Tested: 2025 Volvo XC90 T8 Recharge Is Showing Its Age

• The decade-plus-old Volvo XC90 was recently refreshed with massaged styling and updated tech.
• The plug-in hybrid T8, which received an upgraded powertrain in 2023, carries over unchanged.
• Unfortunately, the luxury SUV's chassis is beginning to show its age.

Quick but messy

The XC90 T8 AWD plug-in hybrid is the most powerful model you can get, pairing a turbocharged 2.0L four-cylinder with an electric motor for a total of 455 horsepower and 523 lb-ft of torque. That's a not insignificant amount of power, and indeed, the XC90 T8 is no slouch. 

In our testing, sprinting from 0 to 60 took just 5.2 seconds, while the quarter mile flew by in 13.5 seconds at 104 mph. That's pretty quick for a 5,110-pound luxury SUV, though both figures are well behind those of the plug-in hybrid BMW X5 xDrive50e, which needed only 4.6 seconds to hit 60 mph and blasted through the quarter mile in 12.8 seconds at 107.4 mph. Neither SUV is quick to 60 when operating in full EV mode, though they'll get you there eventually.

The XC90's handling and braking performance don't come close to matching its respectable acceleration. The XC90 required an unimpressive 130 feet to stop from 60 mph, compared to the X5's 116 feet. It's also quite dramatic about it, tightly clenching the seat belt across your torso both during the stop and for several seconds after.

The XC90 managed an OK 0.84 g of lateral grip on the skidpad, not too far off the X5's 0.89 g. Thanks to the decade-old platform, there's a bit of a vintage feel when it comes to handling, in both good and bad ways. The good? It's not a total isolation chamber; you actually get a bit of feel through the chassis and steering. But the bad? It's immediately apparent that the suspension is a generation or two old. There's a lot of body roll, and the ride is just too firm for something with luxury aspirations. On top of that, the Pirelli Scorpion all-season tires give up their grip at the first sign of a tight bend. 

A beautiful but flawed cabin

Aside from the new, larger and unfortunately tacked-on-looking touchscreen, the XC90's cabin looks much the same as it did when this generation first went on sale. That's no bad thing: This T8 is gorgeous inside, with a beautiful blend of high-end leather, light wood trim, metal, and nice fabric textile on the dash. Plus, the Orrefors Swedish crystal shift lever on the center console is a beautiful statement piece. The seats, in addition to being supremely comfortable, offer some of the best in-car massages you'll find at any price point, and the leather-wrapped sun visors are a nice touch too. Strangely, the steering column is manually adjustable only, which feels a bit off in such an expensive vehicle.

The new touchscreen's graphics look sharp, and it runs on Google's Android Automotive OS (not to be confused with the Android Auto phone projection software) so you get built-in Google apps, like Google Maps, which is great. Unfortunately, that's where the positives end. The touchscreen has a tendency to be surprisingly slow to respond to inputs, particularly when adjusting climate controls, which are all within the screen. 

Speaking of, there are two separate climate control menus, one for fan speed/airflow and one for temperature — which can only be adjusted in increments of 2 degrees, by the way. The menu structure, in general, isn't great, with settings like drive mode adjustments buried under layers of menus. The biggest omission, by far, is the lack of wireless Android Auto or Apple CarPlay. This is a luxury vehicle that's just been updated with a new tech suite, so requiring a cable to connect feels like a large oversight. 

Aging less than gracefully

The XC90 continues to look beautiful inside and out, but unfortunately, its class-leading looks aren't backed up by the driving experience. Other midsize luxury SUV competitors, like the BMW X5, provide a better overall experience for similar, or even less, money.