NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. – Here is a list of luxury electric cars with third-row seats that you actually want to sit in. Rivian R1S … That’s the end of the list. If you want to add the Kia EV9 to your shortlist on the strength of its feature-rich and premium interior, consider it. But the options are limited. That changes things dramatically with the 2025 Volvo EX90. This is the next-generation model of Volvo’s naturally popular XC90 three-row crossover. Those who own the EX90, or any of its many competitors, will quickly become accustomed to the classy, cocoon-like comfort of this surprisingly luxurious SUV. Of course, being fully electric will make it less appealing to some (there’s a reason the XC90 has endured), but if you’re looking for a three-row luxury SUV and are thinking of switching to an EV, the EX90 shouldn’t make you feel like you’re about to fall off a high place.
There are two versions available: Twin Motor and Twin Motor Performance. We weren’t able to test drive the former, but it has 408 horsepower and 568 pound-feet of torque. Those certainly seem ridiculously high, at least for a Volvo SUV that can carry 5,687 pounds. The 0-60 mph time is estimated at 5.7 seconds. If you’re going for one of those quick starts, both the front and rear axle motors will kick in, but for the most part, for moderate acceleration, the Twin Motor will rely on the front axle, which produces 241 horsepower alone; the rear is at 160 horsepower.
The Twin Motor Performance has the same front motor, but the rear has been upgraded to a 268-horsepower unit. Overall power jumps to 517 horsepower and 671 pound-feet. This version distributes power more evenly and smoothly. The rear axle also has a torque-vectoring electronic clutch, which in theory adjusts the power output between the rear wheels to improve handling and traction in bad weather. However, it was very hard to detect, since the EX90 is not the type of SUV you want to drive spiritedly. It doesn’t have to be, but while you can really feel and enjoy the torque-vectoring all-wheel-drive system in the Acura MDX Type S, that’s not the case in the EX90.
Given the 0-60 mph time of 4.7 seconds, it’s no surprise that the Twin Motor Performance will silently tuck you back into your seat as you zip up a freeway on-ramp, while other drivers will do a double take at the sight of a beige Volvo SUV suddenly jumping to lightspeed. There’s no Star Wars-esque powertrain noise, which is a good thing, because such sounds are usually ridiculous and ruin the surprisingly quiet interior. There’s also very little wind noise. Road noise also seems very well-suppressed, although it’s hard to tell for sure since Orange County seems to repave its roads every few weeks.
On these roads, ride quality was also a little difficult to judge. The XC90 always struggled to achieve a comfortable ride with its larger wheels. It felt a bit like swapping the soles of your comfortable running shoes for stiff work-boot rubber. The EX90 seems to excel in this regard with its optional 22-inch wheels, but there were some bumps that felt more like Dr. Martens than Hoka One One. This was despite the fact that our test car was equipped with active air suspension. In other words, we’d opt for the smaller 21-inch standard wheels.
There are adjustable drive settings, but they’re buried under touchscreen clicks, which makes you wonder why Volvo bothered to provide them at all. Apparently they’re buried because Volvo owners weren’t in the habit of using them. Not surprising really. As with the torque-vectoring differential, increasing the suspension firmness doesn’t do anything to make the controlled, confident EX90 any sportier; it just makes it a little more wobbly. The difference between the two steering settings is also minimal, with “Firm” not really anywhere near what you’d consider firm. Overall, it seems like a waste of effort; just get it to drive like a Volvo and you’re done.
Meanwhile, the regenerative braking could use an additional setting. One-pedal drive mode is easily accessed via a docked touchscreen button, but the mode is only best suited in traffic jams; the brakes are too hard in other areas, making it hard to establish enough throttle input to keep passengers’ heads from bobbing. An intermediate setting, like the EV9 and many other cars offer, would let you enjoy the benefits of one-pedal drive without having to pull the chute every time you ease off the throttle. No, electronics.
Like most models in this segment, the EX90 comes in 6- and 7-seater versions. The second row has fewer seats thanks to captain’s chairs, but the standard 40/20/40 split bench is versatile and comfortable, and there’s a pop-up booster seat in the middle, so families with small children won’t have to check that box right away. The third row is the same in both cases, with less headroom for taller people, but everyone will love the seats being higher off the floor than in the XC90, making it more comfortable and spacious. The Rivian R1S is better in the back, though.
The front bucket seats will not disappoint those who expect Volvo to offer extremely comfortable seats. Unfortunately, Volvo has dived headfirst into the pool of savings and switchgear reduction and come up with a do-it-all, one-knob solution for seat adjustment control that is, well, tedious. A small button in the center of the knob cycles through the different movements, forcing you to look at the touchscreen to see what function is selected before you can turn the knob or move it back and forth to adjust it. Taking up the screen means it covers up whatever you were looking at on that screen. Also, the little selection button stopped working in one of our test cars, forcing us to switch to another vehicle because we literally couldn’t move our seat to safely drive.
Further savings can be found in the removal of the rear window switches on the doors, integrating the hazard buttons into the touchscreen and, most annoyingly, mirror and wheel adjustments require clicking through multiple touchscreen menus and then using the steering wheel and instrument panel to adjust them. Sorry Volvo, but it’s hard to claim safety is a top priority when you have to take your eyes off the road that much just to tweak the position of your mirrors or wheel.
Of course, there’s a camera staring at you at all times, lest you get too carried away with the wonder of mirror adjustments or fall asleep. But that’s nothing compared to what’s going on up top. A prominent pod just above the windshield houses a LiDAR sensor that significantly boosts the EX90’s ability to detect potential collisions no matter the circumstances. Jacob McKim, senior software engineer at LiDAR supplier Luminar, said the prominent pod is there to provide the best forward visibility possible, and placing it on the fascia, for example, is like putting your eyes on your lap. He said the next generation of sensors could be placed behind the glass (if OEMs want to do that), but the technology isn’t there yet. The pod is a necessity today.
All of the data collected from that pod, along with other radar and camera sensors, feeds into an Nvidia-supplied computer. We got a chance to hold it in our hands. It’s about the size of an Etch-A-Sketch, and the computer board that powers the infotainment system looks like a greeting card with wires attached. It’s impressive. But the important thing is that all of these systems seem to work fine, and aren’t failing to do their job, with no hyper-vigilance or false alarms that make you want to turn them off.
Speaking of the infotainment system, it features a 14.5-inch touchscreen with Google built in, computing power from the Snapdragon Cockpit Platforms, and graphics visualization from Epic Games’ Unreal Engine. It’s impressive, but a longer test is needed to determine how effective it is in daily use. Functionality-wise, the layout is new for Volvo and roughly equivalent to Mercedes’ Zero Layer, which prioritizes the nav map, with a couple of selectable widgets (such as phone and audio) below that, and permanently docked climate controls below that. It seemed easy to use.
The $3,200 Bowers & Wilkins sound system in our test vehicle was exceptional, even without playing Dolby Atmos content. The quietness of the EX90’s cabin, combined with the excellence of the sound system, basically makes it like driving a recording studio on wheels. Sound like a stretch? Coming soon for the stereo is the Abbey Road Studios setting, which Bowers & Wilkins developed in collaboration with Abbey Road engineers to recreate the acoustic environment of the recording studio made famous by the Beatles. Apparently you can set it to sound like you’re sitting in a control booth or on Ringo’s lap. Abbey Road’s head of studio products, Mirec Stiles, says it’s tuned and tested for every genre, and is meant to change the environment of playback, not what’s being played. This will be available as an over-the-air update for Bowers & Wilkins-equipped cars in Q2 2025, so we didn’t have a chance to try it out on the EX90.
The interior design is clean and elegant, but it’s really hard to make a huge vertical screen the centerpiece of a distinctive design. The interior basically looks like a Tesla with a significantly increased materials and construction budget. Sure, the interior is nice. We had the chance to try two versions, neither of which have leather because leather is not available. One is made with Nordico, a leather substitute made from pine oil, old wine corks, and recycled polymers, and looks and feels like the real thing. It will also repel blue jeans dyes and various stains better than Volvo’s old upgrade leather. The other is a wool blend fabric certified sheep-friendly by animal welfare organizations, mixed with recycled polymers. It looks and feels great, and seems like it should be more expensive than leather. No, it doesn’t itch, but I wonder how resistant it is to stains.
Okay, so this is a car that feels like a moving cocoon, with plenty of space, incredible computing power, a great stereo, and more acceleration than you’ll ever need. The interior is also great. But what about the two biggest pain points of switching to an electric car? The EPA-estimated range for both motor versions is 300 miles with 20-22 inch wheels, and 310 miles with 21 inch wheels. Most versions of the Rivian R1S are better than this, but the Volvo beats the EV9. The Tesla Model X is also just a few miles better. However, while Ol’ Falcon Wing has a Supercharger network and the EX90 can charge faster at up to 250 kilowatts, it has CCS plugs, so you’re still tied to the Electrify Americas of the world until things improve (Volvo has said it will eventually switch to NACS, but that day hasn’t come yet). Of course, that’s when you leave the comfort of a metropolitan area. If you charge at home, you don’t have to go to the gas station anymore, and that’s totally fine.
Pricing starts at $81,290 for the Twin Motor EX90 Plus trim level and tops out at $85,640 for the Ultra trim level. The Twin Motor Performance adds $5,000 to either, but given the nature of the EX90, it seems hard to justify. The Twin Motor is almost too powerful as is. Our fully equipped test car was priced at $94,640. Ugh. At least it looks, feels and rides expensive. And if you lease the EX90, you get a $7,500 discount. It’s built in South Carolina, and leasing voids the purchase price and income limits for the Federal Electric Vehicle Tax Credit. That certainly seems like the best way to go, but it means the “is it worth it” question becomes a little more complicated than just looking at the MSRP.
But one thing is certain: if you’ve been waiting for an electric family car that definitely deserves the description “luxury” and can undoubtedly actually seat seven, your answer is finally here.