New EX name suggests Volvo EX90 will not replace XC90, all-new 2023 model to launch in Malaysia

• EX90 unlikely to replace Volvo XC90, at least not directly
• All-new 2023 XC90 likely to be announced later this year / early-2023
• No new powertrain, will carry over current model’s PHEV setup

About two weeks ago, Volvo announced its latest flagship the EX90. To be revealed on 9-November 2022, the EX90 will spearhead the Swedish marque’s goal of having EV models contributing 50 percent of its global sales by 2025, and to become an EV-only company by 2030.

The EX90 will also set the tone for future Volvo models.

Since the EX90 wears the same 90 series nomenclature as the ageing Volvo XC90, the logical conclusion would be that this is the next generation XC90, or is it?

Popular opinion is that the XC90 as we know it will be no more once the EX90 goes on sale, probably in late-2023.

However, the fact that Volvo chose a new EX naming convention suggests that there is a need to retain use of the XC90 name. In other words, the EX90 will be sold in parallel with a new generation Volvo XC90.

Car companies spend a lot of money to build recognition for their model’s nameplates. The XC90’s name dates to the early 2000s and unless they don’t have a choice, car companies rarely throw away two decades worth of marketing investments by dropping a familiar name without good reason.

The current generation Volvo XC90 was first introduced in 2015 and is due for a replacement soon.

Back in 2017, Volvo has previously said that it is committed to building the next generation Volvo XC90 at its South Carolina plant in USA sometime in 2022. We don’t know if they were referring to the XC90 as we know it or the electric successor that we now know to be the EX90.

But clearly the demand for a plug-in hybrid XC90 is much higher than an electric-only EX90, and why would Volvo say no to customers in its most important market USA?

The South Carolina plant currently only builds the Volvo S60 B5 mild-hybrid and T8 plug-in hybrid.

The EX90 will eventually replace the XC90, just not immediately. We also don’t think that all Volvo markets worldwide are ready for the EX90, especially Malaysia but nevermind Malaysia, becaue even in the US, the people who buy an XC90 need a go-anywhere-anytime car and not many of them live in areas where charging is convenient.

Instead, Volvo will most probably do a BMW in splitting the i4 and 4 Series Gran Coupe. The electric version will be sold as a the EX90 while the plug-in hybrid / mild-hybrid variants could retain the XC90 nameplate. The two could be differentiated by a solid nose piece for the EV and a traditional Volvo grille for the XC90.

If our predictions are correct, we are certain that there will no changes to its powertrain as Volvo has already announced that it won’t be investing in developing anymore new combustion engines.

The current XC90’s plug-in drivetrain will be carried over the new model. In other words, the 2023 Volvo XC90 will be a heavily updated version of the current XC90, but will be marketed as a new generation XC90 nonetheless.

We will have more clarity on this in the months after the Volvo EX90’s global debut on 9-November 2022.

The current outgoing generation Volvo XC90 sells for RM 412,888 for the mild-hybrid B5 Inscription Plus, and RM 428,888 for the plug-in hybrid Recharge T8 Inscription Plus. Both are locally-assembled at Volvo Car Manufacturing's plant in Shah Alam.