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There’s only one way to fully test a car billed as ‘crafted for comfort, built for adventure’. Fill it to bursting point with four adults, a dog, a ton of luggage, cases of wine - and cruise the French autoroutes.
Volvo’s V90 T6 is one of a slowly dying breed; an estate car in a market heavily dominated by cars built up - not out - known as SUVs.
Still, however, demand for estates persists. An estate can feel less bulky, less intimidating than a chunky SUV. More ground-hugging, they can handle and ride better, too. With their extra length, they often offer airy, spacious cabins and bigger boots - ideal for those who overpack on holiday.
Someone even asks, on Google, if they can sleep in a V90. Answer? ‘Yes’. Apparently. The rear seats fold (almost) flat, although you’d need a camping mattress and taller customers would have to bend their knees. We’ve not tried it and don't plan to.
As we reported, last year Volvo reversed a decision to ‘can’ its estates after a public outcry and reinstated the V90, now available exclusively as a plug-in hybrid (PHEV). The firm’s biggest estate, it costs from £59,410, and has a football pitch-sized boot (well, Subbuteo) measuring approximately 118 cms in length and 110 in width. And much more with the seats down.
The V90 - evolved from a long line of estates dating back decades – wasn’t originally envisaged as a hybrid, but has been re-engineered as a PHEV, batteries shoehorned underneath, together with a powerful electric motor driving the rear wheels, and a charging port on the nearside rear wing. It makes sense for business car users, who get lower BiK tax rates.
Capital gains
It makes sense for Londoners too. We have found that we can reliably motor in and around the capital using mostly ‘clean’ electricity (piped from a converted Lambeth lamp post at around a tenner a go), to do 40 or so miles. Only on longer journeys does the battery drop to zero, the car reverting mostly to the potent two-litre turbocharged petrol engine, which produces 253hp. Even then, the T6’s batteries gain a trickle of self-recharge current, so that low-speed manoeuvres can still be accomplished, silently, on battery power alone.
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We headed for the newly-renamed ‘LeShuttle’ at Folkstone for a 1,600-mile round trip via the Loire, to the Dordogne, with the lion’s share of the motoring taking place on France’s fast network of autoroutes and N-roads which - largely - put the UK’s motorways and A-roads to shame.
Smoother, faster (the limit varies but is often 130kph, equating to just over 80mph, well above the slightly cramped UK limit of 70) and often a lot less congested, they are the kind of roads that the big Volvo was designed for. So how would it cope?
Accessing LeShuttle at Folkestone was easy, despite the car’s length, as the trains are a marvel of engineering. With crossings taking only 35 minutes, it makes sense for pet-owners too, LeShuttle claiming to have catered for four million of the little critters. Your pet stays with you in the car (after clearing formalities at the Pet Centre), presenting less of a challenge than mustering a dog on a longer ferry crossing, and the terminal at Calais offers swift access to autoroutes.
Conveyor belt
It was immediately evident that the V90 was built for comfortable, refined, high-speed cruising. After negotiating south east England’s congested, roadwork and pothole-strewn roads, France’s were a joy; smooth, largely roadwork-free, fast, with prettily-planted verges and largely uncongested, at least in May. With adaptive cruise control set at 130 kph on autoroutes, it was like sitting on a conveyor belt all the way to our first stop in Loches, the car efficiently taking charge of acceleration, braking and distance from the vehicle ahead.
The V90 is a super-relaxing way to travel and the adaptive cruise control takes a lot of strain out of consistent, high-speed motoring. There’s no worry that you might be speeding, and the Volvo’s system adapts quickly to cars pulling out in front.
Battery power quickly depleted, the petrol engine provided powerful, swift acceleration from rest area slip roads and for overtaking, the auto ‘box remaining in top gear once 130 kph was attained, even on hills, despite the load. There was a faint - almost inaudible - ‘drone’ from the transmission at around 110 kph, something we’ve never noticed on non-PHEV Volvos, and that vanished at higher speeds.
Curiosity compelled us to nudge the gear shift into ‘B’ - for battery - mode, for 40 or so miles along the autoroute and the battery charge level crept up satisfyingly. But as the MPG readout fell proportionately from around 38.5 - 34, we resumed ‘Drive’; we couldn’t see the advantage. There was no noticeable change in performance and - even with the battery indicator showing a constant zero - there was still always sufficient reserve for prolonged, entirely electric, manoeuvres at destinations along the way.
That’s infotainment
The excellent sound system helped pass the hours of high-speed travel, even if the ‘infotainment’ screen is on the small side by modern standards.
Niggles? Under-boot storage is ‘stolen’ by batteries so we fitted the vertical luggage net, enabling us to pile luggage high. The roller blind remained in place so we could still hide valuables when parked, later on. The plastic cover for the upper net bracket came off in my hand; very un-Volvo. Fortunately, it’s just window dressing for a strong metal stanchion beneath.
Over 1,600 miles the Volvo was the consummate holiday vehicle. It was superbly comfortable (especially in the front; rear passengers said their seats were not as soft as they appeared, and they were slightly too upright) and very commodious. We easily stashed our regulation 24 bottles of wine, in addition to four people’s luggage, the dog’s bedding, food and more.
The Volvo is particularly quiet and - even heavily loaded - handles extremely well, still riding nicely over urban speed ramps too. There is masses of leg - and head - room in the back, and rear passengers get two USB-C charging ports, as well as lift-up sun blinds for the side windows; a boon on long, hot, autoroute stretches.
Right view
Observations? When driving on the right, in France, your view - for instance around roundabouts - can be slightly blocked by the left-hand door mirror, unlike in an SUV where the driver sits ‘above’ the mirrors. Extra care is needed. If you’re heading to France, don’t forget that you need a UK (not GB) sticker (unless you have UK-marked number plates), and you should consider getting a Crit'Air sticker for your car. They are Air Quality certificates which indicate the emissions level of your vehicle and are important requirements for driving in France, especially in cities. The Volvo was awarded a clean number 1.
French drivers tailgate like mad. Even when you move over, expecting them to zoom past, they move over too, still clinging to your rear bumper. By way of compensation, we found France remarkably litter, vandalism and graffiti-free compared to our home turf. In cities, we found drivers more courteous, especially when we were on foot.
I bought an autoroute tag (around £10) which meant no stopping at toll booths. With a beep, it was picked up by sensors, automatically debiting my current account when we passed a barrier. So much better than the old days of having to stop, wind down the window, and getting your passenger to throw ‘shrapnel’ into a net.
The Volvo estate passed its continental test with flying colours, even if it was in a minority, among thousands of family SUVs pounding the autoroutes. Now, there’s the small matter of letting the air out of the tyres for normal duties in London. Until we can find an excuse to blow them up, re-mount the autoroute tag - and head to France again.
More on LeShuttle at www.leshuttle.com. Tickets from £59
The Facts
Volvo V90 T6 Plug-in Hybrid AWD Plus
From: £59,410
Top speed: 112 mph
0-62 mph: 5.5 seconds
Electric range: up to 54 miles
CO2 emissions 18-25 g/km
Maximum charging rate: 6.4 kW
