Volvo V90 estate - Reliability & safety

Volvo V90 reliability

Volvo’s reputation for reliability could be better. Despite an impressive ninth-place finish in our 2021 Driver Power owner satisfaction survey and commendations in 2020 for build quality, the brand could only manage an average finish for reliability. Hopefully, this is a weakness that will be addressed soon.

Safety

Safety is a big part of Volvo's traditional appeal. The V90's crash safety rating is equally impressive, too – tests carried out by independent crash safety experts Euro NCAP resulted in the V90 being awarded the full five star rating, with an excellent 95% score for adult occupant protection, and a solid 80% for child occupant protection in an impact.

Naturally, you get the legally required stuff like ISOFIX child-seat mounting points, electronic stability control, tyre-pressure monitoring, anti-lock brakes and a multitude of airbags, but this being a Volvo, there’s more, too. Volvo's standard-fit electronic safety systems were given a superb 93% rating by Euro NCAP in the safety assistance category.

The V90 features a City Safety system, which includes automatic emergency braking with sensors that can detect pedestrians, cyclists and even large animals such as moose, deer and horses, then stop the car before a collision occurs.

There’s also the semi-autonomous Pilot Assist system, which combines the active cruise control and lane-keeping assistance systems, as well as various other lasers, radars and cameras, to allow the car to very nearly drive itself on a motorway. And you can specify cloud-based systems that allow multiple cars to communicate to warn drivers of slippery roads or hazard warning lights ahead.