Folding the Second-Row Seat: Insert Tab A into Slot B

I tend to think of myself, for better or worse, as the kind of guy who reads owner’s manuals. But I don’t always do it, and last week it left me looking a little foolish.

We were getting ready to leave Beaver Stadium in State College, Pennsylvania, after watching the Nittany Lions knock off Purdue, 35-7. We were a party of four adults that had just become five after my brother-in-law opted to ride back to his condo with us. Assessing the situation, I decided it made sense to flip one of the third-row seats up for the first time since taking possession of my XC90 roughly 10 months earlier. That way, three good-sized men wouldn’t have to squeeze into the second-row seat.

But first, that meant flipping one of the outboard second-row seats forward so my second son could climb into the back. How hard could it be?

Well, harder than you’d think for a bunch of college graduates.

I think I gave it the first shot. I pulled up on the handle at the top of the backrest of the passenger-side seat in the second row, which flipped the backrest forward. But the seat bottom didn’t slide forward, leaving no room for anybody to climb into the third row. I fiddled around without luck. Eventually, we got the seat to slide forward—it just required a firm push with the backrest tilted forward. But, then we had trouble getting it back into position. Turns out, you have to reach under the seat bottom, pull on the bar there that lets you slide the seat forward and backward independent of the seatback, and then push the whole shebang backward with the seatback still tilted forward. Then, once the seat bottom is back to its normal position, you can also push the seatback into its normal position.

Got that? The steps are:

(1)   Pull up on the handle at the top of the second-row seat backrest to flip the backrest slightly forward.

(2)   Push firmly on the backrest to slide the whole seat forward.

(3)   Once your passenger has climbed into the third row, grab the bar under the seat bottom (toward the front of the seat) and slide the seat bottom back to its normal position.

(4)   With seat bottom in normal position, push the seatback back into its normal position.

I’ll admit it. For a vehicle that costs this much, I think Volvo could have equipped it with power second- and third-row seats. That said, the operation really isn’t that difficult once you know what you’re doing.

As for the ride in the third row? My son, who’s 35, said it’s okay for a short trip. But getting in and out? There’s no way to do it gracefully, he said, if you’re over eight years of age. I’ll take his word for it.

Miles Driven: 8,848

Passenger side second row seat slid forward with backrest tilted forward.