2021 (71) Volvo XC90 2.0 T8 Recharge PHEV R DESIGN 5dr AWD Auto

By Jonathan Crouch

Introduction

Volvo's XC90 showcases impressive technology in Recharge T8 Plug-in hybrid guise. There's up to 30 miles of all-electric driving range, a CO2 figure of up to 61g/km and a three-figure fuel return. All delivered with the ability, denied to customers of some other large crossovers, to take seven passengers in comfort. Here's a family-sized SUV more ready than most for a very different world. Here, we look at the earlier 2015-2024-era versions.

History

The second generation XC90 was a car that fans of the brand anticipated impatiently and what we got when it arrived in 2014 was worth the wait. Absolutely everything about this MK2 model was fundamentally new and engineered to set fresh class standards. And nowhere was this more evident than with the Recharge T8 Plug-in hybrid petrol/electric variant. The T8 powertrain first arrived for XC90 customers in 2015, then got upgraded with a bigger battery in 2019 when Volvo facelifted the line-up. Here, you get the potential of supermini-style running costs. On top of that, there's the sort of proper full-sized seven-seat versatility that few rivals can credibly offer and the kind of cool, authentic Scandinavian charm that's made a welcome return to the Volvo brand in recent years. This MK2 XC90 was further updated in late 2024, but it's the earlier 2015-2024-era versions of the T8 model we look at here as a used buy.

What You Get

The look of this second generation XC90, according to its exterior design manager Anders Gunnarson, needed to be 'timeless'. Hence the considerable depth of thought that's clearly went into a sense of style reflective of brand values both old and new. So many large luxury SUVs appear bulky and intimidating: this isn't one of them. Only very minor visual changes featured with the revised post-2019 version of this model - things like tiny tweaks to the bumper and the air intakes, plus extra black trim on the 'R-Design' version. There was also a slightly redesigned front grille, which as before featured Volvo's traditional Iron Mark logo at its centre. We've always liked the front-of-cabin experience served up by this MK2 XC90. This interior is simple, elegant - and very uncluttered, with only eight buttons on the fascia. The remaining functions you'd normally access through confusing rows of little switches on the dash have been relocated into menu options that lie behind the big, easy-to-use icons you'll find on a smart 9-inch infotainment colour touchscreen that's presented portrait-style on the centre console. You'll glimpse more hi-tech screen technology through the three-spoke wheel courtesy of Volvo's 12.3-inch Active TFT Crystal Driver's Information Display. Otherwise though, this cabin's an aesthetic triumph, immaculately made and full of premium touches like this diamond-cut start/stop control switch and the slatted cover for this centre dash compartment. Your middle row passengers are well catered for, with individual seats that slide and recline for greater comfort on longer journeys. What about this car's proper seven-seat functionality? Well getting to the back row takes a bit of muscular dexterity and as an adult, you'll only be able to install yourself with any kind of comfort if you prevail upon those ahead to move their seats forward a little. But if that's possible, we could believe that a couple of fully-sized adults could cope OK in the very back over short-to-medium-length journeys. As for the boot space on offer, well that falls in comparison to more conventional XC90 variants. With a T8 in 7-seat mode, it's 262-litres up to the window line and 316-litres up to the roof. Most of the time though of course, you'll probably be running the car with the third row chairs folded down, the retracting process much easier than the back-breakingly fumbly machinations you have to go through in a rival Land Rover Discovery to achieve the same end result. Once that's completed, there's a lot of room to play with. On this T8 variant, there's 640-litres if you load to the window line and as much as 967-litres if you load to the roof. You can improve on the figures we've quoted by sliding the second row seats forward if you've uncomplaining middle row passengers on board. Or by making the second row seat backs more upright. Getting more room of course means folding the middle row. On this T8 variant, that frees up 1,005-litres up to the window line or 1,816-litres if you load up to the roof.

What to Look For

We haven't come across many specific issues with the T8 drivetrain, but conduct a thorough test drive just in case. And make sure that the car charges properly - that the catch on the socket works and that the lead hasn't been run over. Most of the MK2 XC90 owners we surveyed were very happy with their cars - but inevitably there were a few issues. One owner had problems with a leaking panoramic sunroof. Another had issues with the air suspension, the parking sensors and the stop/start system, so check that all these features work properly on your test drive. Quite a few electrical and software issues were reported too, so go thoroughly over all the powered and infotainment functions of the car you're looking at. It's unlikely the XC90 will have been used arduously off road, but check the underside just in case. The big alloy wheels are very susceptible to kerbing. As usual, check the alloys for kerb scuffing and the rear of the cabin and the boot for damage caused by unruly kids or awkwardly-shaped luggage.

Replacement Parts

(approx based on a 2020 XC90 T8 - ex VAT ) An oil filter costs in the £7-£21 bracket and an air filter will cost in the £11-£21 bracket. A front brake pad set sits in the £38-£47 bracket for a set. A rear brake pad set sits in the £22-£47 bracket for a set. A fuel filter is in the £29-£50 bracket. Wiper blades sit in the £7-£13 bracket. Alternators start from around £337. A front axle shock absorber is in the £42-£90 bracket.

On the Road

The 'Recharge T8' badging applied to this car denotes its petrol/electric powertrain and plug-in hybrid usability. In fact there are three engines if you're going to be pedantic about it and count the 25bhp starter motor/generator that pitches in from time to time to smooth any gaps in torque delivery between the two main power sources. One of these is the 303hp turbocharged/supercharged petrol unit, borrowed from the old conventional T6 model and there to drive the front wheels. In an XC90 T8 though, it's assisted by a separate engine at the back, an 87bhp electric motor powered by a battery pack neatly packaged away in the transmission tunnel. It's all enough to deliver a set of stats that it's rather hard to get your head around. So, 386hp and 62mph from rest in just 5.8s - the kind of storming performance you'd get in this segment in this era from, say, a Porsche Cayenne S - matched with real world fuel and CO2 readings that could potentially equal those of a frugal supermini. You can even go a fraction faster if you get a car whose original owner paid extra for the 'Polestar Performance Software Optimisation' option, which boosts engine output to 317hp. Either way, for ultimate performance, you'll need to select the most performance-orientated of the five driving settings that T8 owners are offered - the 'Power' mode that sees both petrol and electric units permanently working together. Alternatively, there are four other drive choices: a 'Hybrid' setting that sees the two engines cutting in and out as necessary: an 'AWD' mode that gives you permanent 4x4 traction off road: plus a 'Pure electric' setting that only uses the battery power and with bigger-battery post-2019-era models can take you up to 30.4 miles (more than most people's daily commuting distance) on a single charge. There's even a 'Save' option so that on a longer trip, you can hold that charge until you get to the city driving you might have to do at the end of the journey. As part of the changes made to the updated MK2 XC90 line-up on 2019, Volvo introduced a higher-capacity battery to this T8 variant, which enhanced its all-electric driving range by around 15%, upping it from 22 to 30.4 miles - a useful increase. Theoretically then, you could use an XC90 T8 every day without ever visiting a fuel station unless you needed to undertake a longer trip. That's assuming of course that you keep the lithium-ion battery fully charged. That'll take a little longer with the post-2019-era versions thanks to the bigger battery. Owners can buy a wallbox from Volvo that will charge their cars on 16-amp power in about three hours. If you're out and about and find a 10-amp pubic charging point, the needed time will be slightly lengthier - around four hours - while connecting up to a normal domestic three-pin 6-am supply will take eight hours. Ultimately, to justify this T8 model's price premium over the conventionally-engined variants in the range, you really have to try and plug it in at every opportunity, otherwise you'll simply find yourself running a heavy petrol-powered SUV. And one that will need more frequent refuelling than more conventional XC90 derivatives because its fuel tank size falls from 71 to 50-litres due to the need to make space for the hybrid powertrain and the battery. If on the move, you want to prioritise all-electric progress, you can select a 'Pure' driving mode that prioritises electric-only operation and would be useful in an urban environment. In everyday use though, most T8 owners will be driving in the 'Hybrid' mode that the car's powertrain automatically defaults to, a setting in which the vehicle will automatically alternate between petrol and electric power - and the basis for a faintly incredible-sounding set of WLTP-rated running cost figures: up to 104.5mpg on the WLTP combined cycle and up to 61g/km of CO2. A 'Driver Performance' option on the centre-dash screen graphically shows how frugally you've been driving your XC90 and on this T8 model, also includes an interactive graphic showing what's currently being powered by what.

Overall

Volvo seems to have flourished under foreign ownership and this Recharge T8 Plug-in hybrid XC90 model is a good example of why. You might have expected Chinese company control to stifle the company's Scandinavian character. Instead, what we were given here was a return to Swedish charisma and an emphasis on all the things that the Gothenburg brand does best - cool restrained style, real-world practicality and class-leading safety. Of course, this Volvo's not perfect. There are still sharper-handling choices and more capable off roaders in this sector. In balancing these virtues though, this XC90 T8 set its own class standard and in doing so, established a family benchmark amongst luxury Plug-in Hybrid 7-seat SUVs that rivals struggled to match. Add in the astonishingly low running costs that come with Plug-in hybrid technology and it's a difficult formula to resist if you're shopping from this period in this segment. Company founders Assar Gabrielsson and Gustaf Larson would have liked this car. More importantly though, if you're shopping in this segment, we think you will too.