I agree, the interior is small as far as occupancy with adults is concerned. Four adults in front two rows with 2 kids in the 3rd row, or two adults in front and 5 children in 2nd and 3rd rows are realistic.
One other thing, if you place two car seats in the second row, access to the 3rd row is blocked. We tried it and you cannot pull either outboard seat in the second row forward.
We will have one child in a booser seat in the middle of the second row, one car seta in the second row and one car seat in the thrid row.
I figure the car will be good for us for the next 8 years or so but it definitely is not as spacious as it could have been. Just 2-4 inches wider in second row would have made a huge difference.
Nothing beats a minivan for egress and ingress of kids and adults, but it is the old safelty factor that really seems to speak for the Volvo with children.
Should point out that the 3rd row, in my opinion, is not as small as Rob222 states. I agree that 4 adults is the comfortable max in this car. But the 3rd row really is good for kids who are about 5'4" or less, maybe up to middle school age (12?) or younger. My wife is 5'5" and she actually thought that the back was comfortable (albeit not so easy to get in and out) for her.
If you need more room in 2nd row AND don't need the 3rd, then order the vehicle without the 3rd row. In vehicles with the 3rd row the 2nd is shifted slightly forward. So adding the 3rd subtracts legroom from the 2nd and-- if you have the sunroof-- headroom as well due to shape of the lowered headliner.
If you need full-size 2nd & 3rd rows then you'll need a full-size SUV, maybe a Honda Pilot, or a minivan.
Thanks for not beating me up for questioning the size. I really hoped that the transvered mounted engine in the XC would provide the perfect amount of space for our crew.
As a interior size comparison, I tried out the GMC Envoy XL. This car has a 6 cylinder, 270 HP engine with similar rated gas (regular) mileage to the XC, but the length is about 16" longer. This is not the monster Yukon XL (Suburban) that is 16" longer, yet.
Not trying to sell you on the car, but the second and third rows were much more comfortable. Actually has theater-like seating. I sat in the back seat and had a clear,comfortable and unobstructed view. Although I am 5'10", GM says that a 6'2" person could sit in the back row comfortably. Middle seat in second row was cushier, too.
My size concern is for the transportation of more than four middle schoolers, teens or adults passengers.
Obviously, there are many more concerns than interior size, but you may want to check out an Envoy or a regular GMC Yukon (same size, but V-8 means lower gas mileage)just to gauge this specific factor.
I took delivery of my seven seater T6 yesterday, and it seems like there are large blind spots when changing lanes from the 4-8 o'clock positions. It seems like you can not see out of the back seat door windows when changing lanes due to the thickness of the supports between the windows. Has anyone noticed this in their vehicle or during a test drive?
Actually, I do notice it and it's not just on the T6 but the 2.5T as well especially if you're tall and/or need move the driver seat way back where your head is right next to the B pillar.
Like my Solara, I'm planning to put in those 3" blind spot mirrors which should help during the day, but at night, I'll probably have to move my head forward and look left before making a left lane change.
Hi rob222 - I'll probably get hammered for saying this, but I personally dismissed all vehicles with 3 star crash tests. The femur load results were particularly disturbing for the Yukon. If you look here:
One other thing, if you place two car seats in the second row, access to the 3rd row is blocked. We tried it and you cannot pull either outboard seat in the second row forward.
I have 2 Britax Roundabout car seats. If I place one in the 2nd row driver-side outboard position and the other one in the middle of the 2nd row, will access to the 3rd row (via passenger-side) still be blocked?
rob222 - I think that based on your needs, you really need a more useable 3rd row other than what Volvo offers. Volvo did state that the 3rd row is meant for individuals 5'4" and shorter. Something similar to the GMC Envoy XL would probably be good, have you looked at the Toyota Sequoia? I have not looked at the crash ratings for the Sequoia though.
surfer454 - Safety is my main concern now too. Much like yourself, I would probably not look at vehicles with 3 star crash tests.
I also noted the blind spots in the XC90. View out the back and out the sides when looking back from the drivers seat are not the greatest. My wife and I felt that the view out the back was the worst of the SUVs we tested. The pillars in the back corners are very wide. This is one reason that I decided to add the reverse warning system option. I have been driving a small pickup with a camper-shell for years, and have gotten used to a very similar situation with it, so I should not have a hard time making the transition. The extra mirrors mentioned above are a help.
"George Platzer, an engineer and member of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), studied this issue, which he calls "The Blindzone Hazard," and concluded that adjusting your mirrors in this new method makes for safer driving and helps eliminate headlight glare at night. Safety is improved because the new adjustment requires only a glance into the mirror, versus a full turn of your head which causes you to take your eyes off the road for about 100 feet at highway speeds and completely eliminates your view in the direction you are traveling. Headlight glare is eliminated, Platzer says, because the nearby car's headlamps are not visible until the vehicle moves into the blind spot and, at this point, the brightest portion of the beam does not hit the mirror. "
As skyslimit's reference shows, it is quite possible to eliminate blind spots. I've been driving the newest Volvos for some time now and learned to change the way I set side view mirrors to account for the B-pillars. I still tend to look over my shoulder more out of habit but I can say that between the mirrors and the look over the shoulder, I have no blind spots at all.
I just left Volvo Irvine and had a test drive of a XC90 T6 AWD while I was there. The only blind spot I had was the annoying invoice sticker on the window behind me (which makes me wonder if it was a distraction because it was simply in my periphery or if I normally look around the B-pillar and through the glass behind me?) I'll have to take note of this later.
Skyslimit, I moved my mirrors this way a couple of years ago. It's hard to change old habits, but it does seem to offer much better coverage of traffic. I also replaced my OEM rearview mirror with a larger clip-on variety.
My former company sent me to Japan on a job in 1976. The company car had a Japanese driver who demonstrated an interesting point to me. He was curious why that all of the American cars had their outside rear view mirrors mounted on the doors. All of the domestic Japanese cars have the outside rear view mirrors mounted forward at the top of each fender. He showed me how he had a complete field of view by just moving his eyes, without having to turn his head sideways to view the mirrors. He said this provided him additional reaction time in heavy traffic conditions.
are a good idea but they would never be embraced by the American public. Remember the old cars that never even had a passenger outside mirror? How'd we do it then? I am definitely going to try the new technique with the mirror adjustments.
I have used this technique for about five years and finally got my spouse to try it too on our MDX and it has certainly proven beneficial. It does a little getting used to and can be tough when you load the rear area of the SUV with packages or our large Lab decides to block the rear mirror but it does work wonderfully. I immediately always change ever rental car to this way when I travel and it has saved me sevral potential fender bangs for sure.
Just checking in to see if there's any information indicating when the FWD version of the XC 90 is scheduled for production. I can appreciate that Volvo might not be in a hurry to produce the FWD since the AWD's are selling so well but all the same I'm interested in the availability of the FWD...
The answer is an emphatic no. There is no way to have 2 Britax roundabouts in the second row and still have access to the third row. That is why we will probably have two britax roundabouts in the third row and an infant seet in the middle row. By the time we receive the car it should not be too long until my oldest can be in the front booster seat. Then we could have one other seat in the middle row and still get to the back.
Thinking about it, hip room is something like 54 inches in the middle row. Divided up something like 21 inches per outboard seat and 12 inches for the middle seat does not leave enough room for two seats without blocking the other outboard seat from flipping forward. (Each roundabout is about 19 inches or so I believe).
I just had my third child today! I really have not figured out how to make it until April when our car arrives. We have two cars that each only hold 2 car seats which is a problem as I work hours that preclude me from helping get the kids to day care. I just might get an Oddysey this weekend, purely out of desperation, and leave my XC90 for somone else in the Seattle area.
Congratulations on your third child!!! The load in your vehicle is a happy problem.
That is why we will probably have two britax roundabouts in the third row and an infant seet in the middle row.
I believe you're the one who previously brought up the fact that there are no top-tether anchors in the third row? And that Volvo "discouraged" carseat placement there but wasn't totally conclusive? Did you find out otherwise?
Thanks wmquan. A very happy problem indeed. I never got any more out of Volvo's consumer 1-800 line than seats in the 3rd row are discouraged but it is safe to have them there. It is a strange response and in my opinion not adequate. The dealership knew nothing one way or the other and in fact that thought it would be fine to have them back there. We tried it out and it is tight (leg room wise in particular as the seat juts the child forward) but it will work. It is going to be hard to get our middle son back there as he is not able to do it himself.
The tethers are not a huge problem as my wife is quite certain that she can rigidly attach car seats back there even without tethers.
Blue or Pink? Understand your need for a vehicle but an Odyssey?!! Since you now have a third college fund to set up you may want to try to squeak by and hold out for the XC90. (This may be the last car you can afford and you might as well get the best to safeguard those happy bundles. Lord, you and the wife must have some energy..three toddlers/babies!). You can always plead with the Volvo dealership for mercy. If it were me I'd be trying other dealerships and hope for some good luck. In any case, Merry Christmas to you and your family with your new bestest gift.
According to my local dealer the FWD will begin arriving at showrooms in March. Seems the supply of T6's and 2.5ts is catching up to demand. My dealer has a T6 loaded Crystal Green that he hasn't been able to sell (yet). Dealer down the road has 6 T6's and 2 2.5t's. Could the rush be over??
Thank you so much. It is a boy, no name yet. We already used our 4 favorite boy names and had plenty of girl names ready. You are right, my poor wife has more energy than I do, 3 kids now, the oldest being 3 yrs 8 months.
I wish Volvo would have some sympathy for my situation, but at the dealer level they seem to not give a hoot (and always bring up the "list" of people waiting). But when I ordered this car last September, they had no problem essentially guaranteeing delivery by the end of the year. Of course it was never in writing but my wife asked them about 5 times (as she was highly skeptical) whether this would really happen and they seemed quite certain. We both heard it and we are not dumb and we were not 'hearing what we wanted to hear'.
So in the end I guess it is a free market and we either need to somehow wait it out (have not figured out how to do that yet) or get another car.
Congratulations! One suggestion to buy the time is to get an sublease from: swapalease.com. This should be less costly than getting a new vehicle that you really don't want, then wait for the XC90. Get if from another dealer....
Hey, another one is to wait off the shore of England and buy off a salvage operator for a salty XC90!
ps: how about Andrew? That's our backup for the little one in the oven if she's a he
--------------------- The answer is an emphatic no. There is no way to have 2 Britax roundabouts in the second row and still have access to the third row. That is why we will probably have two britax roundabouts in the third row and an infant seet in the middle row. By the time we receive the car it should not be too long until my oldest can be in the front booster seat. Then we could have one other seat in the middle row and still get to the back.
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Not sure if this would work or not, but if you move the 2nd row middle booster seat foward, you should be able to fit another roundabout Britax seat on the left or right.
I have studied the Volvo XC90 so much I probably could sell them at this point. I finally got to see one and test drive it last weekend and to my dismay was disappointed. I did not care for the shiny black plastic between the outside windows or the mix of satin chrome and fake wood on the inside. The feel of the ride was good but not wonderful. I do think it is one of the safest built SUV's, but for my money I am getting the new Lexus GX470. Test drove it the same day and there is no comparison. Yes, it cost about $4 to 5,000 more, but when you are already up to $50,000 on the Volvo you might as well get what you want. I liked the Volvo, but loved the Lexus and have never owned either of the two, so feel I am being objective. For that much money you need to love it!
We live in GA and at least two of our local Volvo dealers have XC90's on the lot for sale. You might want to call around, there might be XC90's available for immediate buy, especially if you are flexible. Good luck!
We picked up our XC90 in Texas on 12/23! No nav or xenon but we did not request these options. The ride is very smooth and engine power is fine. Excellent sound system too. Just watch out for dealers charging more than MSRP. Our dealer wanted $51K for a vehicle with MSRP of $44K. Market demand was the excuse but do not buy it! Also we are averaging 16.3 MPG. Not great by any means but such a fun vehicle to drive and no mechanical problems after 250 miles. Keep you updated on any issues that arise!
Why is it so easy (apparently) to get (almost) the XC90 of your choice in most parts of the country except the west coast? I am in desperate need of this thing and my dealer has nothing before April despite my september order. I did the car seat shuffle at babys r us today and there just seems to be no way to accomodate three young children with seats in my current car (Saab 9-3).
But others in the NE, midwest and south are getting their pick with immediate delivery. I would take any light colored T6 or 2.5 with a versatilty package and preferably xenons, not too picky.
Anybody know of any of these closer to Washington State than Arkansas?? At this point my choice is to get a car that I really do not want or possibly fly somewhere to pick up an XC90.
Desperate in Seattle with a wife thinking I am nuts for not going out and picking up an Odyssey. They just don't get it.
Try dealernet.com and search (tip: use advanced search) for the XC90 specifically using your zip code. You might find one. Good Luck and congratulations.
Try calling the dealer up and see if they'll arrange to rail it over to you. Better yet, find a company that specializes in car shipments. We shipped our car from Michigan to California for $800 a couple years ago, forgot the name of the company.
Buy where there's availability, then ship. The taxes will be your local taxes since shipping out of state. They do this on eBay all the time....
3. Email with all your requirements. Try to be flexible with colors and options.
In early Dec, I sent about 40 emails to dealers in the west coast and within 1-2 days, got about 10% replies from dealers in California, of which about 4-5 dealers had what I wanted. Finally I narrowed down to 2-3 dealers that had one coming in before Dec 31. 2 weeks later, the XC90 was parked in my garage.
Might be harder now, but I still have a few dealers in the west coast calling me about some availibilities.
Some of the XC90's that were on the car carrier that sank were destined for the West Coast. We lost one. Also, the cars arrive on the East Coast first because its alot closer to Sweden.
Some dealers do have cars that are available due to cancellations. We had one just the other day. My advice is to call around and get yourself on as many lists as possible in the hope that someone will have a car for you.
First, have had my XC90 for about a month now. 2.5T, Black, Premium, 18" wheels. Here is how we got it....
As stated in several posts above, we blasted emails to almost every dealer on the East Coast within a 200 mile radius to us. We actually received responses from most, with a majority telling us to give them a deposit and we'd receive a car by late March/April. Since that is what we had been hearing locally, it didn't interest us much. However, we received four calls from dealers who had openings within the next several weeks. One car matched up exactly with what we wanted, and drove off before December.
Now, the performance. I will first state that we are VERY happy with the vehicle so far. It rides fabulously, and is really very luxurious inside. We've put 1200 miles on it so far, and here are a few observations:
Highway gas mileage with a full car (2 adults, 1 baby, one large dog, luggage to match) is around 17.5. Not quite what we'd like, but if you are overly concerned with gas mileage you really aren't in the right vehicle category.
Road handling is excellent, and we think the engine is plenty strong. Granted, we're coming off of an early model INfiniti QX4, which was quite slow, but we are very happy with acceleration and passing power.
One slight complaint is how it fared in deep snow. We received about 2 feet of snow, and the XC90 had a little trouble extracating itself from a snowy patch while an Audi A8 did not. Only two of the wheels were spinning on the XC90, and we needed to push it out. Once out and driving around the car handled the snow well, but we did have trouble getting it out initially....
Gold49, thanks for the real world report. I bet your mileage will improve at least one or two miles per gallon as you get the engine broken in and summer arrives. You're a bit below the EPA predictions so far.
In case you don't already know... when driving in the snow or rain especially if the road is extra slippery, Volvo recommends you drive in "W" (Winter) mode. This can be activated by pressing the "W" button on the gear box right next to the shifter.
We placed the car in "W" mode, but it still seemed to spin a bit. However, once we were able to start moving, the XC90 scooted along the snow quite comfortably, and without any noticeable slippage.
We had three SUV's at our place (located in the mountains) this weekend- the XC90, a Hummer H2, and the Land Cruiser. I must admit that the other two seemed more sure-footed, but that's what they're known for- as well as being about $10k more expensive apiece.....
Is your XC90 a 4wd? If you said I missed it. I would be concerned if you were having much trouble in 4wd unless you were in a really bad spot. How about tires..do they have any kind of aggressive tread on them? I have always driven 4wd and can count the times that I could not get out of snow patch (not ice) without much effort.
IMHO, tires are the key for any vehicle, including SUVs, to handle driving in heavy snow. I've noticed the 18" tires on XC90s around here have been Pirelli (Scorpions I believe) and Michelins. What do you have? I was worried about the stiffer sidewalls and sportier tread resulting in less winter traction.
Hello Gold, I understood that the 18" wheels were an option only on the T6. I have Continental 4x 4 Contact tires on my 16" wheels. They are doing ok in our Albany, NY snow. The larger 17 and 18 inch wheels have lower profile tires, so all have a similar diameter. But those 17 and 18" wheels sure do look nice. Good luck with you suv. - Eric
is there a luxury tax on the 7 seaters. Both the 5 and 6 cylinder have a GVWR or more than 6000 pounds but some of the tax info I have read implies that to be a truck (and thus avoid the luxury tax) the GVWR has to be greater than 6000 pounds and the vehicle has to be on a truck chassis. A related question is whether or not the favorable tax depreciation laws and lack of a depreciation ceiling with trucks require a truck chassis or merely a GVWR of more than 6000 pounds.
My XC90 was delivered this past Saturday, only 6 weeks after I had placed my order. I picked it up late last night. Didn't get a chance to drive it long, just drove it home, as it was late. From what I can see so far, this car is really great, she's a beauty and drives real smooth, turns lots of heads too. The wife, the two kids and #3, who's on the way, will have their fun today driving it around. I will report back with my findings, once I get a chance to take it out for a good drive. Has anyone been able to find some nice seat covers for the 2nd & 3rd row seats, so that the little ones don't destroy them? Any comments would be appreciated. Happy New Year to everyone!
Comments
One other thing, if you place two car seats in the second row, access to the 3rd row is blocked. We tried it and you cannot pull either outboard seat in the second row forward.
We will have one child in a booser seat in the middle of the second row, one car seta in the second row and one car seat in the thrid row.
I figure the car will be good for us for the next 8 years or so but it definitely is not as spacious as it could have been. Just 2-4 inches wider in second row would have made a huge difference.
Nothing beats a minivan for egress and ingress of kids and adults, but it is the old safelty factor that really seems to speak for the Volvo with children.
If you need full-size 2nd & 3rd rows then you'll need a full-size SUV, maybe a Honda Pilot, or a minivan.
As a interior size comparison, I tried out the GMC Envoy XL. This car has a 6 cylinder, 270 HP engine with similar rated gas (regular) mileage to the XC, but the length is about 16" longer. This is not the monster Yukon XL (Suburban) that is 16" longer, yet.
Not trying to sell you on the car, but the second and third rows were much more comfortable. Actually has theater-like seating. I sat in the back seat and had a clear,comfortable and unobstructed view. Although I am 5'10", GM says that a 6'2" person could sit in the back row comfortably. Middle seat in second row was cushier, too.
My size concern is for the transportation of more than four middle schoolers, teens or adults passengers.
Obviously, there are many more concerns than interior size, but you may want to check out an Envoy or a regular GMC Yukon (same size, but V-8 means lower gas mileage)just to gauge this specific factor.
Actually, I do notice it and it's not just on the T6 but the 2.5T as well especially if you're tall and/or need move the driver seat way back where your head is right next to the B pillar.
Like my Solara, I'm planning to put in those 3" blind spot mirrors which should help during the day, but at night, I'll probably have to move my head forward and look left before making a left lane change.
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/NCAP/Cars/2003SUVs.html
you will see the crash test results for SUVs.
I have 2 Britax Roundabout car seats. If I place one in the 2nd row driver-side outboard position and the other one in the middle of the 2nd row, will access to the 3rd row (via passenger-side) still be blocked?
surfer454 - Safety is my main concern now too. Much like yourself, I would probably not look at vehicles with 3 star crash tests.
http://www.shedrives.com/scholar.asp?Loc=RS&scholar=2300
"George Platzer, an engineer and member of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), studied this issue, which he calls "The Blindzone Hazard," and concluded that adjusting your mirrors in this new method makes for safer driving and helps eliminate headlight glare at night. Safety is improved because the new adjustment requires only a glance into the mirror, versus a full turn of your head which causes you to take your eyes off the road for about 100 feet at highway speeds and completely eliminates your view in the direction you are traveling. Headlight glare is eliminated, Platzer says, because the nearby car's headlamps are not visible until the vehicle moves into the blind spot and, at this point, the brightest portion of the beam does not hit the mirror. "
I just left Volvo Irvine and had a test drive of a XC90 T6 AWD while I was there. The only blind spot I had was the annoying invoice sticker on the window behind me (which makes me wonder if it was a distraction because it was simply in my periphery or if I normally look around the B-pillar and through the glass behind me?) I'll have to take note of this later.
Thanks.
-rollie
Steve, Host
Works great, if the mirrors empty you can change lanes, if its not don't.
Really does eliminate glare too.
Just checking in to see if there's any information indicating when the FWD version of the XC 90 is scheduled for production. I can appreciate that Volvo might not be in a hurry to produce the FWD since the AWD's are selling so well but all the same I'm interested in the availability of the FWD...
Thanks
Thinking about it, hip room is something like 54 inches in the middle row. Divided up something like 21 inches per outboard seat and 12 inches for the middle seat does not leave enough room for two seats without blocking the other outboard seat from flipping forward. (Each roundabout is about 19 inches or so I believe).
I just had my third child today! I really have not figured out how to make it until April when our car arrives. We have two cars that each only hold 2 car seats which is a problem as I work hours that preclude me from helping get the kids to day care. I just might get an Oddysey this weekend, purely out of desperation, and leave my XC90 for somone else in the Seattle area.
That is why we will probably have two britax roundabouts in the third row and an infant seet in the middle row.
I believe you're the one who previously brought up the fact that there are no top-tether anchors in the third row? And that Volvo "discouraged" carseat placement there but wasn't totally conclusive? Did you find out otherwise?
Thank you.
The tethers are not a huge problem as my wife is quite certain that she can rigidly attach car seats back there even without tethers.
Happy Holidays
I wish Volvo would have some sympathy for my situation, but at the dealer level they seem to not give a hoot (and always bring up the "list" of people waiting). But when I ordered this car last September, they had no problem essentially guaranteeing delivery by the end of the year. Of course it was never in writing but my wife asked them about 5 times (as she was highly skeptical) whether this would really happen and they seemed quite certain. We both heard it and we are not dumb and we were not 'hearing what we wanted to hear'.
So in the end I guess it is a free market and we either need to somehow wait it out (have not figured out how to do that yet) or get another car.
happy holidays!!
Hey, another one is to wait off the shore of England and buy off a salvage operator for a salty XC90!
ps: how about Andrew? That's our backup for the little one in the oven if she's a he
The answer is an emphatic no. There is no way to have 2 Britax roundabouts in the second row and still have access to the third row. That is why we will probably have two britax roundabouts in the third row and an infant seet in the middle row. By the time we receive the car it should not be too long until my oldest can be in the front booster seat. Then we could have one other seat in the middle row and still get to the back.
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Not sure if this would work or not, but if you move the 2nd row middle booster seat foward, you should be able to fit another roundabout Britax seat on the left or right.
But others in the NE, midwest and south are getting their pick with immediate delivery. I would take any light colored T6 or 2.5 with a versatilty package and preferably xenons, not too picky.
Anybody know of any of these closer to Washington State than Arkansas?? At this point my choice is to get a car that I really do not want or possibly fly somewhere to pick up an XC90.
Desperate in Seattle with a wife thinking I am nuts for not going out and picking up an Odyssey. They just don't get it.
No buying and selling on the Town Hall boards!
tidester, host
Buy where there's availability, then ship. The taxes will be your local taxes since shipping out of state. They do this on eBay all the time....
1. Narrow down areas you're willing to drive/fly to.
2. Get all email addresses of the dealers from:
http://new.volvocars.com/retailer/
3. Email with all your requirements. Try to be flexible with colors and options.
In early Dec, I sent about 40 emails to dealers in the west coast and within 1-2 days, got about 10% replies from dealers in California, of which about 4-5 dealers had what I wanted. Finally I narrowed down to 2-3 dealers that had one coming in before Dec 31. 2 weeks later, the XC90 was parked in my garage.
Might be harder now, but I still have a few dealers in the west coast calling me about some availibilities.
Hope you get yours in time...
We lost one.
Also, the cars arrive on the East Coast first because its alot closer to Sweden.
Some dealers do have cars that are available due to cancellations.
We had one just the other day.
My advice is to call around and get yourself on as many lists as possible in the hope that someone will have a car for you.
No buying and selling on the Town Hall boards!
tidester, host "
Tidester:
I must have missed the buying and selling..which post were you responding to?
It appears the item was removed by its author! :-)
tidester, host
As stated in several posts above, we blasted emails to almost every dealer on the East Coast within a 200 mile radius to us. We actually received responses from most, with a majority telling us to give them a deposit and we'd receive a car by late March/April. Since that is what we had been hearing locally, it didn't interest us much. However, we received four calls from dealers who had openings within the next several weeks. One car matched up exactly with what we wanted, and drove off before December.
Now, the performance. I will first state that we are VERY happy with the vehicle so far. It rides fabulously, and is really very luxurious inside. We've put 1200 miles on it so far, and here are a few observations:
Highway gas mileage with a full car (2 adults, 1 baby, one large dog, luggage to match) is around 17.5. Not quite what we'd like, but if you are overly concerned with gas mileage you really aren't in the right vehicle category.
Road handling is excellent, and we think the engine is plenty strong. Granted, we're coming off of an early model INfiniti QX4, which was quite slow, but we are very happy with acceleration and passing power.
One slight complaint is how it fared in deep snow. We received about 2 feet of snow, and the XC90 had a little trouble extracating itself from a snowy patch while an Audi A8 did not. Only two of the wheels were spinning on the XC90, and we needed to push it out. Once out and driving around the car handled the snow well, but we did have trouble getting it out initially....
Steve, Host
In case you don't already know... when driving in the snow or rain especially if the road is extra slippery, Volvo recommends you drive in "W" (Winter) mode. This can be activated by pressing the "W" button on the gear box right next to the shifter.
We had three SUV's at our place (located in the mountains) this weekend- the XC90, a Hummer H2, and the Land Cruiser. I must admit that the other two seemed more sure-footed, but that's what they're known for- as well as being about $10k more expensive apiece.....
I have always driven 4wd and can count the times that I could not get out of snow patch (not ice) without much effort.
I understood that the 18" wheels were an option only on the T6.
I have Continental 4x 4 Contact tires on my 16" wheels. They are doing ok in our Albany, NY snow.
The larger 17 and 18 inch wheels have lower profile tires, so all have a similar diameter. But those 17 and 18" wheels sure do look nice.
Good luck with you suv. - Eric
KB