What's the difference?
The electric car world has seen a few seven-seat SUVs hit the ground running recently and for good reason. The dream of lowering your emissions without sacrificing space for the family is a tempting one. But let’s be honest, there still aren’t a whole lot of options out there.
Enter the flagship Volvo EX90 Ultra Twin Motor Performance. It brings together the elegant design and thoughtful functionality Volvo is known for, now paired with a premium tech offering and a powerful new electric drivetrain.
Will it be enough to tempt buyers over the line? I've spent a week with it to find out.
This is a review with a difference. For three days, I had a Lexus RX450h and thought it was pretty terrible to drive. Every time I turned the steering wheel, the tyres would squeal as though they weren't inflated with air but instead with tiny, fluffy kittens.
I was bitterly disappointed. How could a car get out the door of the Lexus engineering division with such an aversion to corners. I mean, I know it's not meant to be a corner-carving monster, but normal cornering should have been okay.
After those three days, I'd had enough. The low tyre pressure warning light came on and the penny dropped. I hadn't even thought to check the pressures. They were very, very low. Like only at two-thirds of recommended. So after visiting three separate establishments to find a working pump, I had a whole different car.
The new Volvo EX90 Ultra Twin Motor Performance strikes a great balance between sophistication and practicality. It looks sharp, drives beautifully, and delivers a solid range with fast charging to match. Adding to that is a comfortable, family-friendly cabin with space for seven. Itβs hard not to be impressed.
There are a couple of technology beats it misses but it's still an easy SUV to live with.
The RX is a little frustrating - it's going after Mercedes and BMW and Audi in a hotly-contested space and falls over in a couple of key areas. The media/sat nav system is hopelessly outdated and the drivetrain fails to deliver a significant performance or fuel benefit (although, given its 2.2 tonnes, perhaps it delivers a miracle).
It does come with a rock-solid, scandal-free reputation, a reputation for spectacular customer service, it has a lovely cabin and it's certainly an individual looker. For plenty of people, that's quite enough.