Volvo EX30 long-term test: report 2

The car Volvo EX30 Single Motor Extended Range Plus Run by Allan Muir, managing editor

Why we’re running it To see whether this small electric SUV can be provide benefits over larger, often pricier alternatives in everyday use

Needs to Be comfortable and easy to live with, nippy around town, reasonably practical and efficient enough to deliver a respectable range for longer journeys

Mileage 628 List price £39,860 Best price £38,360 Price as tested £40,660 Official range 296 miles Test range 228 miles 

13 November 2025 – Little Volvo, let me come in

Getting into my Volvo EX30 is proving less straightforward than you’d expect. I don’t mean when I’m sliding into the driver’s seat; I’m talking about the keyless entry being slow to unlock the doors. 

In cars fitted with automatic keyless entry (as mine is), the doors should unlock as I approach. But with my EX30, I can be standing beside the car for several seconds before anything happens. Touching or pulling on a door handle doesn’t seem to speed things up, either. For obvious reasons, this delay isn’t ideal when it’s raining.

Because the EX30’s keyfob doesn’t have a single button on it, the quickest option is to press it up against an NFC reader on the driver’s door pillar. This is awkward in itself, because you have to position it precisely (with the Volvo label facing out and up) for it to work. Doing so becomes trickier still at night, and the keyfob can pick up water from the pillar when it’s raining – not what you want when you return it to your trouser pocket.

Looking at online owner forums, it seems like I’m far from alone in having this issue with the keyless entry. I’m not sure yet if it’s something that can be rectified. I doubt it’s due to the keyfob battery going flat, because the car locks itself much more readily when I walk away or touch the driver’s door handle.

The EX30 seems to be geared towards allowing some owners to use their phone as a digital key, but that isn’t an option for me. Mainly that’s because you have to be an Apple iPhone user for the digital key to work, whereas I have an Android phone. I can’t see how it would be much of an improvement over the keyfob anyway.

Fortunately, once I’m behind the wheel and on the move, I’m finding the EX30 really good to drive. Not only is it surprisingly rapid, but I'm also partial to the steering, which is light and direct enough to make urban driving a breeze, yet gives a good sense of connection to the front wheels. This helps to make the car feel eager to change direction, and it maintains fine composure through corners. Apart from some gentle bobbing around at low speeds (which I don’t mind), the ride is plush and smooth, too, especially on the motorway. 

This is all in stark contrast to the untidy dynamic behaviour of my previous Cupra Tavascan, so I’m delighted with my EX30 so far. I just mourn the lack of a regular keyfob with good old-fashioned buttons on it.

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