THURSDAY, March 28, 2024
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A gratifying drive in Volvo’s latest XC90

A gratifying drive in Volvo’s latest XC90

The Nation's Kingsley Wijayasinha finds this well-equipped super-spacious behemoth is bext driven "smoothly" - if you want to enjoy great ride comfort and refinement.

SINCE ITS debut at the Detroit Motor
Show two years ago, the Volvo XC90
has driven away with a host of awards
from around the world, and for 2017
the flagship SUV from the Swedish
manufacturer is even better.
The XC90 is imported from
Malaysia, and is available with
petrol, diesel and hybrid powertrains
with retail prices ranging from
Bt2.949 million to Bt5.99 million.
The model I picked up at the Volvo
Car Thailand headquarters a few
weeks ago was the entry-level hybrid
XC90 T8 Twin Engine Momentum
priced at Bt4.49 million.
The XC90 was incidentally
parked next to a V40, and the first
impression I got was this is a really
huge sport utility vehicle, easily
dwarfing its small brother.
I liked the clean front end and the
modern headlight design, which
gives the XC90 a futuristic look that
makes you think of Iron Man.
However, the side profile is rather
dull and won’t be attracting anyone’s
attention. The rear end, meanwhile,
carries on the vertical tail-light tradition but again doesn’t appear as
futuristic as the front.
The XC90 is almost 5 metres long
and 2 metres wide, and earns a “tank”
status in my vehicle size chart, and
it is no surprise that when you climb
in, you’ll discover a super-spacious
interior that’s well designed. The
seats are comfortable and the interior design is beautiful, with highquality trim and functionality.
Even before taking off from
Volvo’s headquarters, I needed some
tuition on how to set up the XC90
through the tablet-style touchscreen
on the centre console. It isn’t difficult, but there are lots of choices to
make, and I can imagine spending
the whole day setting up everything
to my preference. For example, there
are more than 400 combinations
from four powertrain settings, three
for instrument display, two for
brakes and two for climate control.
Oh, and it accepts all types of finger
inputs, from swipes to zoom – just
like your iPad.
One of the choices here is to select
the hybrid mode for everyday use,
and when the situation permits, run
in pure electric mode for a range of
40km (the average distance many
people drive in a day). There are also
Sport and Off-Road modes for more
demanding conditions.
The XC90 T8 Twin Engine features a 2.0-litre supercharged and
turbocharged engine that produces
320hp and 400Nm of torque, as well
as an electric motor that throws in
another 87hp and 240Nm. Together,
they propel the XC90 from 0-
100km/h in just over 5 seconds,
crossing into sports car territory,
while the SUV’s top speed is claimed
to be 230km/h.
This is a plug-in hybrid, so you are
able to charge the battery from outside sources. Unfortunately, the plug
of the charging cable isn’t the type
used in Thailand, so you’ll need to
change the regular home outlet to
match. This doesn’t make much
sense – Volvo should have provided
a Thailand-compatible plug with the
cable just as BMW and MercedesBenz do.
The 9.2kWh lithium-ion battery
pack, located in the central tunnel,
charges in 2.5-6 hours, depending on
the amperage. The unique location
makes room for the rear occupants
(there are three rows of seats) and the
large electric motor is located in the
rear axle, driving the rear wheels while
the engine powers the front pair.
Despite its capability of sinking
occupants into their seats with powerful acceleration, and rather good
road manners, you don’t want to go
fast with the XC90. It’s so big you
don’t feel like changing direction too
often, and once you do, it’s easy to feel
over two tonnes of mass shifting to
one side.
But drive it smoothly and you’d
enjoy great ride comfort and refinement that this large SUV is made for.
The suspension does its job well on
most surfaces, although it doesn’t
seem to absorb the initial shock (and
noise) from community speed
bumps too well.
Volvo is known for safety, and the
2017 XC90 comes with an additional safety package that includes auto
braking functions, lane keeping features and more. What owners will
appreciate most are the Queue Assist
– that lets the XC90 drive itself in
heavy traffic – and due to the humongous size of the vehicle, Park Assist,
which works for both parallel and
perpendicular reverse parking.
Although I didn’t have much fun
with the XC90 Twin Engine
Momentum, I did enjoy using it very
much. It may be big and cumbersome to drive in the city, but there
are many interesting features – a hell
of a lot that I didn’t have time to try
all out during my four-day encounter
with this SUV.
Competition is strong from
German rivals BMW X5 and
Mercedes-Benz GLE (or even the
Audi Q7), but the Volvo XC90 has
got what it takes to win a wealthy
number of customers in the luxury
SUV market, thanks to its comprehensive packaging and attention to
detail.
 

Volvo XC90 Twin Engine Momentum specs

Engine: 4-cylinder 16-valve with
supercharger and turbocharger
Displacement: 1,969cc
Bore and stroke: 82.0x93.2mm
Compression ratio: 10.3:1
Max power: 320hp/5,700rpm
Max torque: 400Nm/rpm
Electric motor
Max power: 87hp
Max torque: 240Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Ratios:
5.250/3.029/1.950/1.457/1.221/1.000/
0.809/0.673
Final drive ratio: 3.200
Acceleration 0-100km/h: 5.6 secs
Top speed: 230km/h
Average fuel economy: 43.5km/litre
CO2: 55g/km
Suspension (f/r): Double wishbone,
stabiliser/multi-link, stabiliser
Steering: powered rack-and-pinion
Turning circle: 12.1 metres
Brakes (f/r): vented disc/vented disc
Dimensions (mm)
Length: 4,950
Width: 2,008
Height: 1,776
Wheelbase: 2,984
Track (f/r): 1,665/1,673
Ground clearance: 238mm
Approach angle: 23.8 degrees
Breakover angle: 21.3 degrees
Departure angle: 23.3 degrees
Weight: n/a
Wheels: 19” alloys
Tyres: 235/55 R19
Fuel tank capacity: 50 litres
Price: Bt4.49 million
Distributor: Volvo Car Thailand
 

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