As a category of vehicles, station wagons are more or less extinct in North America. A handful of European brands still offer vehicles in this format - Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and in gussied-up off-roading form, Audi and Subaru. But if there's one brand that could be synonymous with wagons, it's Volvo. After an 11 year hiatus, it has brought back its flagship wagon, the V90.
Perhaps the most elegant and classy Volvo wagon ever created, the V90 has clean, minimalist lines and sports Volvo's signature Thor's Hammer LED headlamps. A raked rear tailgate trades off some practicality for additional style - this is nothing like the boxy Volvo wagons of the past. Gone too is the option of a rear-facing row for children, though Volvo has kept the V90 kid-friendly with the availability of two-stage integrated child booster seats.
The V90 will be sold in Canada in three different trims: Momentum, R-Design, and Inscription. A version of the V90 with elevated suspension and body cladding will also come to market wearing the Cross Country nameplate.
All three V90 trims wear the T6 badge on the tailgate, which means a 2.0-litre supercharged and turbocharged four-cylinder engine is under the hood. This is the same motor found in the XC90 and S90, and produces 316 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque. All feature an eight-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive as standard equipment. For international markets, a plug-in hybrid T8 version is available, but has not been confirmed for Canada.
The interior layout of the V90 is identical to that of the S90, but with a larger cargo hold in place of the trunk. All models come appropriately equipped as luxury vehicles and include adjustable drive modes, four-zone climate control, leather upholstery, and Volvo's large-format touchscreen infotainment system as standard. This setup includes standard navigation, plus Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
Impressively, Volvo's Pilot Assist semi-autonomous function is included as standard. The new second-generation system allows the V90 to accelerate, steer, and brake all on its own at speeds of up to 128 km/h, provided that road markings are visible. The V90 also gets the latest version of City Safety low-speed collision mitigation, which is able to apply maximum braking power to avoid collisions with cyclists, other cars, pedestrians, and large animals.
The R-Design trim features a gloss black grille, silver-coloured mirror caps, rear bumper with integrated tailpipes, 20-inch wheels, plus two exclusive and bright colours: Bursting Blue and Passion Red. Interior upgrades include charcoal-coloured leather-trimmed sports seats, paddles for manual shifting, and carbon fibre inlays.
Additional luxury options can be added and include a heated steering wheel, heated rear seats, heated windshield, automatic park assistant, 360-degree parking camera, blind-spot information, head-up display, wood-rim steering wheel, leather-finish dashboard and door panels, rear air suspension, and a 1,400-watt 19-speaker Bowers & Wilkins sound system.
Pricing for the 2017 V90 T6 AWD Momentum starts at $59,900 and tops out at $66,050 for the Inscription.
