Volvo V90 Cross Country, sideways on ice

[NOISE] We're here to drive the all new Volvo V90 Cross Country. And we only place it [UNKNOWN] appropriate to do so, Sweden. In fact the north of Sweden where we're gonna take this car on some tricky driving terrains to see just well how it handles them. [MUSIC] Volvo is celebrating 20 years of Cross Country models with the V90 Cross Country echoing the original V70 XE that we first laid eyes on all the way back in 1997. The V90 Cross Country also shares a platform with the S90 and the XC90. Volvo wagons have always had a Following from fans across the world who likes their [UNKNOWN] in the 70s and 80s. But now, they're really, really pulling out the stops creating some Swedish design that looks absolutely spectacular out in the road. Now, the V90 Cross Country actually [UNKNOWN] a completely different chassis to the V90 due to Higher ride height and a few other tweaks but it's been tweaked just so it feels just like the V90 or the S90 for that matter. Under the hood we've got a two liter supercharged and turbocharged four cylinder engine putting out 360 16 Horsepower and 295 pounds of torque. Normally the all wheel drive system sends all of the power to the front wheels making this behave like a normal front-wheel drive wagon but thanks to the driving modes can dynamically select that front and back where needed. The Cross Country version of the V90 is designed for those with more adventurous outdoorsy types of hobbies and although that is not exactly my kind of thing There was one thing I fancied having a go at that would make full use of the car's capabilities. No journey to Volvo in Sweden would be fully complete without some ice driving. So they've given us the Cross Country on a frozen lake, which they tell me is called Duck Lake. To try out its control on the ice. Now Sweden has been having remarkably mild conditions for the time of year. Meaning that although the ice is frozen to a depth of several meters there is a lot of standing water making this incredibly slippery and a lot of fun. Obviously we're not operating with complete lack of traction control. The car is still helping me out which is why I'm not currently facing in the direction I've just come. One thing that shines through on this frozen lake, is that the handling is wonderfully predictable. There's only one solution to get yourself out of trouble when you are drifting on ice and it's never the breaks. More power [LAUGH]. Now of course this isn't something that Volvo V90 Cross Country owners are going to be doing on the reg with their car, but Nice to know that it can. As fun as that was, and it really was, it's hard to imagine many Volvo owners doing this in their cars. So it was time to get back on to roads, frozen roads but roads all the same. The sensor's connect system comes standard with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as well as Volvo's apps for things like Spotify and others. Being the car is absolutely laden with connectivity and functionality. All of it adds up to a really, really great cabin, not just in terms of Functionality but looks wise the vertically orientated screen means that options are always within reach and having the swipe style between menu screens to find all the relevant options becomes incredibly intuitive incredibly quickly. On top of the safety features we've been seeing involved with for years. The v 90 cross country also features a rudimentary v to v technology. Vehicle to vehicle. Allowing Volvo owners To alert each other to dangers in the road. If your car loses any kind of traction, or the hazard lights go on, it pings out a message to nearby Volvo drivers to let them know that that part of the road might have a hazard on it. Now, the system's only available in Sweden and Norway, at the moment, where penetration of Volvo is incredibly high. But there's hope that they'll rule out more internationally at a later point. Of course we really hope that one day there will be an international standard across all auto makers so this will really, really be useful. But for now, it's good to see manufacturers like Volvo take the first steps. Towards it. To drive out here on the roads, well, the V9 Cross Country's been an absolute joy. We are running it with studded tires, a real requirement to have in the north of Sweden in the wintertime. So the tires are a bit louder, the breaking distance is a bit longer and the steering isn't quite as communicative as it should be. So I can't give you a full run down of exactly the minutia of how this is to drive. But in terms of comfort, in terms of ease of use, the car has been a fantastic thing to have this last couple of days. Cruising long distances through amazing scenery, this has been a real travel companion that we've enjoyed having with us. And as we saw out on the ice, it can't just handle conventional roads. When given the opportunity to let loose on some icy roads, or rather, Straight up ice. It really held its own. The driving characteristics really shown through. The quality of the chassis made it completely predictable. And even when going fully sidewise you knew exactly how to control it. This is a Car that's got all his capability hidden just below the surface, ready to pounce out when you need it most. In all, then, the V90 Cross Country marries great looks outside and in, with decent tech, and that solid Volvo safety record. [UNKNOWN] Adds that the ability to give as good as it gets out in challenging conditions, and that SUV you might have been considering suddenly doesn't look quite as good. [MUSIC]