In the premium car segment, Volvo has always played second fiddle to the Germans. It’s always thought: if you can’t afford an Audi, BMW, or Mercedes-Benz, go for a Volvo. Well, not anymore. Beginning with the XC90, Volvo has been reborn. With a stronger and more unique identify, it can stand toe-to-toe with the best of the world. Now with the S90, Volvo has managed to convincingly replicate this formula, only this time, it’s for the luxury sedan segment.

How has Volvo managed to do this? Simple: with the S90, they’ve managed to bring that uniqueness to form a luxury sedan that combines graceful styling, effortless performance, and cutting-edge technology.



Outside, it’s strikingly beautiful with its delicately balanced shape and intricate detailing. From afar, it’s compact and yet, moving closer, it’s huge. With an overall length of 4,963 millimeters and a width of 1,890 millimeters, it’s more of a full-sized sedan than a mid-sized one.

The wide, upright grille recalls past Volvos without feeling contrived while the Thor’s Hammer daytime running lights lend it a confident face. The strong shoulders hark to more recent Volvos as do the fastback shape which draws the eye to the elegantly simple rear-end. There’s not one contrived or out-of-place line on the S90; even the standard 18-inch tires fit the fenders perfectly.



Open the doors and the S90 reveals an interior that’s restrained and subtle as its exterior. Palatial rear seat room, comfortable front seats, and pleasantly premium materials, the S90 is like a Boeing Dreamliner’s Business Class without the turbulence.

Volvo dubs the S90’s interior to be a “Scandinavian sanctuary” and that term works well with light, airy feel. Even the D4’s all black number is hardly cave-like. The seats themselves are wide and offer top notch support with all sorts of adjustments available. Equally good is the thick-rimmed steering wheel which falls right into hand.



The dashboard itself is dominated by Sensus—a big 9-inch portrait touchscreen that’s meant to reduce the requirement for physical switchgear elsewhere. Admittedly, there’s a learning curve to it, but once adjusted for, feels very natural to use. Everything from the navigation to the vehicle settings is just a screen or two away. Be warned though: it does manage to attract all sorts of fingerprints.

As a luxury sedan, the standard by which the S90 is measured against is high, and for that, it manages to succeed, mostly.

If there’s one area the S90 needs improvement in, it’s in the refinement of its 2.0-liter twin-turbocharged diesel engine. Flicking the “Engine Start” to the right disturbs the cabin with a rough, uneven idle. While it settles down as it warms up, it doesn’t’ reach a level that can be described as “refined.”



Thankfully, it becomes more agreeable when it’s on the move. By 80 km/h, it’s almost cathedral quiet. Cabin isolation is up there too, with little in the way of wind or road noise. By the century mark, the noisiest thing would be backseat drivers and the Pirelli PZero tires.

Weighing in at 1,790 kilograms, the S90 surprisingly dispatches to 100 km/h in just 8.2 seconds. While it doesn’t seem fast on paper, in reality, it offers smooth and confident accelerative pace. Its performance is largely typical of a twin-turbocharged diesel engine which serves monster torque (400 Nm) at low revs and effortless top-end power (190 horsepower). What’s more, fuel economy is pretty good: 9.80 km/L (average speed of 17 km/h). The accompanying 8-speed automatic is well-suited to the engine and is responsive enough even for some spirited sprints. That said, paddle shifters would have made the entire package perfect, especially when tackling twisty, uphill roads.



Speaking of handling, the S90 seems to be comfortable in its own skin. It’s not quite the spirited sports sedan nor the laid-back long-distance cruiser. It sits somewhere in the middle and for that, it becomes more forgiving to drive, especially on Manila’s unforgiving roads.

Whereas its German rivals may become fidgety or nervous riding across less than billiard smooth roads, the S90 rides simply glides through them. Although bigger intrusions do make their way into the cabin, for the most part, it’s extremely pliant. On better roads, there’s a nice sense of precision built in although its large size betrays itself at the limit.



It drives like a car a size smaller, however, its girth does make navigating through smaller roads a challenge. Still, excellent visibility and minimal blind spots do offer a sizeable advantage.

With a suspension tuned more for stability than agility, there’s a nice sense of accuracy built in and it’s extremely stable too. However, it must be said that though the steering may be quick, but there’s inconsistent weighting no matter the driver selected mode.



Priced at P 4,095,000, no other luxury car comes close to being as loaded as the S90 from the get-go. Aside from the 18-inch wheels and Sensus infotainment system, it comes with a 12-inch all digital gauge cluster, automatic dimming rear and side view mirrors, adaptive cruise control, front and rear parking sensors with automated parking assist, powered front seats and trunk, full LED illumination, and of course, a complete suite of safety equipment including automated braking. In fact, the only option available is air suspension.

As with the XC90, the S90 comes across as a Volvo built to the Swedish carmaker’s own idea of “the standard.” For that, it’s beautiful, effortless, comfortable, and spacious. Arguably, the S90 remains an unconventional choice in this segment, but it’s also one that’s well-rounded as it is left-field.