Volvo launches the XC90 Excellence: India’s first plug-in hybrid luxury SUV

Built on Volvo’s Scalable Product Architecture (SPA), the XC90 T8 Excellence is a four seater SUV offering first-class Swedish luxury, and will be priced at INR 1.25 cr (ex-showroom, Delhi) in India.

Included in the price are two personal charging stations that would be installed by Volvo experts at locations of customer choice, and the car can be fully charged within 2.5 hours. While the vehicle has an electric range of 40 kms, if the charging stations are installed at home and office, it can provide upto 80 kms of emissions–free driving every day. This is also the world’s cleanest SUV with 49 g/km CO2 emission.

The XC90 T8 Excellence is powered by the 2.0L 4-cylinder petrol engine that is both supercharged and turbocharged, and delivers 320hp of power. Along with the electric motor which delivers an additional 87hp, it has a collective power output of 407hp and 640Nm of torque, and can race from 0 to 100 km/h in just 5.6 seconds flat. The battery is securely placed along the central tunnel between the front & rear axle, making no compromise on internal space.

The plug-in hybrid powertrain offers three driving modes – Pure, Hybrid and Power, which can be selected by a touch on the centre console. In Pure mode, the high-voltage battery serves as the car’s sole energy source, powering the electric motor over the rear axle. It also has regenerative braking system and when more power is required, the petrol combustion engine starts up automatically.

The Hybrid mode is the default choice and suitable for everyday use. In this set up, the vehicle alternates between drawing power from the Drive-E engine and the electric motor to deliver the best overall fuel consumption with minimum emission.

 In the Power mode, the driver gets the combined performance of the combustion engine and the electric motor. The SUV takes advantage of the electric motor’s instant torque curve, while the combustion engine gets up to speed. This offers better torque at lower revs equivalent to that of a large displacement engine like the V8.

The exterior of the XC90 Excellence has subtle add-ons like chrome caps on the B and C pillars, and comes with dual integrated tail pipes, a panoramic sun roof and signature Thor’s Hammer DRL lights. The interiors stay true to its Scandinavian heritage, embellished with extended leather-covered surfacing, four individual Nappa leather upholstered seats that can be adjusted 6-ways, perforated heating/cooling and massage functions, and hand-crafted crystal glasses and gear-knob from the Swedish glass maker Orrefors. The high fidelity surround sound experience gets even better now, with a 20 speaker Bowers & Wilkins audio system. There is a 12.3” instrumentation cluster, a 9” iPad like centre touch screen and a 4.3” rear touch screen to control seat functions.

The XC90 Excellence comes with an integrated ionic air cleaner that works by positively charging electrons in airborne particles (like dust or smoke), so that they are removed from suspension in the cabin environment. This restricts particulate matter PM2.5 and PM10 by upto 95%.

This is also the first car in India to be equipped with 360 degree radar-based safety that activates an array of pre-emptive safety functions. Adaptive Cruise Control, Lane Departure Warning, Collision Warning with full Auto-Braking for Pedestrians, Cyclists, Other Vehicles and Large Animals, Blind-Spot Detection with Cross Traffic Alert, Rear Collision Warning and Park Pilot Assist are some of the features.

Apart from the radar-based safety the car is equipped with a strong safety cage, Seat-belt Pre-tensioners, Run Off-road Protection system, Side Impact protection and Whiplash protection – making it the safest SUV in its segment with a 5-Star Euro NCAP rating.