Statement of Intent

The all-electric Volvo EX90 may look kind of familiar – but, true to its minimalist Scandi provenance, there’s purpose to this Swede’s design.

WORDS Steve Smith PHOTOS Supplied

What you’re looking at here is a very significant car for Volvo. Launched globally just ahead of its smaller EX30 sibling, the Volvo EX90 represents the first step towards what this iconic Swedish brand has declared to be a fully electric future. Drawing a line in the snow, they have promised to reveal one new fully electric car each year, selling only EVs by 2030 – and to be a climate-neutral company by 2040. So yes, the seven-seater EX90 spearheads some lofty goals.

However, a quick glance at it might not quite convey that future-forward approach – at least not from an aesthetic perspective. In silhouette, it looks rather a lot like the brand’s big XC90 SUV, and that design is a good 10 years old. Remember, though, these are the Swedes we’re talking about, and if their furniture is anything to go by, their minimalist leanings dictate purity of line and simplicity as the main parameters. If you nailed it the first time, why change it, right?

You’ll be happy to know that there is, in fact, more to the silhouette than meets the eye, and that a closer inspection reveals a purposeful approach to designing a large family car in the electric age. For Volvo’s head of exterior design T. Jon Mayer, that meant finding the balance between customer needs – “we want a big SUV” – and environmental concerns – “big SUVs are usually not very ecofriendly”.

“We don’t believe cars and climate are mutually exclusive,” T. Jon explains. “We believe progressive design can lead to more modern proportions that optimise safety, efficiency and aesthetics.” For him, that boils down to designing for purpose – an underlying fundamental of Scandinavian design – as well as seamless execution and integration of technology.

Let’s start with the aesthetics, then. What, in this case, does form-follows-function mean?

“Well,” says T. Jon, “as we go fully electric, we are progressing vehicle proportions. In the EX90, we’ve taken inspiration from yacht design. The front end is proud and confident, yet more round in overall execution. This enables the air to flow around the car more efficiently from the start. Combined with flush elements such as side glazing, this ensures the airflow remains attached to the car and uninterrupted towards the rear. This new take on electric proportions translates into a coefficient drag number of 0.29 – a very competitive figure for a large, seven-seat SUV.”

The seamless execution and integration of technology T. Jon also talks about refers to another hallmark of the Volvo brand, which of course is safety. In 1959, they famously introduced the three-point safety belt – and the 2025 equivalent is the EX90’s NVIDIA DRIVE system, which provides what Volvo calls an “invisible shield of safety”.

It uses state-of-the art sensors such as cameras, radars and LiDAR, all connected to a powerful in-car computer, to create a real-time, 360-degree view of the world. It’s Volvo’s in-house- developed algorithm that’s the really clever bit, though, harnessing all the sensors (including ones that measure your eye gaze concentration) to keep you and your EX90 safely on the road – even bringing you safely to a stop should you nod off at the wheel.

With its ability to sense the road in front and small objects hundreds of metres ahead, day or night and even at highway speeds, the LiDAR tech is key to this. It employs pulse laser to measure ranges with a high degree of precision and accuracy – and unfortunately, aesthetically speaking, it’s also the EX90’s only design flaw. See that bump on the roof? The one that looks like it might light up with a yellow “TAXI” sign? That disruptor of Volvo’s hallowed design simplicity is the LiDAR sensor.

“The LiDAR integration has been quite a challenge from an exterior design standpoint,” says T. Jon. “In order to maximise its effectiveness, it needs to be high up on the roof. As we worked with our engineers, we figured that in the animal kingdom, you don’t have your eyes on your knees; you have them as high as possible on your head for optimal vision. Hence our very deliberate stance to beautifully integrate the LiDAR into the centre of the roofline to ensure superior vision and detection up to 250 metres, even at night.”

Not everyone is convinced by the “beautifully integrated” bit, but fortunately such unwanted intrusions weren’t something Lisa Reeves had to worry about. Lisa is the head of interior design at Volvo – and automotive interior designers really love EVs. Not only does the chassis architecture – a longer wheelbase combined with short overhangs and batteries placed low between the wheels – mean more interior space to work with, it also gives them licence to push the aesthetic and material boundaries.

“We have worked to redefine luxury,” she says. “And we’ve done it by using more sustainable, lightweight materials that really feel tactile and are of premium quality.”

Lisa and her team have, for example, used Nordico upholstery created from recycled material such as PET bottles, as well as bio-attributed polymer from forests in Sweden and Finland. “Our designers have put so much effort into designing the grain you can feel on the surface of the Nordico material,” she says, referring to the intricate texture of ridges and valleys that’s reminiscent of miniature landscapes. “We’re very much motivated by the values of the brand, meaningful design and how to create intelligence through functionality. The ambition with the EX90 was to create the living-room feeling – so imagine yourself getting into the car, feeling at home, cosy, warm…”

Flex your right ankle and you’ll be feeling more sweaty than warm and fuzzy. Powered by two electric motors, the EX90 boasts a mighty 380kW and 910Nm – sufficient power and axle- twisting torque to propel this three-tonne vehicle from 0 to 100km/h in 4.9 seconds. That’s rudely quick for a Swede. | volvocars.com

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