Driving the awesome electric Volvo ES90 left me craving a sedan

• Volvo ES90 standard key features
• Volvo ES90 performance specs
• An incredible sound system and a fab panoramic roof
• Some of the tech is a little too tedious
• It’s perfect for anyone who doesn’t want an SUV

Look, I know most of us either buy or hanker after the SUV format when it comes to car ownership, but the new all-electric Volvo ES90 might be about to persuade folks to think differently. Yup, it’s a sedan, but the format fits so well that I feel it’ll work perfectly for anyone who’s getting a little tired of the high and mighty SUV vibe.

The Volvo ES90 still packs plenty of bulk. It’s quite big and burly, but the execution of the design really puts it on a pedestal of its own. Adding to the appeal is the range of powertrains, which starts with a Single Motor Extended Range, followed by a Twin Motor option, and topped off with the Twin Motor Performance.

Meanwhile, there are two trims, Plus and Ultra, which help to keep everything simple and straightforward. Very Scandinavian. For the UK, one of the markets it’ll hit first, prices start at £69,760 ($93,700 USD roughly) for the Plus Single Motor Extended Range and head right up to £87,960 (about $118,200 USD) for the Ultra Twin Motor Performance model. Crucially, though, the current tariff situation could be the main obstacle to buying a Volvo ES90 in the US.

Volvo ES90 standard key features

The Volvo ES90 starts at about $93,700, rising to $118,200 based on UK pricing, though due to the current tariffs situation, this is only an estimate. On top of the Plus and Ultra trims, there are also a range of options available for the Volvo ES90. These include Active Four-C Chassis air suspension, alloy wheel options including seven and five-spoke variants, plus chrome trim flourishes on the front and rear bumper, plus the lower door molding.

High levels of premium kit come as standard on the Volvo ES90:

• Bose Premium Sound
• Wireless Apple CarPlay
• Bi-directional charging capabilities
• Driver support systems
• Panoramic roof

Volvo ES90 performance specs

Dazzling performance and sticky roadholding

I found the Volvo ES90 a dream to drive. Granted, it’s quite big on smaller European roads, and stress levels rose when I had to squeeze the sedan through tight city streets flanked by vehicles on both sides. However, the Volvo ES90 is very agile, perhaps surprisingly so in those confined spaces. It’s also relatively straightforward to park, thanks to the suite of in-car cameras that help in parking lots.

The best bit about the Volvo ES90 was how it went when I put it through its paces on the curvy backroads found high above Monte Carlo in France. The car feels super sticky through tight bends and, because it isn’t an SUV and isn’t really high off the ground, there’s virtually no body roll in evidence. On top of that, the Volvo ES90 has to be one of the quietest EVs I’ve driven. Even with those large alloys, there was next to no tire noise and no wind noise from around the mirrors or windows either. Very impressive.

The interior trim is very complimentary too, with a contrasting Nordico seat and door card material used throughout my test car. It’s all very premium.

There’s plenty of power on tap, that’s for sure. The single-motor extended range setup packs 333 horsepower, the ultra twin motor has 449 horsepower and the ultra twin motor boasts a sizable 680 horsepower. There’s something for everything, plus the battery range is up to 401 miles for the single motor variants, up to 400 miles for the ultra twin motor, and 435 miles for the twin motor models.

An incredible sound system and a fab panoramic roof

Stacked with features

One of the best things about the Volvo ES90 has to be the overall specification. Even in its Plus trim, the car comes fully loaded with a stack of goodies. These include awesome 20-inch seven-spoke alloy wheels, a Bose Premium Sound audio system, Wireless Apple CarPlay, bidirectional charging capability, and a panoramic roof.

Move up to the Ultra trim and the Volvo ES90 gets all the kit mentioned above but adds in Active four-C chassis air suspension, incredible Pixel headlights, and beefs up the alloys to 21-inch five-spoke rims. There are also tinted rear windows, plus an electrochromic panoramic roof that can be switched from transparent to opaque with a tap of a button on the infotainment screen.

Audio gets a boost in the Ultra trim too, upgrading to a Bowers and Wilkins system, while comfort levels are pushed to the max thanks to front seats that massage and rear seats that benefit from electric recline and one of the biggest middle armrests I’ve ever seen in a sedan.

I also love the range of exterior and interior shades on offer for the Volvo ES90. Buyers can choose from crystal white, onyx black, denim blue, vapour grey, sand dune, aurora silver, and the fabulous new mulberry red color seen here. The interior trim is very complimentary too, with a contrasting Nordico seat and door card material used throughout my test car. It’s all very premium.

Some of the tech is a little too tedious

The menus are crisp and clear

While I generally think Volvo using Google to deliver its sat-nav directions is a good thing, my experience behind the wheel of the ES90 was hampered a little bit by the way it worked. Maybe I had a duff route plumbed in, but Google Maps’ obsession with checking off waypoints became a little tiresome on some of the more torturous routes I drove on.

However, while I didn’t expect to like the requirement to make every adjustment using the central touchscreen, this aspect of the Volvo ES90 didn’t annoy me as much as I expected. In fact, I think Volvo has evolved its suite of virtual control buttons so well that it’s all pretty seamless. I’m not a huge fan of having to use the screen to adjust door mirrors, mind, and door-mounted controls are still more my thing.

Overall, the Volvo ES90 is a masterpiece of stylish design combined with clever tech, all topped with the power and poise of a dedicated all-electric platform.

Nevertheless, the Volvo ES90’s menus are crisp, clear, and offer easy access to core controls like the mirrors, so anyone worried about how that’ll work out during real-world driving scenarios, it’s actually better than anticipated.

It’s perfect for anyone who doesn’t want an SUV

Should you buy the Volvo ES90?

Overall, the Volvo ES90 is a masterpiece of stylish design combined with clever tech, all topped with the power and poise of a dedicated all-electric platform. It’s a car that can be a little tricky to wind around tighter country roads, although the suspension setup feels like it’s more than ready for the challenge. As a highway cruiser, the Volvo ES90 works a treat.