Volvo V90
Plush, PHEV-only Swedish estate sticks by its tried-and-trusted morals against a tidal wave of SUVs It might be hard to tell in the age of the SUV, but the estate car is still an important part of many a manufacturer's line-up - and the Volvo V90 is no exception.It was given a stay of execution in the middle of 2024 following an unexpected spike in customer demand for the bodystyle, giving Volvo customers the choice beyond SUVs and the market a cause for celebration.Since then, it has been taking the fight to a number of traditional rivals, including the BMW 5 Series Touring, Mercedes-Benz E-Class Estate and Audi A6 Avant, with company car-friendly plug-in hybrid powertrains, compelling looks and the traditional Swedish attention to practicality and common sense - all of which we're about to dissect.The Volvo V90 range at a glanceAfter Volvo brought its flagship estate back to the UK market, the engine range was slimmed down to just two choices, T6 and T8, both of which are PHEVs.T6 cars pair a 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine with a rear-mounted electric motor to produce a total of 345bhp, while T8 cars mate a more powerful version of the same engine to the same electric motor, resulting in 449bhp combined. Both cars send their power to both axles through an eight-speed automatic gearbox.An 18.8kWh (14.7kWh usable) drive battery is housed beneath the centre console, which is 7.2kWh larger than it was before and provides an electric range of 54 miles under WLTP conditions in T6 cars or 52 miles for T8 models. Hook it up to a home-charging wallbox and it will be topped up in around two hours.The two trim levels available are called Plus and Ultra. T6 cars come in Plus trim only, while the T8 is Ultra only. Plus comes with pretty much all the kit you need, including wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a heated steering wheel, heated seats, dual-zone climate control, a 9.0in infotainment touchscreen, 12.3in digital driver's display, a 600W, 14-speaker sound system and 19in alloy wheels.Ultra adds a panoramic roof, an 1100W, 19-speaker sound system, a head-up display, a 360deg camera and 20in alloys. The T8 Ultra is about £8000 more to buy than the £60,000 T6 Plus.
Plush, PHEV-only Swedish estate sticks by its tried-and-trusted morals against a tidal wave of SUVs
It might be hard to tell in the age of the SUV, but the estate car is still an important part of many a manufacturer's line-up - and the Volvo V90 is no exception.It was given a stay of execution in the middle of 2024 following an unexpected spike in customer demand for the bodystyle, giving Volvo customers the choice beyond SUVs and the market a cause for celebration.Since then, it has been taking the fight to a number of traditional rivals, including the BMW 5 Series Touring, Mercedes-Benz E-Class Estate and Audi A6 Avant, with company car-friendly plug-in hybrid powertrains, compelling looks and the traditional Swedish attention to practicality and common sense - all of which we're about to dissect.The Volvo V90 range at a glanceAfter Volvo brought its flagship estate back to the UK market, the engine range was slimmed down to just two choices, T6 and T8, both of which are PHEVs.T6 cars pair a 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine with a rear-mounted electric motor to produce a total of 345bhp, while T8 cars mate a more powerful version of the same engine to the same electric motor, resulting in 449bhp combined. Both cars send their power to both axles through an eight-speed automatic gearbox.An 18.8kWh (14.7kWh usable) drive battery is housed beneath the centre console, which is 7.2kWh larger than it was before and provides an electric range of 54 miles under WLTP conditions in T6 cars or 52 miles for T8 models. Hook it up to a home-charging wallbox and it will be topped up in around two hours.The two trim levels available are called Plus and Ultra. T6 cars come in Plus trim only, while the T8 is Ultra only. Plus comes with pretty much all the kit you need, including wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a heated steering wheel, heated seats, dual-zone climate control, a 9.0in infotainment touchscreen, 12.3in digital driver's display, a 600W, 14-speaker sound system and 19in alloy wheels.Ultra adds a panoramic roof, an 1100W, 19-speaker sound system, a head-up display, a 360deg camera and 20in alloys. The T8 Ultra is about £8000 more to buy than the £60,000 T6 Plus. 
