Styling
The form of the XC90 has not changed much in the near-decade it has been on sale, yet it still looks marvellous, it truly does. This is a design that is ageing so gracefully, albeit we're not 100 per cent convinced by the main change for the 2025MY cars, which is that radiator grille with opposing diagonal lines on it. There's no doubting this feature is eye-catching, but it might be overly fussy and we can't make our minds up on it as yet. Beyond this, it's only subtle massaging of the Volvo's appearance to note - the 'Thor hammer' DRLs are no longer solid items but only have their outlines illuminated, the rear lamp clusters are darkened, there are fresh designs of 20-, 21- and 22-inch alloy wheels, and an additional body colour is available which is called Mulberry Red. If you look closely, the bonnet and wings have been resculpted too, but honestly if you know what a Mk2 XC90 looks like by now, the latest Volvo SUV is not going to aesthetically take you by surprise in the slightest. This, though, as we said at the start, is not a bad thing at all.
Interior
Again, no major changes in here in the main, and somehow the Volvo's supposedly ancient interior has not been notably surpassed by that of any of its rivals' efforts in the years it has been on sale. This still feels like one of, if not
the best cabins in this class. Material quality, the fit and finish, the ambience of it all... everything's first-rate in here. So the most significant update pertains to the 11.2-inch infotainment screen in the dashboard, which is powered by Google and its services, and is borrowed from the electric
EX30 and EX90 models. This touchscreen is faster-responding and graphically superior to the old nine-inch display, although there are still things (like the temperature in the cabin of the SUV) that are controlled through this alone, which will annoy fans of physical buttons. However, overall, ergonomically and haptically speaking, the XC90's passenger compartment is a big hit.
Practicality
The cabin is also a big space. Every model of XC90, be it a mild hybrid or a full PHEV, has the same complement of seven seats and the same amount of practicality; that was one of the development benefits of the SPA platform it sits upon. The third row isn't cavernous and is designed for people of up to 5ft 8in tall, but it's better than what you'd find in many competitors, and all the seats in the back fold down easily and can be configured by owners to satisfy varied levels of passenger-to-cargo requirements as appropriate. Speaking of which, the 262-litre boot with all seven seats in use doesn't sound huge, but that's only up to the window line; there's more than 300 litres back there if you go up to the XC90's roof. Fold the third row down and 668 litres (again, to the window line) is liberated, but at its maximum with just the two front seats in play, the Volvo can accommodate 1,959 litres of clobber. And that's simply massive.
Performance
The drivetrains are carryovers from the pre-facelift-facelifted models of the XC90 (aka the outgoing ones), which means B5, B6 and T8. The former two of these are 48-volt mild hybrids, the first the 250hp turbocharged 2.0-litre and the middle one, the artist formerly known as the
T6, that weird super- and turbocharged version with 300hp. So weird, in fact, that Volvo UK won't be bringing it here, so your straightforward choices are B5 or T8.
Having driven the B5 back-to-back with the latest version of the PHEV flagship, it's a fine engine but it's noisier approaching the redline, and honestly 250hp/360Nm are probably at the bare-limit minimum of what you need for a big SUV like this. We only drove it two-up, so imagining the engine having to haul a full complement of seven people, or even five people and a bootful of luggage, makes us wonder whether the slightly brawnier B6 might not have been such a bad idea after all.
Therefore, it's back to the main draw T8 we go. Nowadays, this thing runs massive outputs of 455hp and 709Nm, a combination of its own 310hp tune of the super- and turbocharged 2.0-litre four-pot plus a 107kW (145hp) electric motor with 309Nm of peak torque. That's enough grunt to shove a vehicle that nudges 2.3 tonnes from 0-62mph in 5.4 seconds, but perhaps the bigger appeal of the T8 powertrain is the noise of it. Where the B5 can sometimes simply sound strained and harsh at higher revs, the supercharger and potent electric motor in the T8 overlay the regular soundtrack with some interesting noises, that actually verge on being described as 'alluring' at times.
And with the slick-shifting, albeit not flawless eight-speed automatic transmission and all the traction benefits of four-wheel drive, the XC90 T8 is properly rapid. It's as good at higher-speed roll-on acceleration as it is stepping smartly off the line, with masses of midrange torque and a nice, crisp throttle making eliciting pace easy. It may 'only' have a four-cylinder engine, but there's no way anyone rational could criticise the Volvo for the amount of speed it can quickly summon up.
As to fuel economy and range, that's probably one of the XC90 T8's weaker points. As with any PHEV, the on-paper eco-stats look strong, but the Volvo's battery is small at 14.7kWh these days; most rivals have 20kWh-plus batteries. This means the Volvo's on-paper EV range of circa-40 miles isn't anything to write home about in the first place, and in reality you'll get more like 25-30 miles out of it anyway. In turn, that means there is going to be more likelihood that the T8 will be using its petrol engine more often, so instead of getting a realistic 50mpg from your PHEV SUV, you'll be looking at more like 30mpg. That's what we saw (30.7mpg) on a 65-mile road route around southern Sweden, taking in urban streets, country roads and motorway speeds, and while that was obviously with some periods of faster driving involved, plus no real thought to conserving fuel, that part of the world is not particularly hilly, nor was it cold either. In the Volvo's defence, it only used around half of its battery and still reckoned it could go another 18 miles on the voltage that remained. But we'd guess 40mpg is going to be your everyday limit, in practice.
Ride & Handling
Volvo's main update here is to fit frequency selective dampers (FSDs) as the standard suspension set-up, while adaptive four-corner air suspension is an option - although it's fitted to both the Plus and Ultra specifications of the T8 from the off, with the Core making do with the FSDs which Volvo refers to as the 'Touring chassis'.
Either Touring or air is a good choice, but we think the latter is the one to go for, mainly because it just gives the XC90 more sophistication in a wider range of circumstances. Also, the suppression of tyre noise seemed better on air, which is most bizarre, but it also rides the bumps in a more composed fashion and doesn't ever thump as it's dealing with imperfections in the road surface. Good news it's standard-fit on the two upper T8s, then.
As it has always been, the XC90 is a super-elegant, ultra-comfortable SUV to travel in, but what it's not is sporty in any way. That's fine, of course - if you want something dynamic in the corners, go and pick up a
Porsche Cayenne E-Hybrid. And we wouldn't even say the Volvo is without merit in the handling department, because it has clean, accurate steering, plenty of grip with a refusal to easily understeer, loads of traction and accomplished body/wheel control. You can show it a series of curves and take them at a decent pace, and it will do a very, very good job of dealing with them, all things considered (primarily that this is a 2.2-tonne-plus, comfort-oriented, seven-seat SUV that's nearly five metres long and 1.8 metres tall). Yet is it thrilling? Rewarding? Surprisingly adjustable? No. No, it isn't. Its road-holding is adept, but not deserving of adultation.
Value
When the XC90 was new in 2015, a D5 began at £45,550 and the T8 was available from £59,955. That, on the face of it, makes the starting price of a B5 in late 2024 look wild at £63,790, while the T8 PHEV is available in three specifications - Core (£72,650), Plus (£77,650) and Ultra (an eye-watering £84,150). But before you go on a rant about 'all new cars are stupidly expensive these days', inflation-adjusted the 2015 D5 would cost you £61,134 in '24, while the original T8 was £80,468. So maybe the 2025MY XC90 isn't overpriced, especially when you consider an
Audi Q7 55 TFSI e starts from £76,315 as an S line (and is less powerful), a
BMW X5 xDrive50e will set you back £82,055 as an M Sport, and that aforementioned Cayenne E-Hybrid (a five-seater only, remember) kicks off from £84,800. Although all of those have six-cylinder engines and bigger battery packs, so... swings and roundabouts, and all that.
Verdict
With just some new lights, a cross-hatched radiator grille and a larger infotainment system fitted, it would be reasonable to expect the 2025MY Volvo XC90 to feel like it was past its best, ready for the scrapheap in the face of fresher and more advanced products that have launched in the intervening period since it first appeared in 2015. And yet, somehow, this SUV feels just as competitive, desirable and thoroughly likeable as it ever has. There's nothing wrong with its splendid cabin, its exterior appearance is attractive, and while it'll never thrill the keener driver, it will effortlessly soothe away the worst of daily-miles drudgery with its immense rolling refinement and supple ride comfort. If you want a brilliant all-rounder of a premium seven-seat SUV, you could - and can - do a lot, lot worse than the superb XC90, even as it heads into its tenth year of service.
