Volvo EX90 review: A tech-heavy luxury ride

However, there is a glaring problem with the exterior: lidar Hump ​​at the top of the windshield. Volvo knows this is a problem, and I know this for two reasons. First, if you look at the plethora of official press photos of the car, you’ll see numerous shots of the EX90 from almost every possible angle except the side view. I found one side shot, but the car is so far in the background that the hump is small, which is no doubt intentional. Up close it actually looks like an unlit taxi sign. Second, I asked one of Volvo’s designers at a launch event hosted by the brand whether the team had problems dealing with camber when we were staring at it beyond the roofline, and they reluctantly confirmed that they did.

However, this lidar device enhances the already tremendous safety of the vehicle. The company claims that this is the safest Volvo ever, as the array of sensors is able to build a complete picture of the world around the car, picking up even small objects hundreds of meters away, whether it is day or night.

Although this technology makes the EX90 capable of autonomous highway driving, Volvo has not yet turned that capability on, and Thomas Broberg, Volvo’s chief technical safety advisor, won’t say when it will. “It’s more about what the car shouldn’t do than what it will do,” Broberg tells me. He adds that Volvo needs more time to test Level 3 self-driving technology, but then admits that the company has been testing this system, or versions of it, for years now. Early next year, the EX90 will allow 2.5 supervised driving, apparently, but until then all drivers will be collecting data for Volvo only.

One last important point on the lidar hump. At the launch, I spoke with a representative from Luminar, the company that makes this ugly self-driving component. He told me that the next generation of technology is half the size and that Luminar is working on mounting it in the windshield instead of letting it sit proud on top. This sounds much better, and you can expect to see it in cars by 2026 or 2027. Unfortunately, Volvo has not confirmed whether it will upgrade the EX90 to its upcoming mass-free lidar. Let’s hope so.

Luxe interior

Speaking of radar, there’s one inside the EX90 as well. It’s to prevent children or dogs from being accidentally left inside, plus all the driver monitoring and assistance systems you’d expect from Volvo. That’s a very good thing, because such is the luxurious nature of the EX90’s interior (the convincing Nordico “leather” trim is actually made from used plastic and sustainable pine oil), you wouldn’t want to leave pets and children unsupervised in the ruins. Optional captain’s chairs in the middle row or a cavernous trunk featuring the words “Will It Fit?” Very easy to use. A pictorial layout, including a washing machine, chairs, sleds and a refrigerator, lets you see what can be crammed into an acre of backyard space.

Does it fit?

Courtesy of Volvo