Volvo wants to use recycled materials in its cars in 2025

After pledging to go all electric in 2019, Volvo Cars is taking another step in helping the environment. The Scandinavian brand says that it plans to build cars, or at least parts of it, using recycled plastic materials by 2025.

Yup, 25% of the body of Volvo vehicles – known for its safety features and stylish looks – will be made of renewable products. To prove that this is possible and to encourage other brands to do the same, Volvo made a one-off build of the XC60 T8 plug-in hybrid. It has several of its plastic components replaced with parts made with recycled materials.

Aesthetically, it looks pretty much like the regular XC60. It’s actually inside where the brand made its environmentally-friendly changes to the premium SUV.

This special Volvo features a tunnel console made from discarded fishnets and maritime ropes. Its seats and floor carpet contains fibers from PET plastic bottles and recycled cotton mix from clothing manufacturers. Meanwhile, sound insulation under the car’s hood is created from the seats of old Volvo cars.

Apart from using renewable materials in its cars, the brand has several programs in place to help it minimize and recycle waste such as eradicating single-use plastics in its premises and events. Volvo even became the first brand to have a climate-neutral facility in Skövde, Sweden. We just have to say it: let Volvo be an example to other carmakers out there. It takes effort to save the environment, and Volvo is on the right track.