Volvo stuns with new EX90 flagship electric SUV
Family-friendly model shapes up as a game-changing option in the premium crossover class, delivering tech no rival can match.
The Volvo EX90 is not the first electric car made by the Swedish manufacturer. But it is the first fruit of Volvo’s next-generation machines.
And it promises to be a game changer – one of the first cars ready for a driverless future.
Pretty enough on the outside, the electric cousin to the combustion-powered Volvo XC90 has smooth surfaces and a modern take on Volvo’s “Thor’s Hammer” headlamps.
But the most impressive elements are under the skin.
Volvo describes the seven-seat EX90 as “a highly advanced computer on wheels”, largely due to the artificial intelligence system behind its driver aids, along with the next-gen infotainment system.
Most new cars have camera and radar based driver assistance features such as active cruise control and auto emergency braking.
The EX90 goes a step further by introducing laser-based LIDAR to give the Volvo’s digital network a more comprehensive picture of its surroundings.
Though the brand isn’t ready to call it a self-driving car, it does claim the EX90 “is the first Volvo that’s hardware-ready for unsupervised driving in the future”.
Hardware normally used for top-tier video games offers a real-time representation of what the car can see, displayed on the dashboard so drivers are confident in its abilities.
Tesla was the first to offer such an approach, one that has been copied by many mainstream manufacturers.
The cabin’s 14.5-inch central infotainment screen is run by a powerful gaming chip with next-level graphics and lightning fast responses linked to Google apps and Apple CarPlay.
A new Bowers and Wilkins stereo with Dolby Atmos surround sound includes 25 speakers, some even mounted in the headrests.
Volvo says the EX90 is its most sustainable model yet.
It also promises to be fast, thanks to enormously powerful 380kW and 910Nm electric motors mated to a 111kWh battery with more than 600 kilometres of driving range.
The model will arrive in Australia in 2024, underpinning Volvo’s promise to deliver an all-electric line-up by 2026.
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