2025 Volvo EX90 Review: Update Required

September 13, 2024

Lawrence Ulrich

Contrary to what you may have heard, Americans are buying more EVs than ever. But they tend to like ‘em big. After production delays due to software development issues – a problem that continues to plague automakers from Volkswagen to General Motors – Volvo’s EX90 will look to lure families who live for three-row luxury SUVs.

Based on a recent media drive in Newport Beach, California, Volvo may still have some work to do. The twin-motor EX90 did impress us with its 510 hp (380 kW), confident handling, leading-edge safety and sparkling high-resolution displays. But a software glitch dinged our test car when a section of its 14.5-inch (37 cm) center screen blanked out. Other journalists reported issues with a phone-based digital key that briefly left one driver stranded when it wouldn’t connect with the Volvo. This is another reason I never rely on an automaker’s digital key and always ask for a hard backup.

The EX90 will also be missing some key features when the first models ship from South Carolina (production is slated to start in the fourth quarter this year). The list includes the must-have Apple CarPlay, which Volvo promises to add ASAP via an over-the-air update. An industry-first Luminar lidar unit will be limited to gathering data on its drivers and physical environment until it’s updated to support advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) in the future.

Teething pains aside, the Volvo is smartly engineered to take on three-row EVs including the Kia EV9 and luxury Rivian R1S, Tesla Model X and Mercedes EQS SUV. It all begins with the EV-only SPA2 platform that also underpins the Polestar 3.

The Swedish automaker, owned by China’s Geely, put that elegant platform on naked display on California’s coast. The skateboard battery’s 17 orange modules tuck between high-strength protective steel rails, with a metal cooling plate and status monitors for 204 nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) cells. They’re bookended by a pair of permanent magnet synchronous motors with 402 hp (300 kW) – or 510 hp in the Performance version. This all-wheel-drive powertrain integrates a torque-vectoring rear differential. A dual-chamber air suspension and active shock absorbers boosted ride-and-handling in the Performance Ultra models we drove.

On the road

From the coast, we headed inland in the handsome Volvo. The SUV sets off from a standstill in AWD to ensure traction. Above 19 mph (31 km/h), the EX90 can rely on front-axle propulsion to save energy, and dial in juice from the rear wheels according to driver demand. Press a screen button, and the Volvo locks and loads into a Performance AWD mode for maximum thrust. And thrusty it is, with a 4.7-second jump to 60 mph (97 km/h) and a 112 mph (180 km/h) top speed, aided by a mammoth 671 lb-ft (910 Nm). Standard 408-hp models clip 60 mph in a reasonable 5.7 seconds.

Our EX90 supported its claim as history’s quietest Volvo, breezing through Orange County burbs with mere whispers of wind noise and road hum through optional 22-inch (56-cm) wheels. A full battery has 107 usable kWh and a total pack size of 111 kWh. The EPA hasn’t weighed in, but Volvo figures a driving range of up to 308 miles (496 km). En route to Temecula, including some fast canyon switchbacks, the Volvo slurps 37 kWh of energy per 100 miles (161 km). That equates to 290 miles (467 km) of real-world range, and a lighter foot could surely boost that.

Interior space aplenty

The low-key-stylish Volvo takes advantage of its SPA2 platform with flat-floor interior packaging and spacious seating for six or seven. In a tastefully neutral-toned cabin, light ash wood trim is backlit at night in a glowing pattern inspired by Scandinavian homes. Hygge, indeed. A padded, cantilevered tunnel console hovers above open-floor front storage.

Enveloping seats bring near-orthopedic comfort, with seat massage and soft-closing doors among the perks on Ultra trims. Soft-textured tailored wool upholstery combines responsibly sourced sheep trimmings with recycled polyester. And the EX90 ditches any trace of leather in favor of available, faux “Nordico.” It’s not as supple as the real deal, but the sustainable, weight-saving material combines pine oil from Scandinavian forests with recycled PET bottles and corks.

The third row offered just enough headroom and knee room for this six-foot-tall (1.83 m) tester, with power switches in the cargo area to raise or lower seats. A frunk up front can fit a modest backpack plus odds-and-ends, though the space gets too hot for beverages or anything chocolate.

As in Teslas, several features are adjusted entirely on screen. Traditionalists needn’t fret: The hassle is minimal. Those include the side mirrors, steering wheel and a head-up display. But a handsome row of recessed air vents rightly keep physical switches. The Volvo’s handsome UI – when it’s working properly – and vertically oriented center screen have a blessedly short learning curve. They’re backed by the Android Automotive platform and Google’s industry-best navigation maps and directions, rendered here with eye-popping clarity and detail. An optional Bowers & Wilkins audio system tops anything I’ve heard in a Volvo, incorporating 25 speakers, including in the front headrests. Onboard apps include Tidal audio, Spotify and the Vivaldi browser, with Google Assistant voice controls and a raft of offerings through Google Play Store.

A smaller, equally sharp display perches atop the steering column. It flaunted animated depictions of surrounding vehicles with Tesla-level accuracy, including oncoming traffic. An onscreen switch amps up regenerative braking for one-pedal driving. Its “Auto” mode is a performance highlight, smartly adjusting regen level depending on traffic ahead. Steering is a bit numb, in EV fashion, though its assist level can be firmed up, along with the suspension. The air suspension revealed a mild case of jitters over rough pavement, but generally delivered the soft tuning and serene control favored by Volvo fans.

Safety? Naturally

Volvo further touts the EX90 as its safest car yet, fully hardware-enabled for future unsupervised autonomous driving. This software-centric SUV adopts Nvidia’s Drive Orin and Drive Xavier platforms for most core and neural-network operations, with a combined 280 trillion operations per second; along with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon cockpit platform.

For now, the ever-cautious Volvo offers a Pilot Assist feature that delivered trusty lane centering, self-steering and automated lane changes on highways. Unlike most rivals, the Volvo decides what your active-cruising following distance should be, automatically widening the gap as speeds climb. One of two cabin-facing cameras monitors drivers to ensure eyes on the road, while a capacitive steering-wheel sensor dictates hands on the wheel. That’s part of a breathtaking safety suite that creates a real-time, 360-degree view of surroundings, via the roof-mounted lidar sensor, five radars, eight cameras and 12 ultrasonic sensors.

The Volvo can charge at a speedy 250-kW maximum through its CCS plug, for a 10-to-80 percent charge in about 30 minutes, or 110 miles of added range in 10 minutes. That’s despite the EX90’s 400-volt architecture, versus the 800-volt systems used by brands such as Lucid, Hyundai and Porsche. Volvo engineers said a Tesla NACS adapter will be available at launch. And like nearly every automaker, Volvo plans to eventually segue its EVs to those NACS plugs. For now, one cool feature is a bi-directional home charger. Volvo says the unit could save a typical Californian $1,800 a year by using the EX90’s battery to power home electricity for just a few hours each day, then recharging the Volvo at off-peak rates.

Sourcing battery cells from China’s CATL makes the Volvo ineligible for tax breaks, but consumers can make an end-run around the rules by leasing an EX90 and securing a $7,500 discount through dealers. That will ease the blow of an $81,290 starting price, or a peak $90,640 in Performance Ultra guise. Let’s hope Volvo can get Apple CarPlay and lidar-supported ADAS aboard, pronto. That way, owners will get all the tech they’re paying for.

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