Type 2 to Type 2, 16A, and 10 metres rather than 5
Find your Volvo and the cable is the last column
Most people can order straight from the table. Find the model, take the last column, and follow the link only if you want the detail behind it.
Eight models, all Type 2, and the division is clean: the battery electrics take 7.4 kW and the Recharge plug-in hybrids are held to 3.7 kW. The reason for that second figure is unusual enough to be worth a section of its own.
Why the Recharge plug-in hybrids stop at 3.7 kW
Volvo does not hide this, which is to its credit. Its own model year 2024 specification sheets describe the onboard charger as a two phase 6.4 kW unit and then add, in brackets, that home charging is limited to 3.7 kW. That bracket is Volvo's, not ours.
A two phase charger needs two live phases to reach its rating. A British house has one, so the car takes 16 amps from it and lands at 3.7 kW. It is not a fault and no setting changes it. A 16 amp lead therefore delivers everything an S90, V60, V90, XC60 or XC90 Recharge can accept, and a 32 amp lead buys flexibility rather than speed.
What the third column means
The column to trust is the third one. It states what each car takes from an ordinary British house rather than what it could take in a country where three phases reach the meter. Those two numbers are often different and the difference is never the cable.
What actually separates one Volvo from another
The EX30, the EX90 and the XC40 Recharge, now sold as the EX40, all reach 7.4 kW at a British house and want the 32 amp lead. The C40 and EC40 share every charging answer with the XC40, so if you have one of those the XC40 page applies to it in full.
Port position is consistent in a way the rest of the range is not: Volvo charges from the rear nearside, the kerb side at the back, with one front nearside exception. Volvo does not publish the position for every model, and where that is the case the model page says so instead of inferring it.
Choosing a length
The mistake to avoid is buying for the length of the car rather than the length of the run. What matters is the distance from your charge point to the flap, which depends on which way you park. Ten metres removes the question on most British driveways.
An EX90 is five metres long with a rear socket, so ten is the honest recommendation. The kerb side position helps at a public post and makes reversing onto a drive the cheaper option in cable terms.
How these cables are built
Whatever your car, the cable is the same underneath. Tinned copper cores, IP67 rated connectors moulded rather than assembled, a cold flexible outer sheath, two years of warranty and free next working day delivery.
Volvo's sister brand is laid out the same way in the Polestar range, and the Land Rover range covers similar ground on the plug-in hybrid side.
Because its 6.4 kW charger is a two phase unit and a British house supplies one phase. Volvo own specification sheets state that home charging is limited to 3.7 kW.
Will a 32A cable make a V60 Recharge charge faster?
No. The car draws 16 amps whatever the lead is rated at. A 32A cable is still the more useful thing to own for a future car.
What does an EX30 or EX90 charge at?
About 7.4 kW at a British house, which is what a 32A single phase charge point delivers.
Does the C40 charge the same as the XC40?
Yes. The C40 and EC40 share every charging answer with the XC40 Recharge, so that page applies to them in full.
Where is the charge socket on a Volvo?
Rear nearside on most of the range, which is the kerb side at the back, with one front nearside exception. Volvo does not publish it for every model.
