Volvo's Newest SUV Is Cleaner Than A Prius

by Derek Kreindler

Published: July 8th, 2014

volvo s newest suv is cleaner than a prius

Volvo’s newest SUV, the 2015 XC90, will have a wide range of powertrain options, including a a twin-charged 4-cylinder engine making 400 horsepower, with fewer CO2 emissions than a Toyota Prius.

The range topping T8 (as it will be known – presumably to symbolize V8 power) will make 400 horsepower and 472 lb-ft of torque from a 4-cylinder engine that is both turbocharged and supercharged. The T8 will also utilize a plug-in hybrid system to give it 24 miles of electric range and CO2 emissions of 60 grams per kilometer – about 33 percent better than a Toyota Prius.

Also on tap are two non-hybrid four-cylinder engines, a T6 four-cylinder making 320 hp and a T5 unit making 254 hp. Two diesels will be offered as well, but likely for world markets.

#Hybrid #Plug-inHybrid #SUV #Volvo #VolvoXc90

Derek Kreindler

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9 of 34 comments

Master Baiter on Jul 08, 2014

"Nuclear, hydro, and geothermal are emission free..." So mining Uranium and processing it for use in a nuke plant doesn't emit anything? Dams just appear by snapping one's fingers? There's so much misinformation in the green movement that it would take an encyclopedia to document it all.

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- Cartunez on Jul 08, 2014
  
  Because you aren't supposed to think when you listen to the green crowd. They have magically money trees and they live in total harmony with nature.
  
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- FormerFF on Jul 08, 2014
  
  The Union of Concerned Scientist has a good rundown on the carbon emissions of electric cars, and with it the carbon emissions of the various means of generating electricity: http://www.ucsusa.org/assets/documents/clean_vehicles/electric-car-global-warming-emissions-report.pdf Geothermal, hydro, wind, nuclear, and solar are all low in carbon emissions, natural gas is somewhere in the middle, oil and coal are high. It is disingenuous to think any automobile is zero carbon emissions. The headline that this Volvo emits less carbon is also mostly misleading. If all the electricity going into it is from geothermal or hydro, that is probably true, for most of the US, it is not.
  
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- FormerFF on Jul 08, 2014
  
  The better sources of renewables, such as wind and hydro, produce about 2 or 3 percent as much carbon as does the burning of coal. Not zero carbon, but close, and we don't have to get to zero.
  
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- Darkwing on Jul 08, 2014
  
  For nuclear and hydro, at least, I suspect the lifetime amount of energy generated is so large that whatever goes into building the facility and refining the fuel is a drop in the bucket. (For whatever you care to measure -- CO2, cis-normativity, or any number of privileges.) Mostly, I'm just dumbfounded that the phrase "carbon emissions" has been used frequently without a contribution from HE who MUST not BE NAMED or LIMITED in his USE of CAPS LOCK.
  
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- Luke42 on Jul 08, 2014
  
  @cartunez It depends on which part of the green crowd you listen to. I've actually done the analysis, and the standard green wish-list is mostly a win. FormerFF posted it, so I don't have to. On the other hand, there are plenty of idiots in the green crowd, and I'm happy to call them out becaus I'm an engineer before I'm an environmentalist. I consider environmental impact to be another design constraint - and an interesting one. Anyway, judging movements by their most idiotic members is a game that none of us can win.
  
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28-Cars-Later on Jul 08, 2014

So is this a new XC90 or just a rehash of the 2003 platform? Additional: While idea of getting 400hp out of any I4 is certainly impressive, turbocharging and supercharging a 2.0 litre or so sounds like a prescription for permanent shop queen status. You've got almost nothing appealing left Volvo, going to torpedo your half decent post MY04 reliability too?

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Balreadysaid on Jul 08, 2014

Volvo just had to change the fuel filter assembly location on the 240d wagon and they would be way better off!

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Felis Concolor on Jul 09, 2014

I don't give a damn about the car, but I'd like to see that engine offered as a crate motor SKU, complete with controller and wiring harness.

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