Volvo EX30 recalled globally over potential battery fire risk – 2024 to 2025 Malaysian models affected

Volvo has announced it will initiate a global recall for the EX30 over a potential fire risk with its battery. Among other nations, the issue affects certain units of Single and Twin Motor models sold in Malaysia between 2024 and 2025, Volvo Car Malaysia (VCM) confirmed today.

A defect in the cells of the 69 kWh nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) battery, which comes standard in Malaysia, will in rare cases allow the battery to overheat when charged to a high level. In a worst-case scenario, this could lead to a fire starting in the battery. The carmaker noted that the number of reported incidents is very small – representing 0.02% of the identified affected units – and that no reports of personal injuries have been reported.

Volvo plans to roll out the recall as soon as possible, VCM said. In the meantime, owners are advised to avoid charging their cars beyond 70%. A charge limit can be set under the Charging settings menu in the infotainment touchscreen.

The news comes as another Geely subsidiary Viridi E-Mobility Technology (Vremt) has sued battery supplier Sunwoda for 2.31 billion yuan (RM1.34 billion) over losses stemming from defective battery cells it received from the company between June 2021 and December 2023, according to CnEVPost. Vremt is controlled by Zeekr and supplies batteries to various vehicles in the group.

For now, it’s unclear if the smart #1 and #3 and Zeekr X, all of which share much of the EX30’s mechanicals and use a similarly-sized NMC battery, are affected by the same issue.

GALLERY: Volvo EX30 Twin Motor Performance in Malaysia