Four-seat Volvo XC90 Excellence touches down

VOLVO Car Australia has added a new top-spec variant to its XC90 large SUV range in the form of the T8 Excellence that eschews the traditional five-seat set-up in favour of a more luxurious two-seat second row.

Arriving with a pricetag of $174,200 plus on-roads, the Excellence adds a whopping $49,300 over the previous range-topping variant, the T8 R-Design.

Its price point puts it in the crosshairs of the likes of the Range Rover Sport and Porsche Cayenne, and also makes it the most expensive Volvo model sold in Australia to date.

Volvo Car Australia director of corporate and PR Greg Bosnich told GoAuto the brand sees an opportunity to promote the pinnacle of its product portfolio in Australia with the Excellence, rather than gain extra sales volume.

Created with rear passengers in mind, the Excellence adds a number of luxury features to ensure a chauffeur-driven journey is made in utmost comfort.

Based on the Inscription trim level, the crowning feature of the Excellence is two electrically adjustable individual rear seats separated by a rear tunnel console, upholstered in perforated Nappa leather with heating, ventilation and massage functions.

Extra comfort is provided in the rear by special comfort headrests, increased legroom, footrests, extra noise insulation, folding tray tables, heated and cooled cupholders and the ability to adjust the front passenger seat from the second row.

Inside the rear tunnel console lies a storage compartment fitted with two handcrafted Orrefors crystal drinking glasses, and a refrigerator to store the passenger’s beverage of choice.

Rear climate control is managed through a touchscreen on the tunnel console, while rear passengers also gain two USB connections, one 12V port and one 230/110V power outlet.

Other interior specification includes Nubuck textile headliner and roof pillars, leather-clad sun visors and grab handles, unique logos embroidered into the headrests, a luggage partition divider, ionic air cleaner, and an extra mid-range speaker for the Bowers & Wilkins Premium Sound system.

From the outside, the Excellence is distinguished by chrome B- and C-pillars, unique logos on the lower door strip and tailgate, and 21-inch rims shod in special low-noise tyres.

No mechanical changes have been made over the T8 Inscription’s plug-in hybrid powertrain, which teams a 235kW/400Nm turbo-petrol four-cylinder engine to a 60kW/240Nm electric motor and 9.2kWh lithium-ion battery for a combined output of 294kW/640Nm.

Through the first half of 2018, Volvo has sold 561 examples of the XC90, down 12.1 per cent over the 638 sales it managed over the same period last year.

It trails segment-leading offerings such as the BMW X5 (1487), Range Rover Sport (1420), Audi Q7 (1197), Mercedes-Benz GLE (1107), Lexus RX (1080) and Land Rover Discovery (1026).

The Excellence, the only four-seat Volvo in Australia, is on sale now.