This car, in general, is not a newcomer — much has already been said and written about it. In city traffic, the XC90 has long become a familiar sight. Nevertheless, I was curious to try out such an atypical car for Volvo. Although, looking into its technical content, you understand: the engineers hardly had to invent anything. All-wheel drive and turbo engines were already available at the company. So Volvo simply could not fail to create a car in the gaining popularity class of crossovers.
Getting into the XC90's cabin, you immediately feel at home — everything is so familiar that you forget you're sitting in a huge SUV. The feeling is as if you're in a hybrid of the previous generation S60 and S80 models. The interior is almost copied from them. But this giant handles completely differently — the softer and longer-travel suspension and the high center of gravity take their toll.
And this means that if you try to pilot the XC90 in the manner of an ordinary passenger car, as I'm used to, you'll only get constant irritation. Entering a corner, you notice that the steering wheel with wooden trim is absolutely empty, and you have to guess the trajectory almost intuitively. And that's only half the trouble! In a turn, you need to manage not to slide off the smooth leather seat, which has almost no lateral support — the body desperately lacks fixation. In addition, every sharp braking or acceleration is accompanied by nose dives and complaints from passengers: "I think I'm getting motion sickness." And it's not at all that I'm a reckless racer who only recognizes "full throttle" and "brake to the floor." In a passenger car, everything would be fine — there, both body rolls and pitching are much weaker. And other SUVs behaved more decently. Strange car! Or, perhaps, I'm doing something wrong?
"Calm, just calm!" — I recalled the motto of the famous compatriot of this Volvo. Since it doesn't work out to drive at the usual pace, we'll adapt. Firstly, now we always keep such a distance that even during emergency braking of the car ahead, my passengers and I won't have to compete in the strength of our vestibular apparatus. It's good that not everyone will dare to cut in front of us: the "facial expression" of the XC90, though intelligent, is imposing, and not everyone will dare to get in its way. But if someone does cut in, and even with a turn signal, we'll definitely let them pass. Why get worked up over nothing?
And you need to enter turns more calmly: after all, a tall and heavy car feels better on a straight line than on an arc. And if we're in a hurry? No big deal that we'll fall behind a bit in a turn: when the Volvo XC90 gets out onto "open space," it will quickly make up for lost time. Even the base 210-horsepower turbo engine pulls quite confidently. And the T6 and V8 versions, I suppose, will be even more spirited. What, still not in time? We need to leave earlier! Or choose another car. True, it's unlikely that this "other car" will be able to deliver you to your destination with the same comfort.
Although I had enough of the five cylinders, fortunately, the "automatic" in the XC90 works adequately and doesn't prevent the engine from working to its full potential. It, by the way, is tuned so that smooth control is as convenient as possible, but at the same time, you can accelerate when necessary without hesitation. If you press the gas pedal less than halfway, the car starts to accelerate without downshifting, which is very convenient when you need to quickly gain speed, but without the jerk that accompanies a downshift. Then there's a step in effort, after which the gearbox's "hands are untied," and it can downshift. But, again, quite smoothly. And if you sharply press the pedal to the floor, the car really "shoots," not caring about the passengers' peace. Quite unusual, but when you get used to it, you understand that it's very convenient. The main thing is not to get confused in all these pedal positions. But the brake pedal is tuned in such a way that you have to get used to it — it grabs too sharply. Apparently, the Swedes decided to play it safe — they say, better to over-brake than under-brake. The main thing is that at the moment of braking, there isn't some fan of "tailgating" behind — otherwise, the Volvo XC90 will quickly teach him not to do that.
But, having gotten used to a calm driving style, you begin to get real pleasure from this car. Yes, it's better to accelerate only on a straight line, yes, sharp steering movements should be avoided. But if you drive smoothly, the reward is truly royal comfort. You sit in "flat" seats, as if on a throne. And you begin to understand that although the XC90's seats don't squeeze you like a vise, you can arrange yourself in them as comfortably as possible. And from the back, the grumbling of passengers stops coming. Around you — all leather, wood, soft plastic. So we drive: fast or slow, but always — very smoothly, without the slightest fuss. Well, let's sprawl more comfortably in the seat and listen to music. Wow, the XC90 has turned me into a true Volvo driver! By the way, the passenger car models of the Swedish company never imposed such a driving style on me. And in the XC90, I had to get used to it. And you know what — I liked it!
In motion, the Volvo XC90 is very reminiscent of a ship or a yacht. It seems to float above the road — calmly, confidently, slightly rocking on the waves of asphalt. With the only difference that it can "sail" only on roads. But it does so quite confidently. The main thing is to smoothly work the "helm" and pedals — otherwise, passengers won't avoid an attack of seasickness.
And, by the way, don't be fooled by the impressive ground clearance of the Volvo XC90: it's better not to venture into mud with it. After all, in normal conditions, as much as 95% of the traction is sent to the front axle, which means that off-road, the car will not look its best. The viscous coupling will engage the rear wheels only when the front ones have already managed to reliably "dig in" the ground. On the other hand, if you believe the Russian saying about the "coolness" of jeeps, you won't have to walk far for a tractor, if anything — about 20-30 meters at most. But the XC90 doesn't try to "pose" as a real off-roader; its element is city curbs and rural roads, fortunately, there are no problems with geometric cross-country capability. And the intelligent XC90 ignores all other types of obstacles. In the sense that it prefers not to climb where it shouldn't.
So, the XC90 is a car for the uncompromising Volvo driver. To enjoy driving, you need to drive the car exactly the way it invites you to. That is, calmly and smoothly, allowing yourself to "hurry" exclusively on straight sections of the road. Otherwise, you'll start complaining about body rolls and nose dives, amorphous seats and the "empty" steering wheel, and rear passengers will slide back and forth on the leather sofa and constantly ask you to stop for some fresh air. But if you manage to adapt to the car, you'll definitely like it. That's the whole Volvo XC90: you'll definitely change either your driving style or the car.
Technical specifications
| Specifications | $64426 |
|----------------|--------|
| Engine | five-cylinder turbocharged, displacement 2521 cm3 |
| Power | 210 hp |
| Torque | 320 Nm (1500 – 4500 rpm) |
| Maximum speed | 210 km/h (limited) |
| Acceleration to 100 km/h | 9.5 sec. (manual transmission); 9.9 sec. (automatic transmission) |
| **Fuel consumption (l/100 km)** | |
| city cycle | 16 (manual transmission) 16 (automatic transmission) |
| highway cycle | 8.9 (manual transmission) 9.3 (automatic transmission) |
Equipment of the tested car
- **Standard equipment of the XC90 2.5T AWD 2006 model year:**
- All-wheel drive system with INSTANT TRACTION™ technology
- Driver and passenger airbags
- 2 side airbags (SIPS)
- 2 side curtain airbags (IS)
- Whiplash protection system in front seats (WHIPS)
- Roll Stability Control (RSC)
- Rollover Protection System (ROPS)
- Seat belts with pretensioners
- Anti-lock braking system (ABS)
- Electronic brake-force distribution (EBD)
- Dynamic Stability and Traction Control (DSTC)
- Emergency Brake Assist (EBA)
- Anti-theft system with immobilizer, volume and tilt sensors
- Remote central locking with "deadlock" function
- "Courtesy" lighting
- On-board computer
- Headlight washers
- Electric windows
- Two-stage heated front seats
Additional equipment: PREMIUM Package:
- Cruise control
- Luggage compartment cover
- Electrically folding exterior mirrors with heating
- Progressive steering system that changes steering effort depending on speed
- Audio system controls on the steering wheel
- Rear mud flaps
- Leather gear shift knob
- Rain sensor
- Bi-xenon headlights with automatic leveling
- Air quality system
- 6-disc CD changer
- Rear parking sensor
Options: Inscription™ interior with soft Serene leather (sand/black color, black wood trim, textile mats with edging, leather-trimmed sport steering wheel with aluminum insert), power driver's seat with 3 memory positions, power front passenger seat, electric "child" lock for rear doors, built-in phone, PREMIUM SOUND Dolby Surround Pro Logic® II audio system (amplifiers 4×70W + 1×25W, 12 speakers), rear headphone jacks, alloy wheels ATLANTIS (tire size 235/60 R18), passenger airbag deactivation function.
The test car was provided by the official representative office of Volvo Car Russia.
Behind the scenes
