Volvo banks on new era with all-new XC90

By Charles Buban January 07,2015
VOLVO revitalizes its brand with the introduction of the latest version of its flagship offroader, the all-new XC90.

VOLVO revitalizes its brand with the introduction of the latest version of its flagship offroader, the all-new XC90.

THE BIG news this year is that Swedish premium brand Volvo has started revitalizing its brand, and key to this initiative is the all-new XC90 SUV that will soon be available here in the Philippines.

The all-new XC90 is without doubt Volvo’s most important model in recent years. It will be debuting what Volvo calls its “new face” from which all future Volvos will take their lead. It will be beefed up with two safety innovations that make this seven-seater luxury crossover the safest car the company has ever built.

For more than a decade (introduced in the Philippines in 2002), the XC90 had been a first-generation vehicle pitted against a series of sleek newer-generation rivals that has since taken several steps forward. This left Volvo with the mission to surpass its rivals.

With the unveiling of the second-generation XC90, it seems Volvo has accomplished this goal.

The styling of the all-new XC90, which was clearly adopted from Volvo’s Coupe Concept (first revealed at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show in Germany), features a very prominent chrome-trimmed grille, and sideways T-shaped, LED daytime running lights patterned after the hammer of Thor, the Norse god of thunder.

The all-new XC90’s bold redesign extends to the cabin where a tablet-like touchscreen serves as the centerpiece. Volvo says that the tablet-like touchscreen will reduce the number of clicks needed to control functions like streaming music, navigation and air-conditioning, hence a clutter-free dashboard.

More interestingly, the touchscreen comes with the Apple CarPlay user interface, giving it the ability to mirror the display of lightning-equipped iOS devices directly onto the dashboard touchscreen.

The software will allow the driver to control his/her phone and music through Apple’s familiar layout on the dashboard. Also, Siri will also be able to read text messages aloud and reply to them, as well as act as a form of voice control for phone functions.

World’s first

Alongside Volvo’s huge forward leaps with the SUV design, the company added more safety technologies that could be considered firsts in the world.

Foremost is the “auto brake at intersections,” to be included in City Safety, Volvo’s autobraking functions. This additional technology enables the XC90 to automatically brake in case the driver attempts to turn into the path of an oncoming car,  quite often the case at busy city crossings as well as highway crossings.

The safety system will detect the possibility of a crash, and brake automatically to avoid a collision—or at least reduce the impact of a collision.

This technology is active at speeds of over 4 kilometers per hour, so other vehicles, cyclists and pedestrians that will suddenly appear at intersections and blind corners will now be much safer around the new XC90.

Another safety innovation is the “run-off road protection” that cushions passengers from the effects of the vehicle landing hard on its wheels after flying off the road.

The technology starts with the seat belts tightening up to pull the occupants upright into the most ideal position for impact. Additionally, Volvo engineers developed built-in crumple zones in and under the seat area that deform on landing to soak up energy, thereby reducing any force on the occupant by up to a third. The belt-tightening and the built-in crumple zones also soften the vertical load that will be placed on the occupants, in the process minimizing, if not preventing, spinal injuries.

Both safety systems bring Volvo closer and closer to its ambition that, by 2020, no one should be killed or seriously injured in a new Volvo.

Apart from these safety innovations, the all-new XC90 is also the first to adopt Volvo’s Scalable Product Architecture (SPA). SPA allows Volvo engineers to use the same platform as the basis for all of its power train, suspension and electrical systems.

Better

With SPA, previous design limitations in areas such as wheelbase, overhang, vehicle height and the height of the front are a thing of the past. According to Volvo, its new platform also contributes to a better weight distribution that contributes to better handling.

The economic benefits that come with scalable architecture are clear as Volvo no longer needs to develop a stand-alone platform for each of its new models. This saves on development and manufacturing costs through economies of scale.

Like every model in the rest of the Volvo range in the near future, there won’t be any five-, six- or eight-cylinder units. Powering the all-new XC90 will be Volvo’s new and efficient gasoline or diesel engines.

First is the 2-liter, four-cylinder T6 gasoline engine that is both turbocharged and supercharged. The result is a powerful engine that generates 316 horsepower and 400 Newton-meters of torque. A T5 will also be available, which is a 2-liter, four-cylinder turbocharged gasoline engine that generates 254 HP and 350 Nm of torque.

Coming a few months later are diesel variants: a 222-HP D5 that is twin-turbocharged, as well as a 187-HP D4 that will be offered in the front-wheel-drive model. All models that will initially be available are all-wheel drives mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission.

The most powerful engine that will power the new XC90 is the 390-HP Twin Engine plug-in hybrid model carrying the T8 badge. It combines a supercharged and turbocharged gasoline engine that will power the front wheels, and an 80-HPelectric motor will drive the rear wheels. Being the most powerful variant, it will also be the most efficient.

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