2025.5 Volvo XC90: Refreshed SUV follows EVs, renews PHEV push

XC90 family adopts new look, EX90 EV’s interface, OTA updates
Specs of XC90 PHEV remain similar at 33 electric miles
U.S. versions will start at $59,745 and arrive in Q1 2025

As Volvo continues its shift toward fully electric vehicles, models that electrify but still fuel up with gasoline will keep playing a very important part in its lineup.

With a reveal of an extensively refreshed 2025.5 Volvo XC90 lineup Wednesday in Gothenburg, Sweden, Volvo underscored the direction those models will take—and made clear that while its recently revealed EX90 will be taking the lead, the XC90 won’t be left behind.

A new grille design with “counteracting slats” gives gasoline Volvos a new face and plays a new twist on Volvo’s diagonal grille bar, and it’s framed in either brightwork or gloss black in matching trim throughout (although U.S. versions will only get the bright look). Slimmer headlamps gain 15-segment matrix LED technology and revamped active-high-beam tech with integral cornering lamps, while maintaining the “Thor’s hammer” look, and the hood and front fenders have been resculpted to fit their lead. New wheel designs, darkened rear lamps, and a new Mulberry Red hue change up the look elsewhere.

2025.5 Volvo XC90

XC90 goes Google-based, keeps CarPlay

While those changes altogether amount to a light refresh on the outside, the most significant changes to the XC90 come inside. There, this SUV family inherits the sweeping interface overhaul given to the EX90 and EX30 electric vehicles, with a larger, free-standing touchscreen system that’s compatible with a wide range of smartphone apps and over-the-air updates, The touchscreen has been updated with an 11.2-inch fully capacitive screen conceived with Google built-in and the same interface as the 14.5-inch touchscreen system in the EX90. It revolves around the Google Assistant, Google Maps, and Google Play apps, but includes Apple CarPlay. USB-C ports are included in the first and second rows. And the XC90 now has full over-the-air update capability.

Volvo says it’s given the dashboard a more horizontal layout than before, with recycled materials and a more textured finish; vertical air vents now break up the design; and illumination has been redone. The center-console tunnel area has also been redesigned for more convenient phone storage, with wireless charging moved to the forward portion.

2025.5 Volvo XC90

The dimensions of the XC90 haven’t changed in any significant way. At about 195 inches long, on a 117.5-inch wheelbase, with a height just under 70 inches. The XC90 will be offered in six- and seven-seat layouts, with the key difference being two captain’s chairs in the second row. Both layouts include flat-folding second and third rows, with a panoramic roof letting the light into interior layouts that tend to be light and well-detailed in terms of details and textures. Volvo includes PM2.5 air filtration in all versions, with some getting four-zone adjustability.

U.S. features and pricing for the 2025.5 XC90 haven’t yet been detailed, but Volvo says it will start at $59,745 including the $1,295 destination charge. In its global guise revealed Wednesday the XC90 was presented in Plus and Ultra versions, headlined with quilted Nordico or herringbone-weave upholstery. Once again, the XC90 can be equipped with Harman Kardon premium audio or, above that, a Bowers & Wilkins system with 19 speakers and four surround-sound listening modes.

2025.5 Volvo XC90

Volvo’s PHEV: An EV backup plan?

Volvo calls its XC90 T8 “an electric car with a backup plan,” although the T8 remains the top-of-the-line version and is one of many plug-in hybrids that provides a perkier driving experience once its gasoline engine starts. It maintains Pure, Hybrid, Power, Constant AWD, and Off-Road modes. The T8 plug-in hybrid maintains its three-layer 18.8-kwh battery pack (14.7 kwh usable)—the same pack that it rolled out to many of its plug-in hybrid models in the past couple years—and it makes 310 hp and 295 lb-ft of torque from the gasoline engine plus 145 hp and 228 lb-ft in its electric drive mode. Volvo anticipates 33 miles of fully electric driving by EPA standards.

The rest of the 2025.5 XC90 lineup will include a base B5 with a 2.0-liter turbo-4 delivering 247 hp and 266 lb-ft. Next up is the B6, with a stronger engine delivering 295 hp and 310 lb-ft. These two models are set to earn EPA combined numbers of 26 mpg and 23 mpg combined, and they both incorporate 48-volt mild-hybrid technology that especially helps to boost gas mileage in low-load and stop-and-go driving.

2025.5 Volvo XC90

Interior climate preconditioning helps save battery charge for plug-in hybrid versions by warming (or cooling) the cabin ahead of trips. It includes windshield de-icer operation; it can be activated with the app or on a timed basis.

Volvo points to a higher-output 6.4-kw onboard charger that should help PHEV owners charge more at destinations and in the middle of trips out. And the XC90 is Plug & Charge compatible according to Volvo. Volvo says that it's redesigned the charge port, but there's no mention of the Tesla-based NACS port quite yet.

The revamped XC90 will be given the 2025.5 model year designation because it will overlap somewhat with the 2025 XC90, which has only recently begun arriving at U.S. dealerships. The 2025.5 XC90 will be available for customer orders later this year and will arrive in the U.S. in the first quarter of 2025.