- Doors and Seats
5 doors, 7 seats
- Engine
2.0TSC/107kW Hybrid, 4 cyl.
- Engine Power
447kW (comb), 309Nm
- Fuel
Hybrid (95) 1.8L/100KM
- Manufacturer
4WD
- Transmission
Auto
- Warranty
5 Yr, Unltd KMs
- Ancap Safety
NA
2022 Volvo XC90 Recharge Plug-in Hybrid review
We take a drive in the impressive XC90 Recharge now, in the twilight of its career ahead of an all-new XC90 in 2023.
- Still looks good after eight years on sale
- Hybrid powertrain works beautifully
- Interior quality, flexibility... and that sound system
- Multimedia system is starting to fall behind
- Plug-in charger light is very bright
- Gear selector is a backwards step
How much does the Volvo XC90 cost in Australia?
The Volvo brand may not have the public recognition (or sales volumes) of luxury heaviweights Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz when it comes to SUVs, but that’s not because Volvo’s vehicles are in any way lacking.
In fact, Volvo’s range of SUVs – from the XC40 small SUV through the XC60 mid-sizer and the 2022 Volvo XC90 Recharge Ultimate T8 plug-in hybrid large SUV we’re testing here – have some of the strongest advocates among owners of any.
It’s a decorated lineup, too, with six Drive Car of the Year wins for the XC60 and two for the XC40.
The Volvo XC90 is the largest of Volvo’s SUV range, and it’s due for a major overhaul (overseas at least) in November this year. Australians can expect the new XC90 to arrive locally in 2023.
Which makes this drive in the range-topping XC90 Recharge Ultimate T8 something of a final fling for a vehicle that promises the best of both worlds: EV-only commuting and hybrid performance.
First, let’s understand how this variant fits into the XC90 range. Four variants are on offer, starting with an XC90 Plus B5 mild hybrid ($92,500) powered by a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine producing 183kW and 350Nm.
The second of four variants is the Ultimate B6 Bright which has a 220kW / 420Nm version of the same 2.0-litre turbo engine priced at $102,990. Above that, the XC90 Ultimate B6 Dark has that same engine tune but has bigger 22-inch wheels and a colour pack to justify the $104,990 price. All prices are listed before on-road costs.
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The top of the range is the Volvo XC90 Recharge Ultimate T8 plug-in hybrid we’re testing today, which costs $121,990 plus on-road costs, a rise of $7000 over the 2021 version.
This variant has a 233kW 2.0-litre petrol engine teamed with a 107kW electric motor and 18.8kWh battery that’s said to be good for up to 92km of pure electric urban driving. (Volvo says only 14.9kWh of that battery is useable.)
Volvo says the XC90 Recharge Ultimate T8 (which we’re just going to call the XC90 Recharge from here) is a modern example of having your energy-efficient cake and eating sports cars too. As well as promising a pure EV commute it can accelerate from 0-100km/h in a claimed 5.3 seconds, which is impressive for any car, let alone a seven-seat SUV weighing 2310kg.
Key details | 2022 Volvo XC90 Recharge Ultimate T8 PHEV |
Price | $121,990 plus on-road costs |
Colour of test car | Crystal White |
Options | None |
Price as tested | $121,990 plus on-road costs |
Drive-away price | $135,558 (Melbourne) |
Rivals | Audi Q7 | BMW X5 | Mercedes-Benz GLE |
How much space does the Volvo XC90 have inside?
As befits the vehicle at the pinnacle of Volvo’s range, the XC90 Recharge loads plenty of features and equipment into what is a calm and elegant interior. Let’s start with the 19-speaker Bowers & Wilkins sound system – standard on the Recharge but a $4550 option on lesser XC90s – which pumps out a very un-Volvo-like 1400W and does justice to everything from John Coltrane to Alice in Chains.
High-end materials permeate the Scandanavian-designed cabin, including plush leather seats up front and leather/Alcantara seats in the second and third rows. Woodgrain trim is mostly absent, Volvo instead using piano black and burnished chrome to accent what is one of the nicest interiors in the business.
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Dimensionally, the Volvo XC90 Recharge is pretty much on par with the BMW X5 SUV, and the third row is actually habitable for adults.
The electrically adjustable driver's seat combines with a multi-adjustable steering wheel to provide a flexible driving position to suit the vast majority of humans. The leather front seats are extremely comfortable for long journeys and have good side bolstering to keep you in place.
The doors to the second row open wide, making for good access. Once in, the seats are extremely comfortable and spacious, with the usual caveat that three adults can fit but not without rubbing shoulders.
The seatbases can be slid forward and backwards individually, and the middle seat has Volvo’s built-in child booster seat. The windows have built-in retractable blinds and there are air vents in the B-pillars as well as in the back of the front seats’ central armrest.
The XC90 Recharge’s huge sunroof covers the first and second rows, bringing an open-air vibe to occupants in those rows. Second-row occupants also get their own climate controls.
The two seats in the third row are not the ‘hospital pass’ they can be on many seven seaters. I climbed in and out with relative ease and can fit my 170cm frame in without concern, although the floor is high-ish, meaning my thighs don’t rest on the seatbase.
With the third row in place, the XC90 Recharge has 262L of bootspace, which is enough for a few cabin bags or a few days’ groceries.
With the third row stowed, luggage space expands to a very generous 640L. There is a built-in divider that pops up out of the floor to stop items rolling around in the boot while you drive.
The XC90 Recharge’s recharging cable is stored in a compartment under the floor which can also be used as a wet-zone.
The XC90’s boot opens and closes electrically, and there are buttons for raising and lowering the car’s air-suspension to make it easier to lift heavy loads into the boot – although the difference is a couple of inches (50mm).
2022 Volvo XC90 Recharge Ultimate T8 PHEV | |
Seats | Seven |
Boot volume | 262L to third row 640L to second row 1005L to first row |
Length | 4953mm |
Width | 1923mm |
Height | 1767mm |
Wheelbase | 2984mm |
Does the Volvo XC90 have Apple CarPlay?
The dashboard is dominated by a large multimedia touchscreen in a portrait orientation. Our test car didn’t come with Volvo’s latest Android Automotive-powered infotainment paltform (built just before the XC90's changeover to the newer system), but instead had the older bar-type layout which is still relatively intuitive to use but not as easy as the newer system.
This screen is complemented by a digital driver’s instrument cluster, with a relatively minimalist and easy to understand graphical layout.
Both screens are of suitably high graphics quality and respond quickly when prompted. Only the central multimedia screen is a touchscreen, as you’d expect.
The multimedia screen centralises all satellite navigation functionality along with smartphone operation and mirroring, multimedia playback and internet functionality – although that last is limited.
Voice recognition is built into the system.
There are USB charging ports in all three rows and a charging mat up front, but that won’t keep pace with the battery drain from using Google Maps or Waze on the go via wireless smartphone mirroring.
Volvo offers a Volvo Car app that allows your car and your smartphone to interact cooperatively. For example, the satnav can set destinations based on your phone calendar’s meetings. You can also lock and unlock doors, adjust climate control settings to ‘prepare’ the car for your use, start the car remotely, and look at a 100-day logbook of drives that details time, location, duration, distance and energy consumption.
Is the Volvo XC90 a safe car?
It’s a Volvo, right? So you’d assume it is a safe car.
But we don’t know for sure, because the 2022 Model Year XC90 Recharge has not been tested by ANCAP. One would assume that the Recharge should equal the five-star rating bestowed on the 2015-2022 XC90 diesel variant which was discontinued earlier this year, but again we can’t know for sure.
Earlier versions of this generation XC90 diesel were tested by Euro NCAP and those results adopted by ANCAP way back in 2015 when it scored a high 97 per cent for adult occupant protection, 87 per cent for child occupant protection, 72 per cent for vulnerable road user protection and 73 per cent for active safety systems.
The XC90 Recharge has a sizeable armada of active safety systems, which includes the usual crash avoidance and collision mitigation angels. It also has blind-spot monitors, rear cross-traffic alert, lane departure warning and lane-keep assist.
The XC90 has four cameras providing vision in all directions, and mimicking a helicopter view to make parking easier.
2022 Volvo XC90 Recharge Ultimate T8 PHEV | |
ANCAP rating | Unrated |
How much does the Volvo XC90 cost to maintain?
All Volvo models come with a five-year warranty with unlimited kilometres and five years roadside assist.
Servicing is due every 12 months or 15,000km, whichever comes first.
Volvo offers three-year or five-year service plans which cost $1750 or $3000 respectively.
A quote for comprehensive insurance for the XC90 Recharge comes in at $2271, which is cheaper than a similarly-priced BMW X5 xDrive 30d ($3205pa).
Both quotes are based on a 35-year-old male driver, living in Chatswood, NSW. Insurance estimates may vary based on your location, driving history, and personal circumstances.
At a glance | 2022 Volvo XC90 Recharge Ultimate T8 PHEV |
Warranty | Five years, unlimited km |
Service intervals | 12 months or 15,000km |
Servicing costs | $1750 (3 years) $3000(5 years) |
Energy cons. (claimed) | 20.5kWh/100km |
Energy cons. (on test) | not recorded |
Battery size | 18.8kWh (14.9kWh useable) |
Driving range claim (WLTP) | 64-92km electric only |
Charge time (Domestic plug) | 7h |
Charge time (11kW) | 1h 20m |
Is the Volvo XC90 fuel efficient?
Volvo claims the XC90 Recharge’s 18.8kWh battery can achieve between 81 and 92km of purely urban driving, dropping to 64-73km on a city/country combined cycle. That equates to a 20.5-22.6kWh/100km energy consumption, which is acceptable in a large SUV.
As for fuel economy, that’s hard to work out. We covered 300km during our seven-day test, recharging the electric battery every night, so managed to do the entire week using less than two litres per 100km.
If we’d let the battery deplete itself we may have been able to get some kind of fuel efficiency number, but even then it would be influenced by the XC90 Recharge’s regenerative charging capability which lets it capture electrical energy during braking.
For what it’s worth, Volvo claims the non-EV XC90 B6 – which has a slightly less powerful version of the same 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine – uses 8.2L/100km on the combined city/country cycle.
The XC90 Recharge requires more expensive 95 RON premium unleaded petrol.
Fuel Consumption - brought to you by bp
Fuel Useage | Fuel Stats |
Fuel cons. (claimed) | 1.5L/100km |
Fuel cons. (on test) | 1.8L/100km |
Fuel type | 95-octane premium unleaded |
Fuel tank size | 71L |
What is the Volvo XC90 like to drive?
What a beautiful car to drive. Effortless, serene, and seriously quick when you want it to be.
The combination of a small-capacity petrol engine and punchy electric motor makes the XC90 Recharge a really comfortable, enjoyable and rewarding vehicle to drive.
The XC90 can be driven in pure EV mode by selecting the appropriate setting in the multimedia system, which means the petrol engine need never be bothered. This mode doesn’t make the XC90 a fast vehicle but performance is more than enough to keep up with commuter traffic.
If regenerating energy is your caper, then slotting the gear selector into B for ‘braking’ gives the Volvo a pseudo-one-pedal mode that provides more braking effect when you ease off the throttle.
If instead you leave the XC90 in its default hybrid mode, the vehicle does its best to maximise EV efficiency but calls on the petrol engine to provide additional performance when necessary. The transition from EV to hybrid is seamless and smooth, although the sound of the petrol engine awakening means you will be aware of it.
For times when efficiency can go jump, the XC90 has a ‘Power’ mode, and its performance in this setting is spritely and spirited because all power sources are at your beck and call, throttle sensitivity is heightened and the eight-speed transmission is on red alert to drop gears and enhance acceleration at a moment’s notice.
This is one relatively fast machine when it wants to be and the standard adjustable air-suspension keeps the big body under control around corners even in its default setting.
The ride in general is better than expected from a car wearing 35-profile 22-inch tyres. There’s no question those liquorice strips add to the car’s visual presence but the good news is they don’t detract from the car’s ride either.
My biggest complaint about the way the XC90 drives is the gear selector. It’s the kind that automatically re-centres itself instead of having specific positions for P, R, N and D. This means going from D to R when doing a three-point turn requires two stabs on the selector, and then two more stabs to go back again. It’s a silly setup that I did become accustomed to by the end of our week together, but it is not an improvement on traditional automatic gear selectors.
Key details | 2022 Volvo XC90 Recharge Ultimate T8 PHEV |
Engine | 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo supercharged petrol Plug-in hybrid |
Power | 233kW @ 6000rpm petrol 107kW @ 15,900 electric 340kW combined |
Torque | 400Nm @ 3000-5400rpm petrol 309Nm @ 0-3280rpm electric |
Drive type | All-wheel drive (front-wheel drive with electric rear axle) |
Transmission | Eight-speed torque converter automatic |
Power to weight ratio | 147kW/t |
Weight (tare) | 2310kg |
Spare tyre type | Tyre repair kit |
Tow rating | 2350kg braked 750kg unbraked |
Turning circle | 12.2m |
Should I buy a Volvo XC90?
The Volvo XC90 Recharge offers an interesting take on luxury EV motoring. It’s an effective toe in the water for buyers not sure if they’re ready to dive into EVs.
Drivers can use the XC90 like a pure EV as long as they don’t go more than 70-80km between charges, or if bigger distances are needed they can use it like a hybrid vehicle reducing their fuel consumption.
Above and beyond all of this, the XC90 never fails to deliver as a luxury seven-seat SUV. It has the looks, the style, the performance and the panache to be called a true Luxury SUV, and it has one of the finest, most flexible and practical interiors in that market segment.
For those reasons alone, it’s well worth a place on luxury SUV buyers’ shopping lists. And that’s high praise for a car in the twilight of its model cycle.