Car review: 2025 Volvo EX90
Volvo’s flagship EX90 is a milestone model for the car manufacturer. It’s the first ground-up electric vehicle that Volvo has made and uses brand new architecture.
Volvo claims it’s the most powerful and luxurious fully electric SUV ever built and the safest it’s ever manufactured.
The details
Priced well north of $100,000, the Volvo EX90 is beyond most budgets. But for those looking for a large all-electric SUV with the gold to afford it, the only other vehicle that’s better value is the KIA EV9. The EX90 is certainly streets ahead of any other European offerings.
Chinese-owned Volvo shares some of its tech with its sister brand Polestar. Volvo claims the four super computers make it a software-defined car, allowing very complex safety systems to protect the vehicle and its occupants. A combination of radar, lidar and cameras – some which are housed in the London taxi-like bump above the windscreen – detect and identify risks hundreds of metres away and then act to avoid a crash.
The interior
As a large SUV, the seven seats across three rows are functional, with the centre rear seat including a very useful integrated child seat.
The well-appointed, Scandinavian-designed interior features Nordico upholstered seats – a material that incorporates recycled polyester sourced from plastic bottles. The EX90 is spacious, and this feeling is enhanced by the panoramic glass roof that can block more than 95 per cent of UV.
The high-end Bowers and Wilkins audio system features 25 speakers, including a ‘3D surround sound’ experience that delivers a studio or concert-like atmosphere inside the cabin.
New-age tech
The Volvo EX90 includes phone key technology as standard. A smartphone serves as the car key and automatically unlocks the car and starts a personal welcoming sequence on approach. Hop in and the car is ready to go, no buttons or keys to touch.
The downside with a lot of modern cars is that nearly everything has to be adjusted via the centre touch screen and the EX90 is no exception.
On most road surfaces the EX90 is stealthily quiet. The EX90’s dual air-chamber suspension for all four wheels uses air rather than springs to keep the car level. The EX90 was designed to be the most powerful fully electric SUV ever built by Volvo. One-pedal operation allows for almost brakeless driving and it’s easy for the driver to adapt.
Range and charging
Powered by a huge 111kWh battery pack, Volvo claims a range of up to 570km on a single charge for both variants. During testing of the EX90, real-life energy consumption was very close to the stated consumption of 22kWh/100km, so it’s probably achievable.
The EX90 comes with an 11kW AC charger as standard, which can charge up to 250kWh using a DC fast charger. A 10 to 80 per cent top-up takes just 30 minutes.
For those with the desire and cash to purchase a large electric SUV, the Volvo EX90 delivers leading edge safety and heaps of power in a very refined package.
| Specs | |
|---|---|
| Price | $124,990 to $134,990 |
| ANCAP safety rating | Not rated |
| Warranty | Five years/unlimited kilometres; eight years or 160,000km (battery) and a five-year/75,000km service plan |
| Range | 570km |
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