The Volvo XC40 hit the market nine years ago, and now it’s getting a host of updates.
If you want a good example of “time flies”, just take a look at the latest Volvo XC40. The current model has been in production for nearly a full decade, while it feels like just yesterday we were hurdling a brand-new SUV through a Colorado blizzard. Now, though, the 2028 Volvo XC40 is bringing some much-needed updates to the brand’s aging SUV, though you might not catch everything that’s happening at first glance.
Much like the latest XC90, we’re looking at relatively subtle exterior updates for both the XC40. There’s a slimmer grille design with a set of new LED headlights that integrate more closely into the fascia. You also get a new and clearer take on the “Thor’s Hammer” signature running lights, but there’s a bit more than meets the eye here. Those new headlights are made up from matrix LEDs, which can alter lighting patterns and partially dip the high beams to avoid blinding oncoming drivers.
At the back, the 2028 Volvo XC40 gets a more angular and creased tailgate, with a new LED pattern within the brake lights (though they still run up the sides, which has been a Volvo hallmark for years now). In profile, the updated model doesn’t look that different from the outgoing version, but the XC40 has aged fairly well despite being nearly a decade old. Style is subjective, but I still think it’s one of the best looking small SUVs around.
Looking inside the 2028 Volvo XC40
Broadly speaking, the inside of the new Volvo XC40 is going to feel just as familiar as the outside. However, you do get an updated 11-inch infotainment screen running a Google-based operating system, with Gemini functionality baked in (because of course every new launch has to bring AI into the mix). Volvo, being Volvo, isn’t pushing safety to the sidelines either, with a dozen new ultrasonic sensors, new radar units and new cameras to upgrade the driver assistance systems from what the old car could manage. That particularly applies to Volvo’s Pilot Assist self-steering system, which can better handle lane centering and actual lane changes over the old XC40.
In its gas form, the 2028 Volvo XC40 still uses a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine, putting out 247 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque. If you’re wondering about the electric EX40 or the EC40, we won’t be getting either version here in the US market. Instead, we should get a replacement called the EX50 sometime in 2027.
Volvo has not announced pricing for the 2028 XC40 yet, but we should see those numbers before it actually hits showrooms in the first quarter of 2027. The outgoing model starts at about $41,295. I suspect the new model will come in a bit more expensive, but it should still begin somewhere in the low-$40K ball park.
