We have a good feeling about the EX30, Volvo’s new small electric SUV. As the brand’s quickest and most affordable model, it seems like a hit in the making. The EX30 is also the company’s smallest vehicle, though, which forced designers to get creative when it came to optimizing space.
We got a proper sense of how small the EX30 is and how engineers adapted when Volvo sent over a Moss Yellow twin-motor Performance model for us to live with. We spent a week with the baby ute, learning its quirks and understanding the logic of its interior. Save for one biggish gripe, the EX30 is a nice way to travel.
Hatchback Vibes
At 72.4 inches wide without mirrors and 166.7 inches long, this Volvo is tiny. About the only premium vehicle that’s smaller is a Mini, the 2025 Cooper hardtop four-door measuring 68.7 inches wide and 158.9 inches long.
Maximum passenger capacity is supposedly five, but we’re not sure three adults could fit comfortably across in the EX30’s back row. Front head- and legroom come in at 41.7 and 41.9 inches, respectively, while in back those dimensions shrink to 38.3 and 32.3.
In comparison, the Mini provides a tighter 40.3 inches of headroom and 41.4 inches of legroom up front and 36.9 and 30.8 inches in back. Surprisingly, the EX30 delivers more front-row space than the larger XC40. That small Volvo gas SUV comes with only 39 inches of front headroom and 40.9 inches of front legroom. In back, it’s 39.1 inches of headroom and 36.1 inches of legroom, both more than the EX30.
The massive available panoramic roof helps the back seat seem a little less stuffy. The view isn’t as grand from the front seats, but the large pane doesn’t seem to allow the sun to heat the cabin up much.
Size also hinders the EX30’s cargo capacity, but we applaud the baby SUV’s thoughtful packaging. It provides 12.4 cubic feet of space behind the rear seats and 27.8 cubes with the seats folded. The totals don’t include the decent-size space under the cargo floor or the 0.2-cubic-foot frunk.
The Mini comes up with less standard space in its trunk (8.9 cubic feet) but more than the EX30 with its rear seat stowed (34.4 cubes). The XC40 is bigger both ways, with 16 cubic feet behind the second row and 57.5 cubes with the seat folded.
Like Tesla, Not in a Good Way
Beyond its size, the cabin’s minimalist styling is its defining characteristic. There are echoes of Tesla and other modern EVs in that layout, but Volvo puts its touch on the various elements.
The vertically oriented 12.3-inch center touchscreen is the main—and only—attraction on the Volvo’s dashboard. There’s no gauge cluster or driver screen. The touchscreen is plenty bright, its graphics are sharp, and the processing speed is quick.
The downside is the EX30 offers zero physical controls on the all-digital center stack. An icon to open climate management is on the lower portion of the screen, but any time we used the screen while driving, we had to take our eyes off the road. Even the centrally located glove box is released through the interface. A slightly higher screen angled more toward the driver seems like it would be a big improvement.
Volvo Fancy
Super-cool vertical vents with transparent detailing adorn the ends of the dash, and the SUV’s Mist Pixel Knit/Nordico theme interior comes with flax composite accents. This trim running along the dash and doors features a top layer of woven flax and is made of 30 percent recycled material. It looks great under the EX30’s ambient lighting, too.
What appears to be a Harman Kardon soundbar at the base of the windshield is loaded with five of the car’s nine total premium speakers. The other four are in the rear doors, two per side.
In between the driver and the dash sits a squircle-shaped steering wheel with a handful of touch controls that worked headache-free. The wheel comes with a single programmable toggle for one-pedal driving or other driver assist features, and all the controls are straightforward. The same goes for the steering column stalks.
Seating is comfortable, and our test car came upholstered in an attractive Mist Pixel tailored wool blend with similarly hued piping. The power front seats are equipped with a single rounded square control knob that acts as a sort of joystick for adjustments. Each front seat back also features two pouches for rear passengers, a bigger one for tablets and laptops and a smaller phone-sized one.
