10,000-Mile Report: Meeting Expectations

The XC90’s odometer rolled over the 10,000-mile mark just under a year since I took delivery of it from our local Volvo dealer. Let’s look at how it’s performed relative to my expectations.

Ride Quality and Handling

What I expected: For all the glowing reviews I’d read about the XC90 prior to purchasing it, I was mindful that some reviewers had dinged the vehicle for its ride: a bit too firm, a bit too harsh, a bit too jiggly over rough pavement. I thought that by opting for the air-ride suspension, and sticking with the 20” wheels that come standard on the Inscription trim—rather than taking the 21” wheels dealers so often spec—I’d avoid those problems. As for handling, I wasn’t expecting the world, but I was expecting an improvement over the floaty ride I’d had for 16 years in my GMC Yukon XL Denali.

What I found: Expectations were met. I find the ride perfectly acceptable, even after 16 years in the Denali’s La-Z Boy-like front seat. Sure, the ride is stiffer than the ride I had in the GMC, but it’s less stiff, I’d venture, than my brother-in-law’s BMW X5. And when I’m negotiating long curves at highway speeds, I feel much more confident in the XC90 than I did in the Denali. Parking is easier, too, both because the Volvo’s dimensions are tidier than the Denali’s and because I now have access to rearview and 360-degree overhead-camera views.

Performance and Gas Mileage

What I expected. My T6 Inscription was rated at 19 miles per gallon city and 26 mpg highway, or 22 mpg EPA city/highway combined. I expected to achieve those numbers, especially since I don’t have a particularly heavy right foot.

What I found: After 5,000 miles, my mileage stood at a combined 21.1 mpg, not quite up to the EPA estimate. But most of those miles were generated around town. Come summer and fall, I began taking some slightly longer trips—maybe 100 or so miles each way. Now, at the 10,000-mile mark, I’d guess 75% of my traveling has been done around town and 25% on the highway—and my combined mileage number has crept up to 21.5 mpg. That’s close enough to the EPA estimate that I don’t think I can complain.

Acceleration is perfectly adequate in “comfort” driving mode, and more than adequate in “sport” mode, in which the transmission holds its gears a little longer. And while it’s not really a performance issue, I do have to mention the sound of the engine. It’s pretty sad for a vehicle in this price range. I know it’s a four-cylinder, but boy, it really sounds like it. I had occasion to drive my daughter-in-law’s eight-year-old Subaru Forrester the other day, and I swear it had a better note than my Volvo. In real-world use, of course, playing music over the Harmon Kardon audio system largely negates this concern.

Interior Comfort and Controls

What I expected: I’ve long touted the comfort of Volvo seats, but I was a bit concerned about the front buckets that come with the XC90 in Inscription trim. They are significantly firmer than the seats that come with the Momentum trim level, and also have more steeply shaped side bolsters on the seat bottom. On the other hand, they also come in nicer leather, and with available cooling, which I didn’t want to give up. I also was mildly concerned about having to control things like the heater and air conditioner, and some seat functions (like heating and cooling) with the large touchscreen in the center of the dash, rather than knobs.

What I found: I don’t care how well designed a multi-function screen is, it’s not going to be as easy to use as single-function knobs. That said, I adapted to the Volvo system fairly quickly. It helps that some things, like many radio controls, can be handled via buttons on the steering wheel, and others, like setting the interior air temperature, can be controlled with voice commands.

While we’re on the topic of the infotainment screen, I should mention that I’ve had no problems with the boot-up time for the screen, or its response time. I read many complaints about the boot-up time when the current generation XC90 debuted in 2016, with some owners lamenting that the view from the backup camera wouldn’t be available when they first started their car and backed out of their garage or driveway. But Volvo seems to have resolved that problem. I recently read—I can’t remember where, or whether it was an authoritative source—that Volvo tweaked the responsiveness of the infotainment system in 2019 to make it 50% faster than it had been in 2018.

Safety Features

What I expected: I was really excited about the suite of safety features on the Volvo, including the backup camera, the lane departure warning and correction systems, and automatic braking to avert collisions. I was curious about the Pilot Assist feature, which will keep the vehicle in its lane on well-marked roads, and maintain its speed using the adaptive cruise control system, as long as you continue to rest at least one hand on the steering wheel.

What I found: Pretty much everything works as advertised. I would never want another vehicle without a backup camera, and I’d prefer never to have one without an overhead 360-degree camera view. The lane departure warning system is a valuable safety feature. I’ve not had any instances where the auto-braking feature has had to bring me to a full stop to avoid a collision, so I’ll have to assume it works. I’ve used Pilot Assist many times, and find I like it most on lightly traveled roads, in part because it sometimes seems to hug the left side of the lane slightly more than I do on my own, which makes me a tad nervous if I’m in the right lane and there are cars and trucks to my left. That said, I recently used it on approximately 50 miles of well-marked I-95 below Washington, D.C., in fairly heavy traffic, without incident. The adaptive cruise control works pretty flawlessly. (Once, I noticed that it was allowing me to travel about 4 mph over the speed limit on a long downhill stretch of highway.) I don’t always use it in stop-and-go traffic, though, because, unlike me or you, it can’t look several cars ahead, anticipate stops, and slow gradually in those circumstances rather than abruptly.

Convenience

What I expected: I didn’t think much about convenience features when shopping for a new SUV or ordering my XC90. Partly as a result, all my surprises have been pleasant ones.

What I found: Wait 16 years to buy a new vehicle, and you’re bound to be delighted by some of the automotive advancements that have come along in the meantime. There are several on the Volvo that I really like, even though they’re not particularly groundbreaking—or even new to anyone who’s bought a new car in the last decade. For example, I really like the convenience features associated with the XC90’s tailgate: being able to pop it open with a button in the cockpit, open it—reliably—with a kick of my foot under the rear bumper, shut it with the push of one button, or shut it and lock the entire vehicle with the push of another. These things make life far easier when your hands are full loading or unloading the vehicle. I also like being able to control some car functions by voice. And I really like Apple CarPlay, which lets me call up music or traffic directions, make and answer phone calls., and hear and dictate text messages, all without taking my hands off the steering wheel.

Reliability

What I expected: I was concerned about how reliable all the sophisticated systems on this vehicle would be, from the turbocharged and supercharged four-cylinder engine to the air suspension and all of the electronics and safety systems. I even asked the long-time service advisor at our dealership if he’d recommend purchasing an extended warranty in case the engine proved unreliable. He gave me an honest answer and said his dealership had many customers approaching 100,000 miles on their T6 engines without incident. (I did not buy the extended warranty.)

What I found: Thus far, the XC90 has performed without issue. With the first few regularly scheduled service visits covered by Volvo, the only maintenance costs I’ve incurred were for rotating the tires at 5,000 miles and again at 10,000 miles.

Conclusion

Overall, the Volvo XC90 has performed to expectations. I enjoy the ride and handling, the safety features and the modern conveniences. I continue to believe it is among the best-looking SUVs on the market. When packing for a big tailgate, I sometimes miss the size of our Denali, but by any other measure, the cargo space is very ample—among the biggest in this class of vehicle.

Would I check any boxes differently if I were ordering another XC90 today? Probably not, although I would look at the second-row captain’s chairs that became available with the 2020 model year. Even so, I might keep our second-row bench seat, which can fit all three grandchildren if needed without having to flip up the third row and compromise cargo space.

10,000-Mile Numbers
Average mpg: 21.5
Problems: none
Maintenance costs: $0

Volvo XC90 in a spring setting.