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Volvo has been at the forefront of electrification and advanced engine technology for years. The Swedish brand, best known for its incredible range of safety equipment, brought us something unique in the XC90. The T8 version of the Volvo XC90 luxury SUV originally used supercharging and turbocharging to ensure a small engine would suffice for this three-row crossover, but it could soon be obsolete.
The transformation to PHEV for the T8 brought the name Recharge
The 2022 version of the Volvo XC90 with more power is the plug-in hybrid model (PHEV). This version bears the T8 badge, which means it is the most powerful, but this new T8 is different from the original.
Car and Driver tells us that with the Recharge name in the mix, the T8 engine went from using both turbocharging and supercharging to using only turbos connected to the 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine. The addition of an electric motor to drive the rear wheels more than made up for the lack of supercharging in this luxury SUV.
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How much power does the 2022 Volvo XC90 Recharge T8 offer?
Combined output for this new powertrain layout increased by 55 horsepower to 455 and 51 pound-feet of torque to reach 523. Credit the new electric motor for this increase in power. This engine generates 143 horsepower.
Although the new XC90 Recharge offers a 4.5-second sprint to 60 mph – 0.4 seconds quicker than the previous version – this powertrain is likely to have a short lifespan ahead of it.
Why would the PHEV design of this Volvo luxury SUV become obsolete?
Electric vehicles are becoming more abundant and popular, especially with longer driving ranges and shorter charging times. Add in the fact that there are more public charging stations available than ever before, and you have a recipe for success. This success in the electric vehicle world is likely to push hybrids and PHEVs out the door. Volvo already had two electric vehicles on the market, the C40 Recharge and the XC40 Recharge. How long do you think it will be before the XC90 is a fully electric SUV?
The Volvo XC90 Recharge allows electric driving but slow recharging
The novelty of the PHEV T8 powertrain gives the new XC90 luxury SUV an advantage over other plug-in hybrids. This SUV has a larger battery, which means it can drive up to 36 miles on electricity. Unfortunately, if you run out of batteries, the PHEV setup can’t use a DC fast charger and requires a slower connection. This is fine for charging at home but not at public stations.
An all-electric XC90 luxury SUV could be on the horizon
Without giving us a specific timeline, MotorTrend hints that the Volvo XC90 could be the next SUV in the lineup to go to a fully electrified platform. The current generation has been around since 2015, despite a new powertrain design for 2022. If we were to venture a guess, this new electric SUV could arrive as early as 2024.
When will Volvo be fully electric?
Like many other luxury brands, Volvo intends to offer only electric vehicles by 2030. Both the suggestion of the next generation of the XC90 and the move towards electric vehicles mean that the current design of the T8 will probably be obsolete very soon.
Check out the article below that tells you about the two Volvo EVs.
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