Photo: Volvo Car Switzerland on social media
Scheduled to debut on September 4 at 9:00 AM Eastern Time, the new XC90 has been leaked in all its glory. Instead of a nefarious actor gaining access to the Swedish manufacturer’s media servers, official photos were uploaded by Volvo Car Switzerland to social media.
Of course, the aforementioned photos have since been deleted. But as is always the case with the Internet, someone has taken screenshots of the revamped midsize crossover. Best described as an evolutionary design with incremental updates, the second facelift of the second-generation XC90 takes its inspiration primarily from the EX90.
But that’s not all, because the wider front grille is more 2025 BMW X3 than Volvo or Polestar. Looking at the bigger picture, Polestar isn’t even on the Swedish automaker’s radar anymore. Earlier this year, Volvo reduced its stake in Polestar only for Chinese overlord Gelly to take control of the mostly Chinese EV maker.
What happens to Polestar by the end of the decade is of no concern to us now, so let’s turn our attention back to the recently leaked XC90. In addition to the 2025 BMW X3-like front grille with diagonally arranged bars, Volvo has also worked its magic on the lower grille and the trademark Thor’s Hammer headlights.
The charging port flap on the driver's side front fender indicates plug-in hybrid assistance, while the rear of the three-row crossover shows little change. Certainly, both the front and rear lights appear to consist exclusively of light-emitting diodes.
Photo: Volvo Car Switzerland on social media
From the passenger-side three-quarter rear view, we can also see that the gas door remains on the aforementioned fender. Emphasis on petrol, or petrol and driver’s side if you live in the UK, because Volvo produced its last diesel-powered passenger vehicle in March 2024 in the form of the XC90. It’s been a full 45 years since Volvo introduced its first diesel passenger vehicle in 1979, that vehicle being the six-cylinder 244 GL D6.
The only interior image reveals a slightly different touchscreen for Google's built-in infotainment system. We can also see that Volvo has retained the glass shifter we all know and love. What is a bit of a shock is that Volvo has retained the array of physical buttons located just below the touchscreen.
Volvo Car Switzerland is advertising the 2025 model as a plug-in hybrid with seating for seven, which is exactly what the XC90 Recharge is for the 2024 model year. Previously, this 2.0-liter twincharged inline-four plug-in hybrid powertrain was called the T8 Twin Engine, with Twin Engine referring to the internal combustion engine in the front and the electric motor that drives the rear wheels.
Further down the spectrum, we're looking forward to the B6 and B5 mild-hybrids. What's the difference between them? While they're both 2.0-liter I4s, the B6 is twin-charged rather than simply turbocharged like the B5. At press time, the B6 is making 295 horsepower and 310 pound-feet (420 Nm) of torque compared to the B5's 247 and 258 (350). The Recharge, meanwhile, makes a combined 455 horsepower (422 ps) and 523 pound-feet (710 Nm). Its all-electric range is rated at 32 miles (51 kilometers) on the EPA combined cycle.