Production of the Volvo V90 will end in September, the brand has confirmed to Autocar.
It said in a statement that the large estate’s demise was “in accordance” with its “global cycle plan”, with the related S90 saloon having been axed last year to make way for the electric ES90 liftback. That model is due in the UK early next year, but it remains to be seen whether it will spawn a traditional estate.
Asked at the ES90’s unveiling whether Volvo could ditch estates for good, then CEO Jim Rowan replied: “Yeah, because I think it’s changed, right? SUVs have changed with ride height.”
Rowan suggested that the ES90’s raised ride height means it has some crossover with SUVs. Moreover, its hatchback boot and 40:20:40-split rear seats give it similar functionality to an estate.
He added that the XC60 SUV could be repositioned to help fulfil the role of the V90: “Rather than bring a V90, for example, are we better to position [the XC60] in a slightly different way? We have the Black Edition, we have the Cross Country edition. So we then now have different editions of the same base car.”
Rowan’s replacement, Håkan Samuelsson, has yet to hint at any change in tack.
However, Volvo’s estates have proven their popularity in recent years: the V60 and V90 were removed from the UK line-up in 2023, but were reinstated in July 2024 due to popular demand.
Production of the smaller V60 will continue for the foreseeable and “UK customers will still be able to order this model”, according to Volvo UK. It added that buyers interested in the V90 should enquire about stock with itself or their local Volvo dealer.
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Seriously, have Volvo not actually seen what is on the roads in Europe.We have recently returned from a month long driving tour of the Scandi countries, and everywhere you go there are estates, millions of them, well, maybe not millions but you get my drift, every other car was an estate, with Skoda and Volvo being the main sellers, so to stop selling what is a great seller in Europe is suicide, not everyone wants an SUV we certainly do not, and we do not own one in our four car garage, and have no intention of getting one either, but an Estate was on the list to replace our old 100,000 Skoda Yeti, the Volvo and Octavia wagons were both on the shortlist.... Volvo has been known for Estates for decades, from the 60's onwards, the loss of these cars versions will be missed by those that have had nothing but Volvo estates for years... and a really silly move.
Too many advantages from a SUV compared to an Estate,plus, people have got used to SUV's crossovers etc, the current generation are used to SUV's , keeping an Estate going purely for their furniture swallowing capabilities isn't a good reason to keep building them.
Easier to get in and out of, more comfortable seating position, better view, takes up less space on the road, similar cost, can get bikes upright in the back with one wheel removed, easier to park, easier to load and unload as less benting over, easier to get child seats in and out. Yep those advantages.
yeah, what xxxx said.