Volvo Recharge Concept shown
- EX90 will not replace Volvo XC90, at least not directly
- All-new 2023 XC90 likely to be announced later this year / early-2023
- No new powertrain, will carry over current model’s PHEV setup
About two weeks ago, Volvo announced its latest flagship the EX90. To be revealed on 9-November, the EX90 will spearhead the Swedish marque’s goal of having EV models contributing 50 percent of its global sales by 2025, and to become an EV-only company by 2030.
The EX90 will also set the tone for future Volvo models.
EX90 has yet to debut, but leaked patent images gave a very look of Volvo’s latest SUV. Expect next gen 2023 XC90 to be the same car but with conventional grilles
Since the EX90 wears the same 90 series nomenclature as the ageing , the logical conclusion would be that this is the next generation XC90, or is it?
Popular opinion is that the XC90 as we know it will be no more once the EX90 goes on sale, probably in late-2023.
However, the fact that Volvo chose a new EX naming convention suggests that there will still be a new generation Volvo XC90.
Car companies spend a lot of money to build recognition for their model’s nameplates. The XC90’s name dates to the early 2000s and unless they don’t have a choice, car companies rarely throw away two decades worth of marketing investments by dropping a familiar name without good reason.
The current generation Volvo XC90 was first introduced in 2015 and is due for a replacement soon.
Back in 2017, Volvo has previously said that it is committed to building the next generation Volvo XC90 at its South Carolina plant in USA sometime in 2022.
We don’t know if they were referring to the XC90 as we know it or the electric successor that we now know to be the EX90.
But clearly the demand for a plug-in hybrid XC90 is much higher than an electric-only EX90, and why would Volvo say no to customers in its most important market?
The South Carolina plant currently only builds the B5 mild-hybrid and T8 plug-in hybrid.
The EX90 will eventually replace the XC90 but we don’t think that all Volvo markets worldwide is ready for the EX90, especially Malaysia, where the XC90 is one of Volvo Car Malaysia’s top three best selling models.
A new generation Volvo XC90 that will be sold alongside the EX90 is more likely than not. If our predictions are correct, we are certain that there will no changes to its powertrain as Volvo has already announced that it won’t be investing in developing anymore new combustion engines.
The current XC90’s plug-in drivetrain will be carried over the new model. In other words, the 2023 Volvo XC90 will be a heavily updated version of the current XC90, but will be marketed as a new generation XC90 nonetheless.
We will have more clarity on this in the months after the Volvo EX90’s global debut on 9-November 2022.
The current outgoing generation Volvo XC90 sells for RM 412,888 for the mild-hybrid B5 Inscription Plus, and RM 428,888 for the plug-in hybrid Recharge T8 Inscription Plus. Both are locally-assembled at Volvo Car Manufacturing’s plant in Shah Alam.
Keyword: New EX name suggests Volvo EX90 will not replace XC90, all-new 2023 model to launch in Malaysia