The all-new Volvo XC90 has been awarded five stars in the 2015 Euro NCAP tests.

The XC90 is equipped with a feature called City Safety technology, an autonomous braking system. It has become the first car from any manufacturer to score full points in Euro NCAP Autonomous Emergency Braking Car to Car rear-end tests (AEB City & AEB Interurban).

The XC90 scored 100% in the Safety Assist category. The vehicle also features a pedestrian protection function, which independent safety regulators have yet to include this in their testing protocols. The SUV scored 97% for adult occupant safety, 87% for child occupant safety and 72% for pedestrain safety.

Globally, over 57,000 orders for the XC90 have been booked. Volvo claims that 76% of the customers are choosing the top end Inscription variant. The Torslanda plant in Gothenburg, Sweden has just started up a third production shift to meet customer demand for the new XC90.

In India, Volvo claims to have received 266 pre-orders for the XC90 within two months of its unveiling in the country. All of these bookings are for the Inscription variant. Deliveries of the XC90 will start later this month.

The all new premium SUV from Volvo - XC 90 has been recalled in some international markets due to a potential issue with an electronic wire harness. This wiring harness is present in the front seats and it controls the restraints system in the car.

An improper wiring assembly could result in a damaged wiring harness, which would display a warning message on the instrument cluster of the car. Frontal airbags too may be affected due to this and may not perform appropriately. Volvo claims that no incidents have been reported and neither is there a risk of the side airbags being deployed by mistake.

Approximately 200 units of the XC 90 in Europe and the United States have been affected (majority of them being in Sweden). Customers will be contacted by the company to get their cars inspected at their nearest workshop.

The XC 90 has been recently launched in India with deliveries of the SUV likely to begin only in September 2015. Click here to read our launch report.

Click here to read our full report on the launch

Swedish carmaker Volvo, has launched the new XC90 SUV in India. The vehicle is available in two trim levels -

• D5 Momentum - Rs. 64.9 lakh (ex-showroom, Mumbai without octroi)
• D5 Inscription - Rs. 77.9 lakh (ex-showroom, Mumbai without octroi)

The new XC90 features Volvo's new design language with T-shaped "Thor's Hammer" DRL lights and new tail lamps. The SUV comes with a range of wheel sizes up to 20 inches.

The interior of the XC90 features a 7-seater layout with soft leather, wood and diamond-cut accents around the start/stop button and volume control. It is equipped with an in-car control system with a tablet-like touchscreen control console and a 1,400W Bowers & Wilkins sound system with 19 speakers including an air-ventilated subwoofer.

The XC90 is loaded with safety features. One of them is Safe Positioning - a run-off road protection package in which, the vehicle detects that it is running off the road and tightens the front safety belts to keep the occupants in position. The SUV also comes with energy-absorbing functionality between the seat and seat frame to cushion the vertical forces that can arise when the car encounters a hard landing. The company claims that this helps in preventing spine injuries.

The XC90 is available with a 2.0-litre, 4-cylinder diesel that develops 222 BHP @ 4,250 rpm and 470 Nm of torque. The engine is mated to an 8-speed automatic gearbox.

Deliveries of the XC90 will commence in September 2015.

Swedish carmaker Volvo, has announced that it will unveil the new XC90 SUV in India on May 12, 2015. It is Volvo's rival for the Audi Q7, BMW X5 and Mercedes-Benz GL-Class (or GLS-Class).

The XC90 features Volvo's new design language with T-shaped "Thor’s Hammer" DRL lights. It features a 7-seater interior with soft leather, wood and diamond-cut controls for the start/stop button and volume control. The list of equipment includes an in-car control system with a tablet-like touch screen control console and a 1,400 W Bowers & Wilkins sound system with 19 speakers including an air-ventilated subwoofer.

Safety features include a run-off road protection package and auto brake at intersection capability. In the first, the vehicle detects that it is running off the road and tightens the front safety belts to keep the occupants in position. In the second, the car brakes automatically if the driver turns in front of an oncoming car.

Globally the XC90 is available with a choice of three engines:

• 2.0-litre, 4-cylinder petrol, 315 BHP @ 5,700 rpm and 400 Nm of torque
• 2.0-litre, 4-cylinder petrol hybrid, 315 BHP @ 5,700 rpm and 400 Nm of torque + 65 kW and 240 Nm (electric)
• 2.0-litre, 4-cylinder diesel, 221 BHP @ 4,250 rpm and 470 Nm of torque

All engine are mated to an 8-speed automatic gearbox.

Since the time of its entry in India, news reports suggested that Volvo have been considering local assembly of their passenger cars in India. An article by NDTV suggests that the Swedish luxury carmaker will finally take a decision regarding the local assembly in India by the end of this year.

Volvo cars are brought to India as Completely Built Units, thus attract maximum duties and taxes. Local assembly will result in more competitive prices in the Indian market, thus their cars will be in a better position to take on the 3 German brands. The line up of cars includes the V40 Cross Country hatchback, S60 sedan, XC60 SUV, S80 sedan and XC90 SUV. The company recently launched a petrol powered V40 Cross Country in the country and is gearing up to bring in its flagship SUV - 2015 XC90 to India soon.

The company aspires to increase its sales volume by 70% during the current year. It is widening its dealership network too, which is targeted to reach 22 from 15 (at present) by the end of 2015.

Volvo reportedly sold all 1,927 first edition units of the new XC90 SUV, 47 hours after it was unveiled. All the units were booked through Volvo's online platforms. Bolstered by the online impact, Volvo plans to reduce their expenditure on motor shows and increase focus on online outreach.

The Swedish car maker, owned by Chinese automaker Geely, plans to withdraw from all, but one motor show each, in Europe, Asia and North America. Sources say the brand's physical presence at such events will be limited to the Detroit, Beijing and Geneva motor shows. The brand also gave the 2014 Delhi auto expo a miss.

Volvo will work towards making its online marketing and sales strategy more extensive. However, the brand has assured dealer partners that they will not be taken out of the equation. Any orders placed online will still have to be processed and delivered through a Volvo dealership.

Source: Reuters

Swedish car maker, Volvo is known to provide the highest levels of safety equipments in their vehicles. It is one car manufacturer that spends significant amounts on R & D to make their already safe cars even safer for the passengers as well as others. A new safety tech - run-off road protection package, will feature (for the first time on any car) on the new XC90 SUV.

Run-off road is an accident type caused by driver inattentiveness, fatigue or poor weather conditions. Spine injuries are common in such scenarios.

This run-off road protection includes two crucial aspects: First, when the car's sensors detect that the vehicle has veered off the road, the front safety belts electrically tighten to the maximum, to ensure that the occupants remain in position. The safety belts can retract 100 mm safety belt in 0.1 seconds. Then, to avoid spinal injuries, the seat and seat frame deforms mechanically to cushion vertical forces which may be experienced when the car lands hard on the terrain. By ensuring that the occupant is in an upright position, along with the cushioning provided, it can reduce vertical forces by up to one-third. This will reduce the possibility of the most common spine injuries caused due to the impact.

Volvo has simulated 3 tests - 'Ditch' - designed to replicate bouncing movement, 'Airborne' - designed to replicate a hard landing after an impact and 'Rough terrain' which creates a bumpy ride that produces substantial lateral rolling motions. For these tests, 'Thor' - the most advanced crash test dummy is used, equipped with flexible shoulder area to create a more human-like movement in a run-off road scenario.

These new technologies developed by Volvo are in tandem with the company's vision where it claims that no one will be killed or seriously injured in a new Volvo in 2020.

Swedish carmaker, Volvo has released pictures revealing the all-new XC90 SUV. The car is scheduled to makes its debut at the Paris Motor Show in October 2014.

The new XC90 will be the first Volvo to carry the company's new more prominent iron mark, which has the iconic arrow aligned with the diagonal slash across the grille. Together with the T-shaped “Thor’s Hammer” DRL lights, the iron mark introduces a new design language, which upcoming Volvo products will follow.

The XC90 is available with two exterior styling themes - Urban Luxury and Rugged Luxury. The Urban Luxury package features a colour co-ordinated body kit with polished stainless steel details, such as front deco frames, front and rear skid plates, side scuff plates and 21-inch wheels. The Rugged Luxury kit features tech matte black exterior trim, stainless steel skid plates, running boards with illumination, integrated exhaust pipes and 22-inch wheels.

The interior features soft leather and wood with handcrafted details, including a gear lever made of crystal glass from Orrefors, the famous Swedish glassmaker, and diamond-cut controls for the start/stop button and volume control. There are seven seats with the last row able to accommodate two passengers up to 170 cm tall. The list of equipment includes a tablet-like touch screen control console, which forms the heart of an all-new in-car control system, which is virtually button free. The XC90 gets a 1,400 W Bowers & Wilkins sound system with 19 speakers including an air-ventilated subwoofer.

Volvo has loaded the new XC90 safety features. Among them are two new technologies - a run-off road protection package and auto brake at intersection capability. In the first, the vehicle detects that it running off the road and tightens the front safety belts are tightened to keep the occupants in position. In the second, the car brakes automatically if the driver turns in front of an oncoming car.

The XC90 will be offered with a range of two-litre, four-cylinder Drive-E engines. The top of the line variant will feature an electric motor, which works in tandem with the 2-litre, 316 hp turbocharged and supercharged petrol engine, giving a combined power output of 400 hp. Volvo claims that this will be the world's first 7-seat plug-in hybrid.

Volvo plans to unveil the XC90 in India in the first quarter of 2015 with deliveries planned within 6 months from the date of unveil.

Volvo is working on an all new architecture, known as the Scalable Platform Architecture (SPA). This architecture will underpin a range of Volvo car and SUV models of the future. The first Volvo to roll out under the new architecture will be the XC90 SUV, whose next generation version could debut in late 2014.

The 2014 Volvo XC90 was teased at a recent media presentation at Sweden, where the Swedish car maker showcased certain details of the SUV during the course of the presentation, alongside the unveil of the Concept Coupe. The design details from the 2015 Volvo XC90, including the elements found on the headlamps and tail lamps, could make it other Volvo cars in the coming years.

In that light, the new XC90 represents the new family face of the Swedish car brand, now owned by Chinese automaker Geely. Notably, the 2015 XC90 is the first car that Volvo has co-developed with Geely. The XC90 revealed during the presentation also showcases a new infotainment system that is expected to be adapted onto other Volvo car models.

Apart from using the new SPA platform, the Volvo XC90 will also use the Swedish car maker's new range of Drive-E engines (also known as Volvo Engine Architecture), that are available in both turbo petrol and turbo diesel guises. Notably, Volvo wants to shift to more efficient 4 cylinder engines, from the V8s that it currently uses on many of its top-end car models.

Also, the Drive-E range of turbo diesel engines feature the i-ART injection technology, which Volvo claims is the next step for common rail turbo diesel technology. The i-ART technology monitors injection pressure on each injector, allowing better fuel metering and higher injection pressures. 

8 speed automatic gearboxes will replace the 6 speed units on the newer crop of Volvo cars underpinned by the SPA platform. The SUV will also be bring on-road Volvo's latest safety technologies. Considering the fact that Volvo sells the XC90 in India as its flagship SUV offering, the new model is likely to be launched here sometime in 2015. 

Images courtesy Feber.se