Moose-proof and megacasting: Ars drives the new Volvo EX60

Volvo engineer Mats Brodin says the rear floor is made from 50 percent recyclable aluminum collected from post-consumer materials. He describes himself as “the architect of megacasting”, and likens the Volvo EV to building design.

Brodin says the cast is made primarily of aluminum mixed with a very small amount of silicone and is inserted into the MegaCast machine in about 90 milliseconds. Then it takes a minute to dry. With two megacasting machines on site at the Torslanda plant, near Volvo’s headquarters in Gothenburg, Sweden, the EX60s are ready to roll off the line quickly.

Volvo is using megacasting judiciously. For example, if a car crashes and the diecast piece is damaged, it is more likely to become scrap, as it may not be easily repairable. That’s why it makes sense for Volvo to megacast a single rear floor part instead of a larger part.

The EX60 is the first Volvo car to use megacasting, so it seems new, but the plan has been in the works since at least 2022. The company has invested 10 billion Swedish kronor – about $1.1 billion – in the manufacturing facility, including these giant megacasting pieces.

Smart battery integration and excellent one-pedal driving

The EX60 will use the structural battery design used in the BMW iX3 or Tesla Model Y; Volvo says the EX60 will have a “cell-to-body” battery. Unlike typical EVs with bulky battery packs (the GMC Hummer EV, for example), the EX60’s battery cells are integrated directly into its body.

Essentially, the battery pack becomes the floor of the vehicle. This provides weight and packaging efficiency and opens up more cabin space. The most important thing for an EV is that it reduces weight, which improves range. It is part of Volvo’s new SPA3 platform, designed specifically for EVs.

During testing in and around Barcelona, ​​Spain, the EX60 performed brilliantly with one-pedal driving, improving the car’s regenerative properties. Taking comfort in the EV’s handling quality, I barely touched the brakes on winding roads outside the city. I haven’t been a big fan of most one-pedal drives because many of them are jerky and difficult to adapt to; This is not the case with the EX60.