Enough Is Not the Same It Was Before: Volvo XC90

Car India was invited to Tarragona near Barcelona to drive the XC90 around Spain’s magnificent coastal highways, and neither the scenery nor the car disappointed. The D5 AWD now has the all-new Drive-E four-cylinder turbo-diesel featuring i-ART injection technology, with individual pressured fuel feeders lending the motor not just more power, torque and driveability, but also higher efficiency compared to the outgoing 2.4-litre straight-five. The 1,969-cc engine makes 225 PS and 470 Nm and sends the drive via a specially-developed Aisin eight-speed torque converter automatic that drives all four wheels through a fifth-gen Haldex coupling. What’s interesting is that unlike the front-biased previous car, the new AWD system allows up to 100 per cent of the drive to just the rear wheels, with more intelligent distribution to individual wheels depending on available traction. Volvo also claim a commendable fuel efficiency figure of 18 km/litre for the XC90 D5.

Right, time to drive. The XC90 cars we had to drive we pre-production models, so some features, like the steering-mounted shifters, were missing. The seats, though, are a revelation (we’ve covered them in detail in the February 2015 issue) and offer multiple adjustment possibilities, including, for the first time, extendable under-thigh support, which was more than enough even for a six-footer like myself; and there was even more travel to it. The side bolsters, lumbar and back support are excellent, and overall support is spot-on. Honestly, I find the seats in the S80 a bit more plush.

The second row has mechanical slide and recline features, and offers good leg-room for occupants. The middle seat, as before, has an integrated booster cushion. The third row is by far the best in class, with the two seats able to comfortably accommodate passengers up to 170 cm tall. They too get the full safety suite with inflatable curtains and smart seat-belts. Storage space is abundant too, and, as in the previous car, the second row and front passenger seat can be folded flat individually to accommodate varying types of cargo; think flag-pole and kitchen sink.

The D5 grunts at start-up, and settles into an idle which uncannily resembles the old 2.4 albeit with one less cylinder. The eight-speed ‘box is seamless and, with one shift of the shapely gear lever, I set off into the unknown with only the sat-nav on the big tablet-sized touch-screen (and very smart HUD) to guide me on my way. The D5 pulls cleanly till about 100 km/h after which it feels like more power wouldn’t be a bad thing. The low-end torque, however, makes things effortless while the more and closer cog set-up delivers good driveability.

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