2012 Volvo XC90 Overview Change Vehicle

This 2012 Volvo XC90 review explains changes for the model year, provides a summary of the 2012 XC90, and includes Volvo XC90 safety, reliability, and fuel economy ratings.

The Volvo XC90 is a seven-passenger, midsize crossover SUV that originally debuted nearly a decade ago as a 2003 model. While Volvo has refined the XC90 in the years since, there’s no escaping that this is an aged model, especially when stacked up against competitors like the Acura MDX, Buick Enclave and the Lincoln MKT.

Volvo’s got a flagship vehicle that’s going to celebrate its tenth year on the market soon, so what’s the logical thing to do in order to maintain interest in the XC90? Evidently, the answer is to shuffle around some options packages and delete the optional V8 engine. Newly standard across the line is Bluetooth connectivity for phones and audio streaming. For the base model, known as the XC90 3.2, a new Premier Plus trim package includes active Xenon headlamps, along with a wood gear shift knob, a grocery bag holder, a HomeLink universal remote, and a compass in the rear view mirror. A new XC90 Platinum trim package adds an upgraded stereo system and a navigation system with a rearview camera. The XC90 3.2 R-Design, meanwhile, gets standard 20-inch alloy wheels and active Xenon headlamps, and can be equipped with Premier Plus and Platinum trim packages that are similar to the 3.2.

Two trim levels are available for the 2012 Volvo XC90, the 3.2 and R-Design. The base 3.2 is comprehensively equipped with 18-inch alloy wheels, leather upholstery, power adjustable front seats, a power sunroof, tri-zone automatic climate control, rear parking assist sensors, and real wood trim bits. Sound-wise, there’s an eight-speaker audio system that plays satellite radio and features a standard auxiliary audio input jack and an iPod interface. It also comes with Bluetooth phone and streaming audio connectivity.

Getting the R-Design version of the XC90 means that you’ll get a slightly more athletic suspension system and more responsive steering. You’ll also get a unique R-Design grille, stitched logos on the front seats and extra logos on the steering wheel and instrument gauges. New for the year, the R-Design is equipped with standard 20-inch wheels and active Xenon headlights that swivel as you steer.

Choosing the Premier Plus package for either trim level adds a grocery bag holder, a compass integrated into the inside rearview mirror and a HomeLink remote garage door opener. Active Xenon headlamps and a wood gearshift knob are also included on the standard XC90 3.2.

Get fancy schmancy with your XC90 and equip it with the Platinum package, which includes all the features of the Premier Plus model and adds an enhanced 12-speaker stereo system along with a navigation system featuring real-time traffic information and a reversing camera.

Other extra-cost add-ons include a dual-screen, rear-seat entertainment system, Volvo's Blind Spot Information System (BLIS), and a Climate Package that includes heated front seats, headlight washers, rain-sensing windshield wipers and an Interior Air Quality System.

A 3.2-liter inline six-cylinder engine is responsible for motivating the XC90’s considerable heft, and its 240 horses are none too pleased about the situation. The engine is matched to a six-speed automatic transmission, and whether it’s equipped with standard front-wheel drive or optional all-wheel drive, the XC90 is rated to get 16 mpg around town and 22 mpg on the highway. Not terribly impressive.

When it comes to safety, Volvo is usually as much a pioneer in developing new technology as Mercedes-Benz. However, given its age, the XC90 doesn’t have the latest safety features that are available in newer Volvo models, such as City Safety or active cruise control. The XC90 does come standard with traction and stability control, four-wheel-disc antilock brakes, and six airbags including side curtain airbags that inflate to protect all three rows of seats. Active Xenon headlights are standard on the R-Design model, and swivel with the steering to help better see around dark curves.

Those active headlights are optional on the standard 3.2 model, and either XC90 can be equipped with extra-cost safety-related features including rain-sensing wipers, a blind spot monitoring system, and a rearview camera, the latter of which is available only with the priciest Platinum trim package.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has not evaluated the 2012 Volvo XC90 for crashworthiness, but the NHTSA does assign the SUV a 4-Star rating for rollover resistance. Over at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), however, the XC90 gets a Top Safety Pick rating for 2012, which means that it received the best possible rating for frontal-impact, side-impact, rear-impact, and roof strength tests.

In its most recent assessments, J.D. Power and Associates gave the XC90 an average score for predicted reliability. Consumer Reports is not as optimistic, and says the XC90 will return worse than average reliability over time.

Volvo attempts to address concerns in this area by providing a generous five-year complimentary maintenance and roadside assistance plan as standard equipment, in addition to a five-year/50,000-mile warranty that also covers wear-and-tear maintenance items. That makes the XC90 a particularly compelling lease candidate – you’ll make your monthly payment, by gas, and everything else is taken care of.

The XC90’s third-row seat isn’t torturous as most midsize crossover SUVs go. While it’s no picnic to squeeze yourself in there, the two individual seats with adjustable headrests may console you. Volvo is also nice enough to include an integrated child booster seat in the middle of the second-row seat, which is a lot easier to use than those pain-in-the-butt kid seats that take forever to install or remove to switch between family cars.

When the XC90’s third-row seat is in use, cargo capacity measures just 8.8 cubic-feet; you can fit a few bags of groceries in there, but that’s about it. Drop the third-row, and you’ve got 43.3 cu-ft of space to work with. Getting rid of rear passengers altogether allows for 85.1 cu-ft of stowage.

Ten years ago, when we first drove the XC90 at its introduction, we were smitten. The Volvo seemed like it was a natural fit for the crossover SUV segment with its pleasing driving dynamics, high driving position and generous cargo space. And we appreciated the third-row seat, which provides extra accommodations in a pinch. But a decade is a long time to go without significant change, and the bevy of crossover offerings from other manufacturers are more powerful, more fuel-efficient, and have loads of cool new technology. If you don’t need a third-row seat, even Volvo’s smaller but smarter XC60 is a more intriguing choice. It’s time for Volvo to eliminate or redesign the XC90.

By Liz Kim