Volvo Auto India launches XC90 T8 at Rs 1.25 crore

Volvo Auto India today launched its first plug-in hybrid SUV in Delhi, the XC90 T8 Excellence. The premium carmaker has already received 50 orders from prospective customers in Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai and other parts of the country for the hybrid SUV. The first car is expected to be delivered by the end of the year.

Priced at Rs 1.25 crore (ex-showroom Delhi), the XC90 T8 Excellence comes equipped with a standalone radar safety system that currently does not have a government backed-up satellite system for connectivity.

The XC90 T8 Excellence, which comes to India as a completely built unit kit, is unlikely to attract any of the government incentives available to electric and hybrids cars under the Faster Adoption and manufacturing of Electric and Hybrid Vehicles (FAME India).

Tom von Bonsdorff, managing director, Volvo Auto India, told Autocar Professional that Volvo is awaiting more clarity from the government on incentives available under the current VAT. While the XC90 T8 Excellence may not qualify for government incentives under the FAME scheme that promotes made-in-India vehicles, it may be eligible for free registration in Delhi under the Central Motor Vehicles Rules on showing the green certificate issued by ARAI and ICAT at the time of the SUV’s registration.

Company officials maintained that the hybrid SUV is currently undergoing homologation and testing for its hardware at testing agencies ARAI and ICAT and the green certificate certifying it as a hybrid car in India may be issued by next month.

While the radar has been approved by the testing agencies the car is yet to receive the government approval to run on Indian roads.

The 7-seater XC90 T8 Excellence is touted to be the most luxurious car from the Volvo stable in its 89- year history. The XC90 Twin Engine is powered by a 320hp 2.0-litre, turbocharged and supercharged four-cylinder petrol engine. The unit powers the front wheels that combines with an 87hp electric motor driving the rear wheels, bringing the total output to 407hp channelled to all four wheels. There is also a 25hp starter motor/generator between the petrol engine and gearbox which helps smoothen the transition between the different drive modes and fill any torque gaps. Volvo claims an all-electric range of 40km for its petrol-hybrid SUV.
The car comes with two electric charging stations that can charge the car within 2.5 hours. They can be installed either at home or at office facilitating 80km per day of driving.

The plug-in hybrid powertrain enables three driving modes – pure, hybrid and power. The car is built on Volvo’s Scalable Product Architecture with the pure mode offering the regenerative braking system that is useful in stop and go traffic.

In hybrid mode, the vehicle automatically alternates between drawing power from the Drive-E engine and the electric motor to enable best fuel consumption and a 49g/km of Co2. In power mode the driver gets the combined performance of the combustion engine and the electric motor.

The XC90 T8’s highlight is the radar-based safety system equipped with 360deg radars and inputs from cameras that activate adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning, collision warning with full auto braking for pedestrians, cyclists, other vehicles and large animals. In addition, it alerts the driver for rear collision, blind spot detection and park pilot assist. The car is also equipped with a strong safety cage, seatbelt pretensioners, side impact protection and whiplash protection. The company claims it is the safest SUV with a 5-star Euro NCAP rating. The plug-in hybrid SUV is Euro 6-emission compliant and has a lithium ion battery also seen in the BMW i8 hybrid.

Globally Volvo has delivered 72,430 units of the XC90 since its launch in 2014 and in India has sold over 600 cars within a year after deliveries began in early 2015.

Also read: Volvo Cars' ambitious ‘Drive Me’ public autonomous driving experiment takes off