The Volvo XC90 Nails Quiet Luxury

From Road & Track

Several years ago, I was talking with an old family friend who had worked for years as a pastor. He told me that after his car died one time, his church offered to pay to replace it as long as he kept the new one under a certain budget. After looking around, he found a great deal on a used Cadillac. Unfortunately, despite the fact that it came in well-under budget, he ended up in trouble because apparently a pastor driving a Cadillac gave off the wrong impression.

A few years later, I ran into a similar issue with my BMW 5 Series. Several of my coworkers gave me a hard time for being rich because I drove a 15-year-old BMW. Did it matter that I'd only paid $5000 for it? Nope. The new kid drove a BMW, so obviously he must not need to work.

Good or bad, brand image matters. And part of owning a luxury vehicle is that it's immediately recognizable from its badge and its name. People see a BMW roundel or hear "Mercedes" and assume you're driving a fancy car that cost a lot of money.

And that's what makes Volvo's new XC90 an outlier. It's every bit a luxury SUV, and yet the name "Volvo" doesn't carry nearly the same weight that other more-vaunted brands do.

Take the XC90's exterior, for example. It's a huge improvement over the previous generation, offers optional 22-inch wheels, comes in more than a dozen colors, has standard LED running lights, and even flashes a little bit of chrome. But its look is better described as sculpted and handsome, not imposing or aggressive. As a result, it flies under the radar in a way a Range Rover never will.

Inside, the XC90 is even more overtly luxurious, especially if you upgrade from the base model. The leather is incredibly soft, real wood and aluminum accent the cabin, the seats are incredibly comfortable, and all of the screens are sharp and easy to read. Plus, the infotainment system is so fast and intuitive, it's easily one of the best in the industry.

And let's not forget about all the safety features. You get collision mitigating braking, lane keep assist, adaptive cruise control, blind spot monitoring, cross traffic alerts, and even seats that are designed to absorb energy in a crash and minimize spinal injuries.

Considering everything the XC90 offers and the amount of praise it's received from the automotive press, you'd think it would have gotten a lot of attention around town. Instead, it ended up being largely ignored.

I've had the opportunity to spend a total of two weeks with the new XC90, and every time I drive it, I like it more than I did before. But it's only when other people get a chance to ride in it that they start to understand why. If I hadn't given any of my friends a lift, I could have easily coasted through my time with the XC90, enjoying my comfortable seat, surrounded by soft leather and birch wood inlays, with no one the wiser.

And while the XC90 starts a little under $45,000, if you start adding desirable options, you can easily add on another $15,000. To some people, the idea of driving a $60,000 luxury vehicle that nobody realizes is expensive is ludicrous. They feel like being successful enough to spend that kind of money on a car should come with social recognition, and I can't really blame them for that.

But there are also plenty of people out there who are going to be perfectly happy driving a luxury car that doesn't shout. They don't need to brag about how big their paycheck is. They don't want a Lexus with its Predator grille and Gundam-inspired designs screaming at the world, "Hey! I drive a Lexus!" They just want something nice, something they enjoy.

With so many brands trying to make a run at established luxury carmakers by out-performing, out-styling, and out-handling them, Volvo actually stands out by not playing that game. The company has carved a niche for itself as an automaker that offers just as much luxury, safety, and technology as other premier brands without trying to make sure every single person on the street notices. It's refreshing, really.