The ES90 is Volvo's first electric sedan since the company was founded and was first unveiled on Mar. 5 in Stockholm, Sweden. True to Volvo's electric vehicles that prioritize safety above all, the ES90 features advanced safety technology and even offers practicality on par with a sports utility vehicle (SUV).
On the 16th (local time), a test drive of the ES90 covered a total of 110 km between Nice, a resort city on the southern coast of France, and Monaco. The route consisted of residential roads limited to 30–50 km/h, coastal highways, and narrow, winding uphill roads. The ES90 comes in three trims: single-motor rear-wheel drive, twin-motor all-wheel drive, and twin-motor performance all-wheel drive. The car driven that day was the model equipped with a single motor.
Although the ES90 is a sedan, it exuded the feel of an SUV. Unlike typical sedans, it is designed in a fastback form (a car whose roof slopes gently to the rear lamps), and it has a large gap between the bottom of the body and the ground (ground clearance).
The overall design is simple while emphasizing Volvo's distinctive elements. The front headlights are designed in the reclining T shape used on Volvo models, the so-called "Thor's hammer." The rear features newly developed vertical C-shaped LED rear lamps that blend smoothly with the body.
The first impression after starting to drive was how remarkably quiet it was. Unlike internal combustion cars, electric vehicles have no engine noise, but there is usually some noise. In particular, at high speeds, there is often road friction noise or wind noise created as air hits the windows. In the ES90, apart from faint airflow sounds from the climate control, there was hardly any noise while driving.
Upon entering the highway and pressing the accelerator, the ES90 surged ahead quietly yet with heft as it gained speed. The single-motor ES90 trim driven that day produces a maximum output of 245 kW (333 horsepower) and peak torque of 480 Nm. It takes 6.9 seconds to reach 100 km/h from a standstill.
The ES90 is the first Volvo to feature an 800-volt (V) electric powertrain. The rear-wheel-drive model is equipped with a single electric motor on the rear axle, delivering balanced performance in various conditions. It also has "one-pedal driving," which uses the regenerative braking characteristic of EVs to enable both driving and braking with just the accelerator.
The ES90 showed virtually no body roll even when accelerating through curves. The course from Nice's coastal road to the finish in Monaco included narrow, steep mountain roads, yet even at more than 80 km/h on winding sections, it handled sharp direction changes smoothly and kept the body stable.
Convenience features for the driver were also applied in variety. The ES90 displays driving information on three devices: a 14.5-inch freestanding central touchscreen on the dashboard, a freestanding display in front of the steering wheel, and a head-up display on the windshield. Through these, the driver can intuitively check various information such as current speed, speed limits, and route guidance. In particular, the freestanding display in front of the steering wheel is 9 inches on the ES90—larger and easier to read than many competing models' 5-inch units.
The space design for passengers also stood out. Even without pulling the front passenger seat all the way forward, a man 180 cm tall could sit comfortably in the rear, thanks to the generous legroom. As a midsize-large model, the ES90 measures 5,000 mm long, 1,942 mm wide, and 1,550 mm high, making it larger than the internal combustion S90 or the Genesis G80. The wheelbase—the distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels—is 3,100 mm, similar to that of the full-size Mercedes-Benz S-Class.
Volvo plans to launch the ES90 in Korea next year. According to foreign media, the ES90's starting price in Europe for the lowest single-motor trim is set at more than 70,000 euros (about 116 million won). Among competing models, the Audi A6 e-tron starts at about 95 million won in Korea, and the Mercedes-Benz EQE is about 100 million won.
The ES90 has well-balanced strengths in safety and convenience, but with various imported electric vehicle competitors, its success in the domestic market will likely hinge on a reasonable price.