Seating and cargo arrangements in the seven-seater are enormously versatile, allowing many configurations, including six of the seven seats folded flat. Equally impressive is the ease with which the seats slide and fold, change and vanish. Some highlights:
Second-row seats are split 40/20/40 and slide forward independently. Headrests don't have to be removed when the seats are folded flat.
Up front, the console between the front seats can be easily removed, allowing the center second-row seat to slide way forward between and just behind the front buckets. With the optional integrated booster cushion for that seat, tending to a young child has never been easier.
Third-row seats have a console between them and room for two or three stacked duffel bags behind them. There's only enough leg room in the third row for two kids or two very short people. Getting into the third row is easier than it is in most SUVs, however, due to how neatly the second-row seats slide and flip. There are entry grab handles over the three passenger doors, but the front-door handle is a bit narrow. The doors close with aluminum handles, but they too are narrow, with room for only two or maybe three fingers.
That third row is a cozy and convenient little world of its own; kids might actually want to sit way back back there. Third-row seatbelts have pretensioners (yet another safety first), which are designed to reduce injury from the belts in a crash. Volvo also designed a crumple zone at the rear, for added safety in a rear-end collision. The third-row console has big cupholders, and there are also long deep pockets at the windowsills, power outlets, climate controls with individual vents. Headphone plugs are also provided, meaning second- or third-row headphone users can listen to a CD, while letting the front-seat occupants listen to the radio through the speakers. Last but not least, there's the optional drop-down DVD player, for both second- and third-row passengers.
In the front, the trim is a mix of dark wood, brushed aluminum and faux aluminum plastic that unfortunately feels cheap. There's very little storage space for the front seats, with narrow door pockets and a slim console compartment that's also difficult to access; and if you store a few CDs in the slots, there's no more room at all. The only open bin for tossing small items is on the panel, about big enough for a cellphone.
Volvo boasts that the XC90 instrument panel is "one of the car world's clearest and most ergonomically designed," but it didn't stand out as such to us. The gauges were simple (only a speedo, tach, fuel and temp), but we couldn't find a comfortable steering wheel position; the panel, apparently including the steering column, is canted upward toward the high seating position. The wood-and-leather steering wheel on the T6 was much better because it was round; the 2.5T steering wheel has edges and angles that defy understanding.
The front bucket seats, new for the XC90, are good, especially with adjustable lumbar support, and Volvo leather is some of the best around, but more side bolstering wouldn't hurt. The seats feature Volvo's Whiplash Protection System, which moves them back and downward if the vehicle is hit from behind, reducing neck snap. There are both forward and side airbags in the front. Headroom is exceptional thanks to the roofline, and big windows offer excellent visibility and a feeling of roominess. However the price for the safety of high headrests is restricted second-row visibility forward, as well as the driver's rearview visibility. Also, there was a perpetual reflection in the windshield, from the busy dashboard shelf that included a big audio speaker, defroster vent, and red light for the four-way flasher.
Speaking of the price for safety, company officials believe Volvo builds some of the safest cars in the world. Those systems and features cost a lot of money to develop and produce. Those costs are sometimes reflected in the price of the vehicles and in having to shave costs in other less-critical areas to remain competitive.
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