VOLVO XC90 road test reports and car reviews

Volvo XC90 D5 SE (185bhp manual gearbox) 2006

Bought new in March 2006 and now at 77,000 miles in Dec ’09. Twice yearly trips from Scotland to Austria otherwise rural roads and town driving. Luxury pan-euro cruiser at 100mph+ on autobahn commands respect from other road users. Never used snow chains in Alps or Scottish winters as AWD simply pulls car anywhere (fitted with Pirelli Scorpion Ice & Snow winter tyres). 29mpg town / 35mpg rural / 39mpg at steady 70mph UK motorway. £210 / band F road tax. Faults have been rear wheel bearing (known fault replaced with enhanced units by dealer under warranty) & drop links. Otherwise reliable. Servicing costs pricey but dealer is best ever experienced - washes, valets car and dresses tyres for even the smallest of vists - swaps summer / winter tyres at no cost. Load lugger, takes 7 passengers (rear seats comfy up to about 45min journey for adults), super safe, fantastic drive. Power just about matched to car but avoid pre-2006 D5 smaller units (162bhp). Great car but make sure you have the budget to continue servicing & ownership!

Responses to this review

I agree with David Blattman... Volvo`s rock - johncharlesohara@msn.com for more info - Chas O’Hara from Dumbartonshire

Volvo XC90 D5 SE Geartronic 2006

At present I am in a love-hate relationship with my April 2006 XC90. I bought it at 3100 miles as an ex-demonstrator. Mileage now 25785. It is mainly used for towing a 17 foot caravan and it is the best towcar I have had in 40 years of caravanning. Towing mileage so far 6034. The car had its annual service as usual in April 2009. At 24856 miles (957 miles after service including 205 miles towing) while towing it suddenly displayed "Anti-skid service required" followed by "Engine service required urgent" and then went into limp mode. The engine management symbol was on. The car was recovered by truck to the supplying dealer who diagnosed "injector for No 4 cylinder not seated fully into unit and after clearing codes and road testing found the engine management light and then discovered a signal wire detached from block connector/housing - not fully in block connector. Resecured & tighten (sic) wire cleared codes and road tested. Vehicle OK". Last week the same sequence occurred with caravan on tow and we had to be trucked home 130 miles. Mileage from first breakdown 929 including 230 miles of towing. By the time we got home and it came off the truck the management light had gone out and an hour or so after that the message about engine service had also gone out. After some persuasion the dealer collected the car by truck, having no difficulty driving the car up the ramps. Their finding is now awaited. The car has otherwise performed well and took us on 1493 miles of towing in Iberia in 2007 and 1617 in France last year without problems. In 2008 while solo away from home we had similar displays but no limping and another dealer to which I immediately took it said there was a recall outstanding which the supplying and servicing dealer had not told me about. Something to do with software I was told. I bought the car for retirement and long term ownership but am now wondering whether I have to review my decision.

Volvo XC90 D5 SE 2004

I too have had a love hate relationship with my XC90. Bought 02/2007 for £19,800 with about 50k on the clock. I love the look and practicality of the vehicle and the fuel economy is very good when you compare it to its peers. I have just passed 80k and have had the following faults in the last 30k miles. (1) wheel bearing failure at 65k cost £200 (a common fault it seems), (2) turbo module sensor failure at 70k cost £120, (3) this is the big one, I noticed an intermittent knocking noise coming from the front soon followed by what sounded like transmission whine. It turns out that the Transfer Box / Angle Gear has disintegrated and this is going to cost £1,200 ouch! Having read various blogs on the internet etc, these always seem to fail around the 60-60k mark, so I should have been prepared for it. I have also got through a set of tyres as they were all new when I bought the car cost £450. Is 30k for a set of tyres good? I am a bit disappointed with these failures on what is supposed to be a prestige car, but when you hear some of the horror stories about Landrover Discovery's I guess you get off lightly being an XC90 owner. So if you are going to own an XC90 out of warranty make sure that you drive a good bargain when you buy the car and put the money you saved in the bank ready for some expensive repairs along the way!

Responses to this review

My 2001 Volvo XC70 has done over 180,000 km in a variety of terrains in South Africa. Until December 2009 I had had no problems whatsoever with the transfer box angle gear. That is, until I replaced the two tyres on the front wheels. I had Michellin 215/65R 16 tyres on all four wheels, having done 45,000 km by November. The treads on the rear wheels were still fine but I replaced the front tyres with Continental "4x4 Contact" tyres of the same size. In December I travelled 1,000 km down to the coast and the angle gear failed, costing me over R16,000 to replace in East London. On my way back to Johannesburg the angle box again failed! When the Volvo agant in Johannesburg examined the car he claimed that the failures were due to a difference in tyre circumference from front to back of 50 mm! That equates to 16 mm on the diameter or 8 mm on the radius! If this is such a critical aspect of the tyres, why does Volvo not highlight it in the Owner’s Handbook? Chris Hughes from South Africa

Volvo XC90 2004

D5 SE all-wheel drive. Bought 2nd hand 2006 with 16k on the clock from a main agent. Fitted with the complete options list. All bells and whistles. Bargain. Recall for steering bushes inspection but all ok. Snag list some chrome strip coming away and the small speaker on the inside of the front passenger window window came off. All fixed free. Locking system went on strike for no reason which the agent fixed Now 35,229 miles. Very happy. Very comfortable. Fuel consumption on around and about local roads and town, 35 mpg (diesel). Motorway 45-48 at steady 60 mph. Drop it to average 50 mph and it will return 55 mpg. Have had six largish family plus luggage on board for 100 miles with only minor groans but they were distracted by movies on the seat screens. screens Regular servicing with main service at 12,600 and an oil/filter change at halfway. Good investment. No mechanical problems. Tyres have lasted 25,000 miles but then I do so before the regulations say and keep careful watch on pressures. Two had to be changed with deep cuts at 10,000 miles. Possible malicious. Excellent for long distance. Brake pads long lasting but I use Geartronic for braking mainly. One unhappiness is the rear brake discs rusting and having to be replaced. Watch out for changing down using Geartronic. It is possible to go to 1st at too high a speed and I suspect that will do the transmission no end of harm. Servicing is a bit pricey but you do get the feeling that is has been done well and servicing staff will answer your questions and provide explanations. Only problem. The Government VED bands that do not relate to real life.

Volvo XC90 D5 Executive 2004

My wife had wanted an XC90 for some time and we finally got around to buying this one second hand, two years old, in March 2007. We both enjoy driving it, particularly the handling and the driver position, but have been disappointed by the lack of space - we have 3 grown-up kids - particularly with the two seats at the very rear, which would just about accommodate two young children comfortably. In the first row of rear seats we can only get two of ours in comfortably as a third in the middle inevitably ends up with his or her knees up under their chin. Running costs have been very high. So far in one year we have had to replace all 4 tyres, the two rear brake discs and now we have the start of what sounds like a failing wheel bearing in one of the front wheels (the rear wheel bearings had been replaced by the dealer before we bought it as part of a recall) and of course the warranty has just expired! There are a number of reports online both here in the UK and USA of XC90 wheel bearings failing at an alarming rate, which is VERY disappointing in a car of this supposed quality. Nothing associated with servicing or repairs has been anything but expensive, even going to a local independent garage. As much as we enjoy the car we are becoming increasingly concerned about the reliability and it is not what we would have expected from a high-end Volvo. My wife previously owned a V70 turbo which she ran for 8 years up to 85K miles without any real issues.

Volvo XC90 Se D5 2003

We have a love/hate relationship with our XC90. We love the build, reasonable fuel consumption, comfort and space. We have, however, been plagued with problems. The first and most serious was a complete engine and gear box melt down whilst driving in France. We were flabbergasted that a car of this calibre and cost should suffer such fundamental failure at 51,000 miles and less than 4 years old (just outside warranty - arghhh!) We have also recently had suspension bushes replaced and the drive shaft imploded last week at 60,000 miles! Is this normal? Volvo tell me ’well it is quite an old car’ Well our Audi is even older at 11 years and we have never (touch wood) experienced such major failures. Perhaps we are foolish but we do intend to buy a new XC90, we are hoping that we are just very unlucky and bought a ’Friday’ car. We have looked at alternatives and feel that there is nothing else out there that offers the same space and style. We have 3 young children and 2 dogs so appreciate the large boot and 7 seats. We will however ensure we sell before the warranty expires!

Volvo XC90 se d5 geartronic 2004

Excellant car would have got 5 stars except for recalls and part failures Wishbone replaced under recall. Wheel bearings collapsed at 20,000 miles (scary) Ignition lock failed on a car that is just over 3years old with just 28,000 miles done was told wear and tear .First time ever this has happened to me with nearly 30 years motoring behind me my 20 year old ford cortinas ignition lock never failed strange. interior trim falls to bits. Steering Rack failed at just over 3 years old and 26,000 miles was told pot holes would cause this god help me if i ever took it off road. this happened on my ford at 19 years old and 180,000 miles. TV/DVDs stopped working replaced under warrenty. fuel economy good for a big car 25 to 30 mpg

Volvo XC90 2007

No review submitted.

Volvo XC90 3.2 SE

The 7 seats makes this off-roader perfect form my extended family. Both the interior and the exterior are built to last and are built using quality materials. This a quality 4x4 and Volvo have got everything spot on. The steering column can be adjusted for comfort and the car offers a pleasant ride with the minimum of noise. The only reason I have not awarded the XC90 5 stars is due to the fuel economy which is not the best at arounf 20mpg.