Volvo XC90 Reviews

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Volvo XC90
★★★★☆
3.8
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Latest Reviews

“Shall be missed”

★★★★★

written by albaileystarwars on 08/08/2014

We have had our lovely Volvo since 2009 and it has so far been the best car we have ever owned. The drive is superb, quiet for a diesel yet powerful and nippy on the motorways and the specification superb with leather seats, satnav and the Piece de resistance... the DVD screens in the back which have kept the kids amused for hours. We have sadly had to say goodbye to "nessy" as my new job role comes with a company car but I hope whoever ends up buying her has as much trouble free, enjoyable motoring as we have.

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“Great Car for Family”

★★★★★

written by peteremming on 01/03/2013

First of all I owned this car. The beauty about this car is space, smooth drive and excellent performance. I didnt need to get it service as offen as my pervious car. In Germany we drive in great distance from 50 Km to 400Km average. I have no regret buying this car.

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Patriciacollin's Response to peteremming's Review

Written on: 11/06/2013

I agree that this is a great family car. My family love our Volvo and the comfortable ride on it.

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“An XC90 for all occassions”

★★★★☆

written by KMPRM on 06/09/2012

I brought a 3 year old 40000 mile Volvo XC90 in 2009. Having owned the vehicle for 3 years and travelled 1000's of miles across Europe I've recently had to spend my 1st pennies on maintenance (apart from annual servicing at approx £200 from local garage) The car has been 100% reliable. You can pack your family, cases, camping equipment;into the back and still have room for the dog, it really is a big car. Off road its pretty good too. I go fishing in some pretty remote areas of Europe where the terrain can be extreme and although I don't over chance my luck; I've never got stuck. Fuel economy is fair at around 28mpg, road tax a bit trumpy at £460. It's probably more a passengers car than a drivers car as driving isn't exciting although the SElux model I have is very comfortable. On the negatives although it has 7 seats the back seats are not practical other than for small children and the engine is probably a bit underpowered. Overall I've been impressed and would only swap for the more costly Discovery.

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“thought car for life”

★★☆☆☆

written by gahuanian on 27/11/2011

i thought this is the car for life but i was wrong. every year garage takes so much money just for serviceing.volvo garage not very helpfull.half of the money value of my xc90 is just going to repair, but still problems r same.not very happy

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“When it`s a V8 it`s a different animal”

★★★★★

written by Valcosmos on 23/06/2011

Out of all XC90`s V8 is the one to go. It is powerful, roomy, stylish, comfortable, maneuverable. Did I say stylish? It is definitely not as sporty in handling as Infiniti FX35 or BMW X5 4.4l, but in return you get a more comfortable ride than X5, more room than in both of those, I mean really more room and the styling is on par if not better. Their AWD Haldex with instant traction system is definitely better than BMW`s, and the safety features are the best in class. Overall I`m very satisfied with this car. Having come from a Lexus RX300 I greatly feel an upgrade in all departments except one-fuel economy. But then again, what would you expect from a V8? However on a positive note having a 6-gear automatic transmission definitely helps. Just to add to the reliability-both the engine and transmission are made in Japan.

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“My Volvo XC90 experience, take note. Fuel consumption...”

★★☆☆☆

written by on 09/04/2011

My Volvo XC90 experience, take note. Fuel consumption locally 21mpg not very impressive for a 2.4 auto diesel. As for the third row of seats - the space is laughable, OK for a small five year old, but for an adult when being used as a 7 seater absolutely useless. Another reviewer mentioned 7 foot adults, I would like to see it. My car had heavy, not very responsive steering. Volvo garage not very helpful with any problems. Having driven many many cars I think this on reflection was one of the worst, and I was glad to see it go, even though it was at a great monetary loss to me. An over priced over rated vehicle, I cannot see what people see in them.

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“"Swiss Army knife" made in Sweden. Second one and we...”

★★★★★

written by on 25/02/2011

"Swiss Army knife" made in Sweden. Second one and we love the V8 that burns less then the older inline 5 version. Well made, fun to drive and very quite. Also an Audi A6 owner and love them both equally. What I don't like is probably the price and the resale value. Oddly reviews from so called professionals don't accuratly reflect the quality of the vehicle and I think this wrongly puts people off hurting resale somewhat. However great for someone buying second hand.

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“We bought this Xc90 Volvo WITH 38000 MILES to use for...”

★★☆☆☆

written by on 17/02/2011

We bought this Xc90 Volvo WITH 38000 MILES to use for the family, safety is realy high standart but off road in the snow absolutly rubishhh. The Volvo XC90 is a very expensive car TO LOOK AFTER and no back up from Volvo customer services, i have sold after 2 yeArs with 89000 miles and lost 11k!!!! Now i bought Landcruiser vx 3.0 far better than volvo XC90 volvo IS GOOD SUV BUT CAN'T BE DRIVEN LIKE LANDCRUYISER I MEAN EVERYWERE.

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“The Volvo Xc90 is one of the best suvs available in...”

★★★★★

written by on 04/11/2010

The Volvo Xc90 is one of the best suvs available in the market today. This
scandinavian designed vehicle is famous for it's safety, durability and build quality.I have owned this xc90,3.2 AWD for 16 months now with no problems what so ever.The exterior & the interior design puts far ahead of the competitors. The premium sound system, 12 Dynaudio speakers (optional) is one of the best car audio systems installed in any car any model any year.The ride is firm and comfortable,the 3.2 six cylinder engine should produce more horse power than the 238 available.It has a high fuel consumption, but this is somehow normal for cars this weight.
if you are looking for muscles and performance, look some where else. Volvos are designed for people who value aesthetics, safety and durability.

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“I would not get this car again. Glad I leased and did...”

★★★☆☆

written by on 07/01/2009

I would not get this car again. Glad I leased and did not buy. Overall car is nothing special. Not in the Lux category at all. When things break in the car it's a full day job to get it fixed. The drive is not smooth, and it has a cramped uncomfortable interior. I'm coming from an Acura MDX and will probably go back to that or go to the pilot. They make a much better car.

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“I love this car. I love the feeling of being so safe...”

★★★★★

written by on 20/07/2008

I love this car. I love the feeling of being so safe and the reliability of the car.

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“We bought our Volvo XC90 from new in March 2006. It's...”

★★★★★

written by arianne on 04/06/2008

We bought our Volvo XC90 from new in March 2006. It's a 2.4 D5 turbo diesel coupled to a manual, 6-speed gearbox. We've covered 52,000 (as at June 2008) which is a mix of fast, rural A-roads in the Scottish Borders, commuting to Edinburgh city centre and pan-European trips to Austria twice yearly (ski and summer hols). Our previous car was a Ford Galaxy 1.9TDi Ghia.
PRACTICALITY
Throw almost any challenge at the XC90 and it'll complete the task. As a mini-bus the seven seats are super. We frequently use all seven seats shifting friends from one place to another. The rearmost seats can be used by adults for journeys of an hour or so - the middle seats all move on rails separately and must be moved forward to create sufficient leg room for adults in the rear. All seats fold effortlessly with a very simple one-touch system. All fold flat into the floor. Even the front passenger seat folds flat for those really long loads. The boot space is cavernous and the tailgate has a split bottom lip to aid loading - it makes a great seat for two when parked up with a cup of coffee! The boot is still useful even with the rear row of seats in use - small cases, carrier bags and coats can be stacked for all passengers.
PERFORMANCE ON-ROAD
The D5 engine is a five cylinder unit. Coupled to a manual gearbox there is plenty of pulling power in the 185bhp version. Earlier (pre-2006) D5 engines produce only 168bhp and owners say that this is insufficient. So be careful as it's hard to distinguish the two versions from the car alone (the rear badges are identical but are placed in different positions). Check the paperwork. If you can afford the 185bhp unit then it's well worth it. Despite this, it's fair to say that the other exec SUVs have better outright performance - they have bigger (and thirstier) engines, often 3.0 litre +. The Volvo suffers from turbo lag which you get used to. By selecting the right gear you learn how to get the best from the power range and then the XC90 will whoosh past most other cars with panache - just like an exec SUV should! The first gear is short so you're changing up very quickly - tiresome in town. This because there's no fancy off-road low-ratio gizmo so this is the off-road crawler gear. Handling is so-so and this is no BMW X5. On rural country roads its weight and size means that it's hardly nippy in fast corners but its far, far better than my previous Galaxy MPV. The XC90 is most capable as a fast, refined motorway cruiser. Our trips to Austria take us through Germany with some sections of unrestricted autobahn. So 110mph is legal and perfectly fine for getting to the Alps quickly - the XC90 commands respect from other autobahn users in a country where the outside lane can be a frightening place to occupy. I have a big gripe with the parking brake which is operated through a fourth pedal in the pedal box coupled with a pull-lever on the dash. In manual gearbox mode it's clumsy, tiresome and make hill starts a real challenge. I'm an experienced driver but needed to learn how to use this over several months of ownership. Not nice!
PERFORMANCE OFF-ROAD
Our XC90 covers farm tracks with ease. We've done little more serious than this. The Volvo lacks the off-road gizmo technology of the other exec SUVs so if you're a serious off-roader then this XC90 is not for you. Video footage shows that it can handle steep gradients and quite challenging stuff but not as well as the others in this class. We really appreciate the 4-wheel drive system for our ski holidays. We run winter tyres and have never needed the snow-chains. The XC90 has beaten soft and hard-packed snow on steep inclines not seen in the UK. The drive system detects which wheel is struggling and compensates accordingly - you hardly detect any of this. If you drive in the Alps in winter then you too will appreciate not having to freeze while fitting and removing snow chains! Just be careful when descending though - the XC90 gives you a feeling of security but all cars have similar grip on the downhill gradient so beware of the hairpins! A winter holiday is made all the better by having one of these cars with you.
COMFORT
This is a spacious, well appointed SUV worthy of its 'exec' label. The list is endless but most notable are the wonderful seats, standard leather trip (at SE and above), heated front seats, high quality ICE CD sound, memory driver seat settings, folding mirrors, see you home lights, cruise, dual climate control, rear vents, parking sensors (front optional) and trip computer. The sat-nav was a £1700 option on my model so we dropped that - a shame when compared to the standard kit of other less expensive cars. We complete the 12hr dash from the Austrian Tyrol to Dunkirk ferry port in Northern France and still feel 'human' when we arrive - that's a testimony to the comfort of the XC90.
SAFETY
It's a Volvo. It's Volvo's flagship model. Need I say more? Well yes......a host of active and passive safety features protect you and your passengers. But Volvo has gone further and designed an SUV which gives others a fighting chance of surviving should they collide with the XC90. It's designed to help ensure the XC90 does not ride over smaller cars in a head-on collision. So not only are you safe but your conscience will rest a little easier too perhaps. The active safety centres on the electronic stability and traction control system. This constantly monitors the XC90 and kicks in to try and avoid loss of control. This includes the risk of tipping over or yaw. SUVs like the XC90 with their high centre of gravity are prone to toppling in what is known as the 'elk test'. Volvo minimise this risk with their computer gadgets. You can override the system should you wish but we rarely notice its effect so we leave it on, as recommended. Passive safety abounds. Side impact protection beams, anti-whiplash seats, almost every conceivable type of airbag for all occupants and a body shell that includes a strengthened roof to ensure the cabin integrity is maintained even in a roll-over scenario. In bad, wet or snowy weather you really appreciate the money Volvo have sunk into the safety and build of the XC90. Top notch!
IMAGE & BEAUTY
Beauty is very much in the eye of the beholder. But there seems a general consensus in the media that the XC90 is a pretty car from most angles. It has an imposing aspect when one appears in your rear view mirror - the XC90 has daylight running lights. And it appears big when you've pulled up behind it. The Volvo brand has a strong image. Perhaps not as strong as BMW or Mercedes but it stands for something different. Feedback from friends and colleagues at work demonstrate that people consider the XC90 highly desirable. The XC90 has that 'special' feeling when you're driving it.
RELIABILITY & VALUE FOR MONEY
Only one major fault has occurred over 52,000 miles. The rear wheel bearing became noisy at 23k. This is a known fault and the dealer replaced them with improved components without any fuss. There have been two recalls. Otherwise, the problems have been annoying cabin rattles which the dealer has tried to solve with varying levels of success - these are difficult to trace and solve but I admire the resolve of the dealer. Servicing is at 18,000 mile intervals - quite amazing. Typical cost of each service is approx £320. Not cheap but with those 18k intervals it works out cheaper than my previous Galaxy with its 10,000 intervals / £250 services by Ford. My Volvo dealer is a dream - they will collect and return our car or provide a courtesy car with no fuss (we live 23 miles from the dealer too). The car is valeted inside and out, tyres dressed and bumpers cleaned and treated - all at no additional cost. Engaging with the dealer staff is a pleasure and they cal just before the servicing date to check if anything else requires attention and again after two weeks to check if all if satisfactory. Our Volvo delivers an average 35mpg. Drive it hard and you'll get 29mpg plus tyres that wear out very quickly. Drive very carefully and you achieve 38mpg and a headache - driving like this is hard work! Rubber costs between £100 - £150 per corner and will last about 20,000 miles. Buy from on-line suppliers and you'll pay towards the bottom end of the range - my dealer fits them at no additional cost! The D5 manual is a band F car costing £220 road tax (approx). All other variants, including the D5 auto / geartronic, are band G and will cost £400.
AND FINALLY......
A few niggles which include those grey bumpers which need treatment with bumper-spray to stay looking like new. Otherwise the bumpers appear stained even after washing. The front parking sensors detect water spray from other vehicles and so the alarm sounds when commercial vehicles throw up spray. But the system deactivates above about 10mph so it only happens while in slow traffic or jams.
Buy new, nearly new or used and the XC90 is a super car. Always buy with a full dealer service history. Far better value than a VW Touareg. Cheaper to buy and run than an Audi Q7, BMW X5 and Mercedes M-Class. Other than the Q7, only the Volvo has 7 seats and it has the best rear row of all in this group.
The Volvo XC90 does everything you ask of it - a luxury car, soft off-roader, 7 seater, safety. Other cars beat the XC90 is one or two areas but rarely can they pull it off across all areas.
As you probably can tell, we love our XC90. But after 52,000 miles and 2.5yrs of motoring we think we're in a good position to relay our experience. All the best.

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390306_Cowiesag's Response to arianne's Review

Written on: 08/08/2008

I've owned two XC90's 2003 and 2006 both have had rear bearing failures at 20k miles, Volvo seem to know about but have not improved the components in 3 years

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Itserve's Response to arianne's Review

Written on: 03/01/2010

I found this review very helpful because...
<br/>The owners use of the car is uncannily imilar to our own! Well written and objective. Thanks!

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“Looking for a new car already.”

★☆☆☆☆

written by tahnl on 14/11/2007

Looking for a new car already.

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Itserve's Response to tahnl's Review

Written on: 03/01/2010

I found this review not helpful because...
<br/>It says too little and depends upon minor niceties and not real world motoring experiences.

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“We've only just taken delivery of this Volvo XC90...”

★★★★★

written by arianne on 18/04/2006

We've only just taken delivery of this Volvo XC90 three weeks ago so please bear this in mind when reading this review.

This is a wonderful, smooth and sophisticated car. Design features abound with room for seven passengers. The rear most two seats are proper leather clad seats and comfortable. They fold into the floor and are suitable for 6ft folk for around 45min journeys. Kids and smaller adults will be fine for much longer. Middle three seats fold flat and all are easy to operate giving huge cargo area. Comfort is everywhere with dual climate control, parking sensors (front is optional extra £350), amazing stereo with front loading six-CD changer, full graphic equalizer and rich sound. The cabin is a quiet place with little wind, tyre or engine noise. High driving position offers good visibility and drivers seat adjusts for every possible position electrically with three memory settings that adjust when the matching remote key fob is used to unlock the car doors. Mirrors also fold in electrically.

Engine performance is good on this new 185bhp unit. Turbo boost is noticeable and provides strong overtaking performance. The six-speed gearbox means that cruising is very quiet and relaxed. For a car of this weight and size it has so far returned 34mpg average over 1,000 miles of driving.

This is a very safe car with tons of passive and active features. All wheels are actively monitored and, if the computer thinks that traction is being lost or the car is about to topple, power / brakes are applied to each wheel independently to compensate. It features perm. four wheel drive but most power is delivered to the front wheels for normal road use. We've not tried it off-road yet.

Overall then we are very pleased with the Volvo XC90 2.4 D5 SE based on our initial experience. The dealer was a delight.

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“The Volvo XC90 is a very expensive car and no back up...”

★★☆☆☆

written by cath69 on 23/03/2006

The Volvo XC90 is a very expensive car and no back up from Volvo customer services, the garage bought it back but for 4K less!!!!!!

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“This is our second SUV -we traded 2003 Honda Pilot...”

★★★★★

written by m1964 on 29/01/2006

This is our second SUV -we traded 2003 Honda Pilot (which was only 2.5 year old) for Volvo V8 XC 90. We put almost 9,000 miles on this car and I still enjoy every second I drive it. It is probably the best combination of drivability, comfort and safety you can get today. V8 engine is very smooth and powerfull. Very good premium radio, goosd seats -drove over 400 miles in bad weather -no back ache, nothing like that after driving for almost 8 hours.

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“Primarily used as a pretty people transporter and...”

★★★★☆

written by dnzparis on 19/01/2006

Primarily used as a pretty people transporter and continental motorway muncher the Volvo XC90 has performed surprisingly well off road and as a work horse.

Volvo have always provided safety features and mod cons, such as heated seats, always on head lamps and that tank like invincible build quality that have endeared it as a marque to me since I first owned a Volvo 940 Estate (Station Wagon) back in 1992 but its credibility as an SUV puts the XC90 into unknown territory.

This car is like owning a space shuttle for all the controls it has and if you are a gadgeteer like me you will be pleased. The full comms factory package provides phone controls (where you put the sim in the dash and the radio becomes your phone/SMS scrolls on the instrument panel), 6 CD stacker at the front, 10 DVD stacker, screens and wireless head phones for the cargo (i.e. family) at the back, Europeean navigator (who is now called George)

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“The Volvo XC90 SUV is a good family car with various...”

★★★★★

written by atousi on 05/04/2005

The Volvo XC90 SUV is a good family car with various smart details.
The build quality is good.
The only down point is the 2.4 litre diesel engine is quite slow in accelartion for such heavy car.

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“Overall the Volvo XC90 SUV is an excellent product....”

★★★★★

written by AVMatthews on 13/10/2004

Overall the Volvo XC90 SUV is an excellent product. Far, far better product than the Mercedes 270 CDI ML which I had before.

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