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In-depth reviews

Volvo XC90 review - Practicality, comfort and boot space

In spite of its premium feel, practicality is the real strength of the Volvo XC90

Overall Auto Express Rating

4.0 out of 5

Practicality, comfort and boot space Rating

4.7 out of 5

Price
£62,330 to £83,465
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The Volvo XC90 is a handsome, if still relatively conservative, take on the large premium SUV. That means an imposing five-door body with a moderately raked tailgate, three rows of seats and the sort of commanding driving position that has helped to make the genre so popular. 

Aside from a truly spacious, seven-seat interior, the Volvo XC90 lives up to its practical image thanks to details like a large storage area in the centre console, a decent glovebox and a deep central cubbyhole. Storage in the back row is good as well, with each seat getting its own cup-holder and trinket tray. The climate control allows you to set up independent temperature zones for four forward occupants on top-spec models, but the XC90 doesn’t offer heating controls for passengers in the third row.

Size 

The Volvo XC90 is a very big car, at 4,953mm nose to tail. But then the Audi Q7 and Land Rover Discovery are even larger. The XC90's shape is essentially boxy and practical, unlike more overtly ‘rakish’ rivals such as the Audi Q7, and this shows against the tape measure. 

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With a 1,776mm roof height the Volvo XC90 stands tall against the 1,762mm BMW X5 (both without roof bars), and falls in-between the 1,737mm high Audi Q7 and 1,796mm Mercedes-Benz GLE (both of the latter have standard-fit roof bars).

Leg room, head room & passenger space 

A vast interior has always been one of the Volvo XC90’s strengths, and the current model is better than ever. The seats are comfortable and roomy and, unlike many seven-seaters, even the third row is reasonably generous for adults – although headroom will be tight for anyone over around 5 foot 8 inches. Headroom is pretty much the same in the front two rows at 99.8cm and 99.7cm respectively, while the rear row offers only 92.3cm.

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You’ll have to be fairly agile to climb up and past the second row, too, but all passengers should find themselves comfortably accommodated once they’ve scrambled in. Pleasingly, seats six and seven are the same size as those in the middle row, and set slightly inwards for a better view forward. Theatre-style seating rising towards the back of the car helps rearmost passengers see out, too. Legroom is good in the first two rows, but becomes a little compromised at the back. The floor in the second row isn’t entirely flat due to a transmission tunnel.

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The plug-in hybrid XC90 Recharge has exactly the same interior passenger space as the petrol and diesel mild-hybrid versions, due to innovative packaging of the battery in the ‘spine’ of the vehicle. With a 70-litre fuel tank up from the previous generation’s 50 litres, and no modifications required to the hybrid drivetrain or battery positioning, practicality has certainly increased.

Boot

In seven-seat configuration, the Volvo XC90 offers a great mix of refinement and practicality, with 356 litres of boot space in the petrol and diesel mild-hybrid models. Folding the third row of seats down is an easier job than in the Land Rover Discovery, as you simply press a button to lower them – the heatreasts are automatically folded down to get out of the way too. This raises the boot space on offer up to 1,007 litres, but stow all but the front seats away and you get an enormous 1,856 litres to play with. Plus, with a low loading lip and ‘hands-free’ powered tailgate as standard, it’ll be easy to pack away shopping.

Luggage capacity is ever so slightly reduced in the plug-in hybrid T8; there’s 316 litres with all seven seats in place, up to 967 litres with the third row stowed away and 1,816 if you just leave the front seats up. You can just about fit the charging cables under the boot floor in the T8, and Volvo sells a bag for them if you want it to look neater.

The XC90’s boot features a pop-up shopping bag holder in the boot, although it can't quite pop up if the rearmost seats are raised, and a very shallow under-boot area. There's also nowhere to stow the luggage cover when seven seats are being used, though – it just sits across the floor.

Towing

Many Volvo XC90 owners will be interested in the SUV’s towing capacities. The diesel B5’s 2,700kg maximum compares well with the 2,800kg towing limit of a comparable-spec Audi Q7 – although both are outclassed by the 3,500kg towing limit of the Land Rover Discovery. Meanwhile the plug-in hybrid XC90 Recharge can haul up to 2,350kg.

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Which Is Best

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News reporter

As our news reporter, Ellis is responsible for covering everything new and exciting in the motoring world, from quirky quadricycles to luxury MPVs. He was previously the content editor for DrivingElectric and won the Newspress Automotive Journalist Rising Star award in 2022.

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