The Volvo XC70 (pictured) will soon morph in to the new Volvo V90 Cross Country
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The new Volvo V90 Cross Country will be revealed later this month as the effective replacement for the XC70. Volvo pay homage to its history.
So with the next instalment of the new ’90’ Series range – following on from the wonderful XC90 and very appealing S90 saloon and V90 estate – due to arrive later this month as the Volvo V90 Cross Country, Volvo wants us to look back to the XC70.
The new V90 Cross Country may get the recently revived Volvo Cross Country designation, but in all the ways that count the V90 Cross Country is a replacement for the XC70.
The XC70 – which started life as the V70 XC in 1996, predating Volvo’s excursion in to SUV with the original XC90 by five years, was designed to cope with harsh Swedish weather with all wheel drive and some butch cladding, and morphed in to V70 XC in 2000 – with a more sophisticated 4WD system, higher ride height but still butch cladding, in 2000.
With the arrival of the third generation of the XC70 started to offer its capabilities in a more elegant form, with less of the bare grey plastic cladding and a more refined look. But it was still hugely capable, and has remained so – and remained appealing too – as we discovered when reviewed one of the last Volvo XC70 just a few months ago.
But now the XC70 is gone, and the Volvo V90 Cross Country is going to take its place.
No doubt the V90 CC will be a cracking, rufty-tufty, high-riding estate car – particularly in D5 and T8 guise with 4WD – but it does look like you’ll be able to buy a V90 CC with the D4 engine and FWD. Which somehow undermines the history of the XC70, however good it may be.
The Volvo V90 Cross Country will be revealed this month ahead of a public debut at the Paris Motor Show.
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