/100,000 miles.