Volvo Cars has started teasing a new flagship electric SUV called the EX90, which will replace the popular XC90 model as it moves towards an all-electric future. The full unveiling of the new EV won’t be until this fall, but Volvo is already calling the EX90 its safest vehicle yet and has shared some of the technologies we can expect to see inside and out.
Volvo Cars is a global car manufacturer headquartered in Torslanda, Sweden, owned by the Chinese conglomerate Geely Holding Group. In recent years, Volvo has made admirable progress towards electrification and carbon neutrality across its various makes and production processes, promising to be a fully electric brand by 2030.
To support these electrification goals, it has begun to put in place the necessary manufacturing infrastructure, including plans to invest SEK 10 billion (~$1.09 billion) at its Torslanda plant to support advanced manufacturing practices such as the mega-casting of aluminum body panels, plus a new battery mounting facility.
The automaker currently offers several electrified models, including the XC40 Recharge and most recently the C40 Recharge. To date, Volvo has only supplied a plug-in hybrid version of its XC90 SUV, its most flagship in the entire fleet.
However, Volvo has been promising an all-electric version of the XC90 since June, along with news that it would come with LiDAR as standard. While we knew this electrified SUV was in the works, Volvo remained vague about what it would be called.
Today we learned that the XC90 will in fact be reborn as the EX90 all-electric SUV, complete with LiDAR and premium safety synonymous with the Volvo name. We won’t be looking at it in full just yet, but Volvo teased the EX90 with the following video:
The EX90’s standard safety goes “beyond any Volvo before”
Volvo Cars today unveiled its new flagship SUV in a press release featuring a keynote address from CEO Jim Rowan, which focuses almost entirely on one factor Volvo Cars does better than most, if not all: safety.
The automaker says the EX90 represents a new era for Volvo Cars as it pursues a future where it is 100% carbon-free as a company, and promises to keep innovating until cars stop crashing. Volvo says the EX90 will arrive with “an invisible shield of safety”, thanks to the latest sensor technology.
This includes cameras, radar and LiDAR, all powered by Volvo’s own core computing platform and software to create a 360-degree view of the EV’s surroundings in real time. Volvo says that once EVs like these hit the road, research shows that accidents resulting in serious injury or death will be reduced by 20% and accident prevention will improve by 9%.
In the upcoming EX90, special sensors and cameras powered by Volvo’s algorithms will measure the driver’s gaze concentration and warn him to focus when needed. It starts as a gentle nudge, but will become more intrusive as needed. If a driver falls asleep or becomes ill while driving, the EX90 is designed to stop safely and call for help.
Volvo Cars says it will share more details about the EX90 when it is officially unveiled on November 9. In the meantime, you can watch Jim Rowan’s full keynote address in the video below:
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