xc90 practicalities

Hi,

I need to purchase a 7 seater in the uk.

XC90 is an obvious choice as I have had a string of 240, 740, 940 e.t.c.

Just wondering how much room there is in the passenger compartment as
compared with other 7 seaters.

Not much comment on this group so I presume that either they are not
selling or giving no trouble.

Also, are all the engine choices volvo units?

Any comments or comparisons welcome.

 

They are certainly selling. Little hope of any discount and probably
a waiting list. I'm a Land Rover man at heart, so I find the XC90 a
bit soft (and horribly ugly) but it's very nicely put together and the
seating is neat.


--

Tim Hobbs

'58 Series 2 88" aka "Stig"
'77 101FC Ambulance aka "Burrt"
'03 Volvo V70

My Landies? http://www.seriesii.co.uk
Barcoding? http://www.bartec-systems.com
Tony Luckwill web archive at http://www.luckwill.com

 

Not an awful lot of leg room for the 6th and 7th seats, but enough for a
small adult for moderately long journeys I suspect.

Boot space is naturally greatly reduced in 7-seat mode.

I have a lot of respect for LandRovers, which are justifiably considered
excellent workhorses, but to hear the XC90 described as "horribly ugly"
in comparison defies belief!!!!!

It is a beatiful car, and attracts positive looks and comments, which is
not often the case with LRs.

AB

 

I thought Land Rovers are piece of shit, that's why their parent company
Ford has
given them an ultimatum to improve on their quality control.

 

I believe the third row is officially for children or small adults.

The salesmen have told me that the third row is not something you'd
want even a small adult (or a large child, e.g. teenager?) in for any
sort of long trip. There certainly doesn't appear to be any proper
legroom.

This is the impression I get from the Honda Pilot too.

Of course I haven't tried it since I don't need 7 seats.


andrew []

 

Thanks Tim

So, could I get 7 passengers in a landrover and take them on a long run
without too many complaints? Are they reliable these days? I knew
someone who had one some years ago and he spent more time repairing it
than he did driving it, then the rust got it and it fell to bits. That
said, I can see the attraction towards them but work does not permit
extensive repair and care time.

 

I believe Saab is about to release a version of the GMC Envoy/Chevy
Trailblazer. The long wheelbase version of those vehicles have very good 3rd
row seat room.

Supposed to be a nicer version of the basic GMC platform, much like they
recently reworked the Subaru WRX.

Not sure if they'll sell it in the UK however.

Do any of the full sized US built SUVs sell in Europe? I'd guess the fuel
economy (lack thereof) would make them a poor choice for EU markets, but the
3rd row seating is impressive.

 

So, could I get 7 passengers in a landrover and take them on a long run

I often did with my Discovery. Reliability in recent years has
improved drastically and there aren't many horror stories with the
Series 2 Discovery. The Series 1 had various 'issues', but would do
minor miracles off-road. The engines in some recent Land Rovers were
terribly unreliable - the P38 Range Rover and 1.8 Freelander were
disgracefully poor in that respect.

They are very different to 'normal' cars, and if you don't like taking
cars to bits and saying a little prayer every time you get in then you
shouldn't really get one! The new Discovery is fantastic (my company
was a supplier to the production line) but I wouldn't buy the first
model year of any car from any manufacturer - just a fact of life that
the second models are always slightly improved in key areas as the
manufacturer learns from warranty claims.
--

Tim Hobbs

'58 Series 2 88" aka "Stig"
'77 101FC Ambulance aka "Burrt"
'03 Volvo V70

My Landies? http://www.seriesii.co.uk
Barcoding? http://www.bartec-systems.com
Tony Luckwill web archive at http://www.luckwill.com