Electric-involved product at ICE price is working for consumers.

TIMING is everything and, for Volvo here, the timing of a strategy that expanded the electrified line-up and adjusted pricing to make fully electric and plug-in hybrid models more directly aligned with fully internal combustion types couldn’t have been better.

Those determinations have, at time of growing unsettlement about fuel pricing and availability, contributed to huge national growth for the Sino-Swede marque.

In comment about its first quarter performance, Volvo Cars New Zealand says its sales are up 67 percent year-on-year, with demand for low-emissions vehicles strengthening.

Volvo brand manager Daile Stephens says demand for battery-involved product accelerated in March, a month in which electric car demand finally regained health after two years of desultory performance.

Volvo enjoyed that swing, triggered by the Middle East conflict and the fall out this has had on pump prices and supply. It also has fresh stock coming in to ensure momentum can continue.

“With stock arriving across both PHEV and fully electric models, we’re ensuring customers have choice, availability and confidence when selecting the right electrified SUV for their needs,” Stephens says.

Central to the strategy is the just-launched fully electric EX90, a seven-seat SUV now on sale from $149,990. That sticker strategy has now led to the XC90 plug-in hybrid T8 pricing to the same level, having previously cost more.

The move brings price parity between the two models, allowing customers to choose between battery electric and plug-in hybrid powertrains without a cost difference, Stephens says.

Volvo’s local boss has repeated comment made at the recent EX90 press launch, in saying one of the key barriers to EV adoption in New Zealand has been the perception that these cost more.

That’s not the case, she says.

Volvo is part of the Giltrap Group’s NordEast operation, which represents a slew of brands that build product in China. Volvo is one of those.

NordEast group general manager Dane Fisher (also pictured) says the combination of product and pricing is driving momentum.

“Volvo has the right electrified products at the right time, supported by some of the strongest value positioning in the European premium segment. That combination is building momentum and confidence right across the retail network,” Fisher says.

Volvo says the EX90 is its most advanced model to date, with demonstrator vehicles now available across its retail network.

The brand also plans to expand its electric offering further, with the mid-sized EX60 expected to arrive later this year.

The pricing changes and new model launches come as the New Zealand market continues to adjust to shifting EV policies and affordability considerations, with Volvo positioning itself to compete more directly in the premium electrified segment, Stephens and Fisher say.