first effort is an electric version of the handsome C30 hatchback that promises all the safety and practicality you’d expect of a Volvo. The company says the C30 Electric, which it claims has range of 150 kilometers (93 miles), has attracted a lot of attention from potential customers.

“We will set the standard in the industry,” CEO Stefan Jacoby said recently.

Still, Volvo is moving slowly and deliberately. It will deliver 10 prototypes to Goteborg Energi later this fall, then lease another 90 or so to customers throughout Sweden. The approach is similar to what BMW did with the Mini-E electric, and the idea is to rack up some real-world miles and refine the technology before offering the car for sale in 2013.

“We have had a very positive response from the market so far,” Lennart Stegland, director of Volvo’s special vehicles division, said in a statement. “If the demand continues to be high, we will of course expand our production series.”

Volvo already is considering expanding the lease program to California and China. Both moves make sense. Eco-crazy California is a huge potential market, and China is making a big push for electric vehicles. (Volvo is owned by the Chinese firm Geely Holding Group.)

“We’re focusing on our home market of Sweden, but our CEO is very interested in this program and wants us to investigate putting a test fleet in California and China,” Paul Gustavsson, vice president of business development, told Wired.com.

The C30 Electric started as a skunkworks project initiated by a few engineers who wondered how an electric Volvo might perform. They essentially yanked the car’s gasoline drivetrain and replaced it with a battery and a motor. The car worked remarkably well.

“It surprised us all the way through,” Gustavsson said of the first prototype.

The design was refined and the latest version has a 50-kilowatt (67-horsepower) electric motor. It draws power from a 23 kilowatt lithium-ion battery developed by the U.S. firm Enerdell. The pack recharges in about 8 hours when plugged into a 220-volt outlet.

The motor and system electronics are mounted under the hood. The battery fits in the transmission tunnel and under the rear seat much like the pack in the Chevrolet Volt. That keeps the mass centralized to improve handling and protect the battery in the event of a collision. The car Volvo brought to the Detroit auto show in January looked like it was ready for the showroom.

“We haven’t compromised anything,” Gustavvson said. “It offers the same comfort, the same space and the same safety as the C30.”

That last point is important to Volvo, a company with an obsessive focus on safety. Its electrification program includes “a systematic approach to safety issues related to battery power” because consumers unfamiliar with the technology will have questions about what might happen in an accident.

“We have made tests on the component level to see how the battery is affected by harsh braking and the subsequent collision,” said Volvo safety expert Thomas Broberg. “We have also carried out advanced full-scale crash tests to evaluate the technology used in electrically powered cars.”

Volvo also is developing a V60 plug-in hybrid. It features a 50-kilowatt electric motor driving the rear wheels and an 11-kilowatt-hour pack. The system can propel the car up to 50 kilometers (31 miles) on electricity.

Beyond that a diesel engine takes over. The hybrid system provides a total of 280 horsepower and an impressive 442 pound feet of torque. Volvo says the diesel consumes 1.9 liters per 100 kilometers (about 123 mpg) and emits just 50 grams of CO2 per kilometer.

The company also is experimenting with range-extended electric vehicles like the Chevrolet Volt. “We are looking into it,” Gustavsson said. “I think every company is looking into it. Everyone will be watching that car. It’s a milestone in the industry.”

The plug-in V60 will be offered in Europe in 2012 and globally in 2014. Look for the C30 Electric in 2013 if all goes according to plan. Volvo expects 5 to 10 percent of cars in Sweden to be electric by 2020.

No word on prices, though Gustavsson concedes battery technology is expensive. Still, he expects costs to come down quickly and says Volvo’s battery costs have dropped 30 percent in the past 18 months.

Volvo expects the C30 Electric to appeal largely to urban commuters. Stegland says the car’s 150 kilometer range is further than 90 percent of the commuters in Europe drive each day.

“The car could be used for the average family’s everyday commuting needs,” he says.

Photos and video: Volvo

A look from the back.

A C30 Electric after a 50-kmh (30-mph) pole crash test. The lithium-ion battery is shown in green. The video below shows the crash test.

Authors: Chuck Squatriglia

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