- Volvo's giving the three-row XC90 an update
- The refreshed SUV will debut on Sept. 4.
- The XC90's electric successor, the EX90, arrives in dealers later this year
"A new iteration of the hybrid Volvo XC90" will debut in a live-streamed event Sept. 4, the Swedish automaker announced Wednesday.
This is likely to be a refreshed version of the current-generation Volvo XC90 plug-in hybrid, which has been on sale since 2015. While the all-electric Volvo EX90 is due to reach U.S. dealerships by the end of the year, Volvo was expected to keep the current XC90 on sale for a while with updates—and those updates are likely what the automaker will be showing in a few weeks.
2024 Volvo XC90
Volvo in 2021 announced that it would sell only EVs starting in 2030, but Automotive News reported last month that the automaker's U.S. dealers expect to still be selling plug-in hybrids and 48-volt mild hybrids beyond that point. In that report, one anonymous dealer said, declaring that "we will have to, or we will die."
Volvo already fits plug-in hybrids into its EV product strategy more comprehensively than any other full-line automaker—even going so far as to mask tailpipes. The U.S.-market plug-in hybrid with the most electric range and highest fuel efficiency—the S60 Recharge sedan—is being discontinued, but that's a reflection of diminishing interest in sedans, not plug-in hybrids.
2024 Volvo XC90
The all-electric EX90—a three-row SUV with a similar footprint to the current XC90—was unveiled in 2022, but production for the U.S. market at Volvo's South Carolina factory didn't start until earlier this year. The delay was due to software issues that, as of early August, had not been fully resolved. Volvo told customers at that time that cars would arrive without certain features enabled, but that said features would be added after delivery via over-the-air updates.
More recently, the EX90 saw a $3,300 price increase that Volvo attributes to higher material costs. The base price is now $81,290 with the mandatory $1,295 destination charge. For comparison, Volvo currently lists a base price of $73,195 with destination for the outgoing 2024 XC90 Recharge plug-in hybrid.
