If I were to go up to a random person on the street and ask them to picture a Volvo, they would almost certainly say either the 240 or the XC90. For many, the 240 is the default Volvo, a family wagon designed with a ruler that prioritized safety. Its boxy styling was part of its charm and the 240 made many a screen appearances as a result of this, a similar thing can be said of the later 700 series cars too. Until recently, the 200 series was also the best selling Volvo of all time, bettered only by the XC60!
Then there’s the XC90, which has arguably become the benchmark Volvo over the past two decades. Its introduction in 2002 took the world by storm. The Swedes were early to the SUV party but that didn’t stop them from putting out a good car but one that was still inherently a Volvo. The XC90 brought unparalleled safety to a seven-seater vehicle, without a significant compromise to the car’s driving dynamics. It also helped raise Volvo’s brand perception, paving the way for the luxury brand that it is today.
It’s hard to believe that there have only ever been two generations of the XC90, the first lasting up until 2014 with the second one still in production now! The plan originally was for the fully-electric EX90 to replace its hybrid counterpart but the constant ping-pong of regulation change inspired Volvo to give buyers the benefit of choice and although delayed, the EX90 is finally here and it has some big shoes to fill!
Volvo’s new EX or electric era officially began when the XC40 Recharge became the EX40 in 2024, it was joined shortly after by the EC40 and then the headline act which was the compact EX30. It was only at that point when the EX90 joined the lineup, making its local debut earlier on this year. There’s now an EX60 as well! However, like the XC90 did for Volvo’s fuel powered lineup, the EX90 sits firmly atop Volvo’s EX range of EV vehicles.
But how does one even begin to emulate the XC90, a vehicle that once held the title of Volvo’s safest car ever!
Well, you can start with the proportions, part of the XC90’s strength was in its footprint, not overly large but enough so to accommodate seven people on the inside, in relative comfort. The EX90 measures at a length of 5.04m, height of 1.74m and a width of 1.96m. As visible, it is not a small vehicle but despite the dimensions, it has a drag coefficient of 0.29 Cd which is incredibly impressive for a vehicle of this size!
That miniscule drag coefficient is made possible by a smartly designed exterior which smoothens out the sharper lines for softer contours, it’s very Scandi! Volvos have always managed to walk this fine line of being smartly styled without being ostentatious, the EX90 is very much on brand where that is concerned. There’s no grille at the front but the integration of the panel is natural as is the minimalist Volvo logo on the nose. ‘Thor Hammer’ HD Pixel LED headlights adorn the front and allow the EX90 to be identified as a member of the EX electric family.
Around the rear, there’s LED taillights which have now been split into a total of three units. There’s the larger wraparound light bar around the middle, very much a staple of 2020s era car design and then the light stacks have been pushed upwards to sit alongside the rear window. The large stacked headlights have been a Volvo staple for decades now so this does feel like a departure from their traditional design cues on one hand, but on the other, I can appreciate that they are trying something new with this EX90.
And new seems to be the name of the game when it comes to customization options. For starters, there are eight body colours available, ‘Sand Dune’ is the one pictured here and is quite a good choice I have to say. Apart from the usual grey, black and white, there’s also ‘Denim Blue’ and ‘Mulberry Red’, the latter of which I am particularly partial towards. All colours are available on both the EX90 Plus (entry level) as well as this Ultra Twin Motor Performance model. There’s also the case of the wheels, my review model was sporting the larger 22 inch options but the Plus comes standard with 20 inch units instead. This range topping model was also sporting 265mm width tyres at the front and 295mm at the rear, that’s probably the widest set of tyres ever fitted to a Volvo and for good reason as I shall cover later on.
Take a seat on the inside and you will notice there is a similarly resounding theme of minimalist luxury as visible from the exterior. Buttons have been cleared and replaced with a large 14.5 inch portrait oriented infotainment screen that offers all the controls you could ever imagine! Geely Group has been noted as one of the worst offenders when it comes to button purging, this EX90 even has a screen icon to open the glovebox for example. If you want to do anything from changing the air conditioning temperature to turning on your massage seats or even adjusting your side view mirrors, all of these commands have to go through the infotainment screen. There’s a smaller 9 inch auxiliary screen above the steering wheel which provides basic level information around speed limits, navigation and battery charge for example but not much more than that. A heads up display is also included on this range topping model.
Fear not though because while the technology can be overwhelming initially, the interior is an otherwise peaceful and serene place to be. It’s layered with plenty of soft materials, the seats themselves in this particular car were ‘Charcoal’ coloured and upholstered with Nordico which is made from recycled PET bottles, PVC and pine resin. Other interior colour options include ‘Dawn’, ‘Cardamom’ and ‘Zinc’ which is only available in a wool blend and would be my preferred choice. Nappa leather is available on the other three options, animal/climate friendly of course!
There’s also a lightly veneered wood applied over parts of the dashboard, door cards and central armrest, not only elevating the cabin but also brightening up what could be an otherwise dark interior. Worth noting that Volvo has somehow managed to weave ambient LED lighting through the wood panels because they are back-lit at night! However, you won’t find a thousand different colour choices here, lighting options are kept to a minimum to help soften the cabin by mimicking natural sunlight.
If it’s light you are after then this Ultra Dual Motor Performance vehicle does well to include a large panoramic glass roof that flood the interior with light at the touch of a button. Yes, it’s got that electrochromic film stuff applied to the glass roof, meaning it will go from murky to clear in an instant, although, this function is also operated by the infotainment screen.
Luckily, where the screen’s experience really excels is in the audio controls. This range topping model comes with a 25 speaker Bowers & Wilkins HiFi audio system, a total output of 1,610W will see sound distributed across all rows of seating. There are speakers integrated into the front headrests as well for an even more enveloping experience! For those audiophiles out there, inclusion of the Abbey Road Studios mode allows you to play the role of producer with your music by being able to choose the era, genre and more to get the best auditory experience from your playlists. This is a must-have option in my opinion!
Speaking of the options list, there’s only two EX90 variants available in New Zealand, the entry level Plus which costs $149,990 and the range topping Ultra pictured here. The Ultra commands a premium of $10,000 over its entry level counterpart but in return, options like the electrochromic panoramic glass roof, Bowers & Wilkins audio, massage seats etc get thrown in as standard, apart from the vastly improved performance figures of course!
Earlier on, I made a remark about the width of the tyres on this EX90 Performance, that was subtly foreshadowing this part of the review where I talk about the car’s power output. At 500kW, the EX90 Ultra Dual Motor Performance is the most powerful production Volvo in history! Torque is rated at a whopping 870Nm and when combined, the 0-100 figure is circa 4.2s, making it also the brand’s quickest production car in a straight line. All this comes courtesy of a 106kWhr usable battery that delivers its charge to both sets of axles via a dual motor arrangement.
At this point, you’re probably wondering why Volvo bothered giving their seven-seater SUV so much of power but remember, they’ve previously dropped a Yamaha 4.4L V8 into the first generation XC90, so, it’s good to see the brand still retained its wild side despite the shift to electrification.
Even with its monstrous power, the EX90 wasn’t exactly made to be a racecar for the road and with a gross vehicle weight of 3.3 tonnes, it can’t be! Instead, longer country road drives are where this Volvo thrives! The dual chamber air suspension is set up to be soft and wafty, as it should be. The launch event that I mentioned earlier saw us take on Northland’s twisting roads as well as Auckland’s fast moving motorways. The EX90 excelled on both counts but arguably its strength is in those longer road trips, just as well then that its range is up to 600km WLTP, although you could more so expect between 450km-500km on this Ultra model. Claimed average consumption is 19.2kWhr/100km which is not too far from the 20.4ish kWhr/100km figure that I returned during my time with the car.
The Verdict:
Interestingly, this Volvo EX90 Ultra shares the same 800V architecture and platform underneath as the Polestar 3 Performance that I recently reviewed. However, the two take very different approaches to what a performance SUV should do. Yes, the Polestar is quicker and sharper looking but it’s about $30k more than this Volvo which is far more spacious with a less divisive design. That just highlights what a good job Volvo has done with the EX90 which has picked up the responsibility of being the brand’s safest vehicle yet, while managing to be its most powerful at the same time! Unfortunately, we miss out on the highly acclaimed LiDar system here in New Zealand which is a shame. Still, having the new EX90 flying the flag for the Volvo brand is an excellent statement of intent.
For the record, the only reason why the Polestar 3 Performance pipped the EX90 Ultra by a rating of 0.5 is because I’m in my late twenties where things like performance, design and badge exclusivity matter more to me than comfort, value and practicality. Ask me again in a decade or two and I can guarantee that the results will be flipped!
2026 Volvo EX90 Ultra Twin Motor Performance: 4.5/5
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Car courtesy of Volvo Motors New Zealand. Pictures and words by Matthew D’Souza.
