Volvo XC90

FIRST UK DRIVE Refresh brings levels and styling tweaks to keep

- Steve Walker [e-mail]

MANY people have certain expectations of Volvo's cars - mostly that they're solid, practical, safe and confidently understated. It's not always the case, but those things sum up the XC90 very neatly. They also tally well with the typical customer requirements in the seven-seat premium SUV class where this hybrid flagship plies its trade.

Volvo launched this Mk2 XC90 in 2014, and it's still going relatively strong, thanks to updates delivered late in 2024 and now arriving with UK buyers. The firm updated the design, the driving experience and the infotainment, and we've had the chance to try the latest package on British roads.

The XC90 is no longer the pinnacle of Volvo's SUV range and now rests in the shadow of the electric EX90. That car, which uses an electric-only version of the Scalable Product Architecture (SPA) platform found beneath the XC90, is the source of the 11.2-inch screen running Google's Android Automotive software that is such a key part of the XC90's latest refresh.