In a world where SUVs, compact cars and luxury vehicles are everywhere, one Swedish car maker is on the brink of returning the wagon to its luxurious and yet practical glory. We give you the 2020 Volvo V90 Cross Country.
Adventure friendly, the V90 Cross Country is the wagon with it all, including an impressive 210mm ground clearance; just right to get that heart thumping on the dirt trails. Switch on the incredible seat massagers, and you can get amongst it and relax at the same time.
On board the D5 model we drove is a powerful 2.0-litre twin-turbo diesel, with 173kW of power and 480Nm of torque, and a towing capacity of 2500kg. It’s capable of zipping to 100km/h in 7.5 seconds. It’s mated to an 8-speed automatic transmission.
You’ll also get an astounding 5.7-litres/100km in fuel consumption from the 60-litre tank. At 4.9m long, and with a wide body, the V90 provides an amazing 560-litre boot space as standard, which grows to 913-litres when you drop the back seats.
It’s quite possibly one of the roomiest wagons we’ve ever been in too, with loads of head and leg room for all occupants. Up against the likes of the Subaru Outback, the Volvo V90 Cross Country has an off-road mode (but isn’t a true 4×4).
It’s a soft roader that’s more than capable of delivering you to your campsite, all while offering a hint of subtle elegance. We reckon this Volvo could just be the king of the soft roaders, at least in this reviewer’s opinion.
Couple its capabilities with Volvo’s reputation for safety, and you have a fantastic package that can protect your family. The V90 Cross Country comes with City Safety, which detects just about everything, including people, animals and cyclists.
In addition, there’s intersection collision and oncoming traffic mitigation with brake support, steering support, and the Volvo Intellisafe suite. This provides adaptive cruise control, driver alert, lane keep assist, a speed limiter and oncoming lane mitigation.
It also gives you blind spot monitoring with cross traffic alert, front and rear collision sensors with mitigation support, run-off road mitigation, hill start assist, hill descent control, a 360-degree camera, park assist, emergency brake assist and airbags aplenty.
While all this safety is fantastic, Volvo has also installed a 9-inch touchscreen in the centre of the dashboard, from which you can control the air conditioner, sound system, every setting known to man, and the massagers. It’s a technology party.
On the road, it’s an elegant experience, with air suspension making highway driving feel like a frolic in the park, even on country roads. It’s pure craftsmanship from the look and feel to the handling and ride.
The power delivery is excellent too, and makes you feel confident and surefooted as you get around. Multiple drive modes complete what the 2020 Volvo V90 Cross Country has to offer, including Off-Road, Dynamic, Eco and Comfort.
And like most European cars, add-on packs are the order of the day. Among them are the Premium Pack, which contains a powered panoramic sunroof, tinted rear glass, and premium sound from Bowers and Wilkins.
The Luxury Pack loads in such things as the massage function for the front seats, a heated steering wheel, and Nappa leather, while the Versatility Pack adds a rear view mirror compass and grocery bag holder, among other things.
Those additional items include power folding rear seat, a 230V power outlet, and the air suspension we spoke about already. As you may have guessed, our test vehicle was fitted with all these packages.
Out of the box, a 2020 Volvo V90 Cross Country is priced from $80,000 plus on-roads, but in the identical specification to what we tested, is just over $93,000 – again plus on-roads.
It’s available in Black Stone, Ice White, Savile Grey, Crystal White (as tested), Bright Silver, Osmium Grey, Onyx Black, Mussel Blue, Maple Brown, Denim Blue and Pine Grey. 20-inch 10-spoke alloys are standard, but two 19-inch options are available.
There are a whopping 19 upholstery options and two interior trim choices to choose from as well. The 2020 Volvo V90 Cross Country also comes with a 3-year unlimited kilometre warranty.
Our test vehicle was provided by Volvo Cars Australia. To find out more about the 2020 Volvo V90 Cross Country, contact your local Volvo dealer.
