That's the quiet genius of this car. It doesn't force too much behavioural change as a daily runner.
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That's the quiet genius of this car. It doesn't force too much behavioural change as a daily runner.
| Engine | Power & Torque | Transmission | 0 – 100km/h | Top Speed | Fuel Consumption | CO2 Emissions |
e-Motor + 92.4kWh battery |
245kW & 480 Nm |
Single-Speed | 6.6 secs
(tested) |
184km/h (tested) | 19.3kWh/
100km (tested) |
0g/km
|
PERFORMANCE FIGURES ACHIEVED USING VBOX RACELOGIC, DISTRIBUTED BY ATS MOTORSPORT
There’s been a temptation with electric cars, especially the big, expensive, tech-laden ones, to deliver them to the market like weird experiments. Some are too overanalysed, too extreme in their design and aerodynamics, their acceleration numbers or even their interior architecture. Here’s the thing though: most cars don’t live their lives at the edge, and most people want their cars to look good, not odd or at the very least, normal. Most cars are driven normally, by normal people doing the normal daily grind of life.
The ES90 is neither extreme nor oddly designed. I drove it for a week as I would any other car. We didn’t do anything major, no speed tests, no long, laden road trips – and what the ES90 convinced me of was its exceeding excellence at making the case for EVs being normal cars and fitting into everyday life without much fuss. It’s a genuinely solid offering.
Built on the SPA2 platform, the same one shared with the EX90 and Polestar 3, the ES90 may well be the first EV with which you can make a genuine case against range anxiety. Volvo claims a 755-kilometre range from the 92.4kWh battery. While achieving that figure in the real world might require the patience of a saint, my experience suggests that 550km is comfortably doable. During my daily pottering around Fourways and Sandton, the beauty of the car’s recuperation system shone through. On some days, I used no more than 5% of the battery in stop-and-go traffic, doing between 30 and 40km a day. That makes it entirely usable, entirely normal, entirely convincing. That’s what cars should be especially if you’re trying to convince me to jump into EV’s as a way of life.
On the road, it feels exactly as a Volvo should: supremely comfortable and adequately fast. The rear-wheel-drive, single-motor setup delivers 245kW and 480Nm of torque, dispatching the 0-100km/h sprint in a swift 6.6 seconds before hitting the brand’s governed 180km/h top speed, though our testing equipment showed us achieving 4km/h faster than that. Power delivery is instant and linear, yet clever software ensures it never feels edgy. If you’re in the mood for something faster, there are hints that Volvo will bring an all-wheel drive, faster version in the near future but this Ultra is fast enough for sure. Volvo isn’t generally trying to convince you to drive its cars at a track day.
Even when pushed along, the air-sprung suspension is brilliantly damped and keeps the long body poised and in check, masking the heft of the batteries and maintaining a solid delivery of comfort over anything other than the poorest of surfaces. The ability to raise the ground clearance to 188mm via the off-road button adds an extra layer of practicality for South African roads, and that’s one of the ES90’s quieter USPs. More and more, our roads are not kind to low-riding sedans, and it doesn’t help their cause in this dwindling segment.
Beyond that, the ES90 is packed with assistance systems, connectivity features, and driver-monitoring tech that operate quietly in the background. It’s less about wow-factor gimmicks and more about seamless integration – like a well-trained Swedish butler that never oversteps or offends. That’s the ES90. There’s a gentleness to how it behaves and even with its programmable steering feel and its braking recuperation modes, the ES90 is positively compliant. Braking regeneration is also a handy offering, a genuine range keeping tool that works in traffic and urban settings. It also has no effect on braking feel as some cars do, and that’s important…again, something that makes the car feel completely normal.
If the ES90 had a defining trait, it would be calm. The cabin is classic Volvo, and I love how Volvo’s Swedish heritage is on full display. The cabin is minimalist, airy and beautifully resolved. It leaves you in no doubt that this is Volvo at the leading edge of classy cabins with large glass areas and an almost obsessive approach to noise insulation, creating a space that feels like a serene blend of lounge and cockpit all in one.
In this Ultra grade, this quietness makes it the perfect auditorium for the 1,610W, 25-speaker Bowers & Wilkins audio set. It’s in the running for best-in-class audio system not just in its aural delivery but in how many of the visible speakers are integrated into the design of the cabin with intricate woven textures that look good too. Interior space is another triumph. With the batteries integrated under the floor, the cabin is incredibly spacious, and the light that bathes it makes it feel even more so through the large panoramic roof. One of my earlier gripes about Volvo EVs not having a sunroof visor has been addressed in the ES90, now boasting some electrochromatic tech that, at the push of a button, can turn the sunroof clear or completely non-transparent. It’s nifty tech that uses electricity with conductive electrodes, but the bottom line is that it works and it does help to keep cabin temperatures reasonably comfortable in the baking SA heat. I still wouldn’t mind the sunshade though.
Rear passengers are treated to another boon of this ES90 design – excellent legroom and rear-seat comfort. With reclining seats that can be cooled or heated, rear dual-zone climate control and further acoustic enjoyment of that sound system, it’s a place I’d opt to spend my time in more often than in other cars. Further practicality extends to the boot, offering 446 litres of space, a small under-floor compartment for cables, and a 27-litre frunk.
Volvo’s software-led approach is also evident here. The 14.5-inch portrait infotainment system houses almost everything from mirror adjustments to drive settings, while remaining intuitive enough not to frustrate. Importantly, there’s still a driver’s display in this ES90, a small but crucial detail that is left out of cars like the EX30 for instance.
It’s EV so there’s a conversation to be had around charging. For this car, charging was largely a non-issue. Plugging it in overnight at home yielded a reliable 14-22% top-up by morning, depending on how long you slept and what type of power setup you have at home. Using Eskom’s new tariffs, charging to 82% of the battery at home cost me R288, including Eskom’s litany of extra charges beyond the basic tariff. As for public charging, yes, there were two instances when I had to wait over an hour for a charger to become available, and one frustrating encounter with an offline station, but these are infrastructure gripes, not faults of the car itself and again, in normal urban home use, the need for this is more as an emergency. Yes, there will come a time when these gripes will offend you but if your use case is correct, that should be an anomaly.
The ES90’s 800V architecture means it can charge from 10 to 80% in around half an hour or less, and that’s certainly a comfortably short wait given the options we have.
Volvo has proactively addressed many ownership concerns by including two years of free public charging and a GridCars home wallbox with your purchase of an ES90. That will improve your overnight charge at home. But there are other things too, like the battery warranty and Battery Passport that give you a bit more peace of mind about battery component sourcing and transparency. Say what you want about EVs, but Volvo’s really building the case for long-term trust and ownership of a car that, whilst it is a full EV, fits into everyday life as any other luxury car does and should.
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