ONES WE FOUND
High-quality interior Generous rear room Well equipped Uninspiring handling Distracting infotainment Indecisive gearbox
looks great. It responds quickly to inputs, but some of its smaller icons can be difficult to hit and it can be tricky to find what you want within the vast array of menus and functions.
The V90 is accommodating, too. Front seat occupants get loads of space, and it’s the same in the rear, with class-leading knee room. The boot is a good size, although it’s a little down on outright capacity next to those of rivals – particularly the Mercedes-benz E-class Estate.
As you’d expect, safety is top class. The V90 got the maximum five stars in its Euro NCAP tests, performing especially well for adult occupant protection front and rear and in the safety assist category.
HOW MUCH WILL IT COST?
What was a £40,000-plus car new can now be had for as little as £15,000 for a 2016 model with one of the less powerful engines and an average to high mileage for the year. Up your budget to between £16,000 and £20,000 and you should find plenty of 2017-2018 examples, while £20,000 to £25,000 will buy a good 2019 car. The plug-in hybrid T8 starts at around £30,000, while Cross Country versions (from 2017 on) range from about £18,000 to £30,000. The T8, which can travel for up to 28 miles on electric power alone, is officially the most economical V90, with an average fuel economy figure of 141.1mpg and a low CO2 output of 43g/km. If you do mainly short trips and can recharge the battery regularly, it has the potential to be cheap to run; if not, the returns from its petrol engine will be distinctly ordinary. Of the rest, the D4 diesel model is the most frugal, with an official average of 50.4mpg. Cars registered after 1 April 2017 that cost more than £40,000 when new are pricey when it comes to road tax, because they attract a luxury surcharge £325 a year, from years two to six, on top of the standard annual fee of £150.
2016
Volvo V90 D4 Momentum, 45,000 miles, £15,500
2017
Volvo V90 D5 Inscription, 39,000 miles, £19,995
2018
Volvo V90 T8 R-design, 22,000 miles, £29,995