Has anyone compared Ascent with the 2019 Volvo XC90 AWD trim?
Any idea how Ascent lease will compare with XC90 lease?
Thanks
Any idea how Ascent lease will compare with XC90 lease?
Thanks
Ascent vs Volvo XC90
Leon Braginski
21 - 31 of 31 Posts
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I don't think Volvo (car segment) would've survived w/o Geely (chinese car company). Ford couldn't improve the brand and got sold during the economic collapsed (circa2009) to someone else. Ironically, there's an asian guy (likely Chinese) that runs Ford design department since the early 2000.
We've been trading with china since 1998 and in terms of ethic ... we have some contribution to that because we have build our own nests in their country for at least 2 decades now.
Overall, I think Volvo will do okay. The trend is going back to RWD and perhaps they should be like Subaru or Ford. Building inexpensive/low-cost FWD will pay off in the short-term but I don't think it's sustainable.
Ascent vs XC90
I had my heart set on an XC90 for close to a year. We have a combination Volvo/Subaru dealer in town here. Dragged my wife there several weeks ago to look at the XC90. The dealership really pushed the Subaru when I mentioned that while we were there we wanted to see what all of the fuss was about with the Subaru.
We spent a bit of time in the Volvo but as I looked around me, I thought, the XC90 in the T6 with all of the bells and whistles, I'm talking $70,000. The Subaru was considerably less. We felt a little confined in the Volvo and Afterwards when we looked at the Subaru we were very impressed. One heck of a difference for the Touring all loaded up and $23,000 less. We went back within the week and made a great deal and put a hold on an inbound one. It was die in on Thursday, now Sunday night and I* expect a call tomorrow ti effect delivery.
We're leasing for 36 months to see what we think. Have never had a Subaru before. Hopefully the deal goes as planned and we'll be in it this week.
I had my heart set on an XC90 for close to a year. We have a combination Volvo/Subaru dealer in town here. Dragged my wife there several weeks ago to look at the XC90. The dealership really pushed the Subaru when I mentioned that while we were there we wanted to see what all of the fuss was about with the Subaru.
We spent a bit of time in the Volvo but as I looked around me, I thought, the XC90 in the T6 with all of the bells and whistles, I'm talking $70,000. The Subaru was considerably less. We felt a little confined in the Volvo and Afterwards when we looked at the Subaru we were very impressed. One heck of a difference for the Touring all loaded up and $23,000 less. We went back within the week and made a great deal and put a hold on an inbound one. It was die in on Thursday, now Sunday night and I* expect a call tomorrow ti effect delivery.
We're leasing for 36 months to see what we think. Have never had a Subaru before. Hopefully the deal goes as planned and we'll be in it this week.
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This is definitely true.
I replaced a Volvo S80 V8 AWD with an Ascent and I won't look back.
My Volvo was pretty reliable, with the only notable problem @ 60K, a failed fuel pump replaced under extended warranty. I bought Volvo certified used, and there was no grief in getting the work done, and I'm glad it was under warranty -- car was in the shop 3 days. They had to drop the rear axle to drop the fuel tank to get to the fuel pump. I'm sure this would have been a $2.5-$3k repair out of pocket.
The only other issues I had after 125k -- power steering pump leaking and replaced, and then the alternator failed, all in about 6 months. The last two repairs out of pocket were very expensive, $2500 total.
I bought mine used, and it was a steal -- $31k with 21000 miles on the clock. Had it checked out at a independent Volvo shop (with full VIDA diagnostics, just like the dealer). Had it back at the same shop at 95000, and they said my engine vitals were on par with the same numbers at 21000.
Was seriously considering an XC60 or an XC90, but the reliability data of models from ~2 years and newer wasn't there. Complex, semi-hybrid power train, much more complex electronics, and while I could get a used XC60 for $5k less than a brand-new Ascent, the reliability numbers of the Volvo didn't make sense in light of very expensive repair costs.
The Subaru Ascent had all the features I wanted -- EyeSight cruise control, CarPlay, leather, heated seats, AWD, and a brand history of reliability. Jury's out on whether a 1st model year car will be that reliable, but it's worth the risk.
Only thing I miss will be the seats.
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We also looked at the XC90, but it's the ultimate 'I won't drive a minivan " car around here, I think every third car at our school is an XC90.
They are definitely a class above the Ascent in the Inscription trim, but the T5 and Momentum left us unimpressed ( coming from a GL450). The Ascent touring definitely out-features the lower trim XC90's, but I can't say it outclasses them, although everyone that has been in the car commented on how nice it is.
We found the XC90 to be quieter on the highway and over bumps, but did not care for the driving experience otherwise. However, the Seats in our recent Volvo (and our old Saab 9-5) were unquestionably the best in the business.
Ultimately the choice is yours, good luck.
They are definitely a class above the Ascent in the Inscription trim, but the T5 and Momentum left us unimpressed ( coming from a GL450). The Ascent touring definitely out-features the lower trim XC90's, but I can't say it outclasses them, although everyone that has been in the car commented on how nice it is.
We found the XC90 to be quieter on the highway and over bumps, but did not care for the driving experience otherwise. However, the Seats in our recent Volvo (and our old Saab 9-5) were unquestionably the best in the business.
Ultimately the choice is yours, good luck.
That says a lot who people compare a much more expensive LUX SUV (XC90) with the Ascent. The Volvo must be really quiet because the Ascent is no slouch in the noise category . I think if you change out the tires to something better it would be even closer
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Speaking of which, we replaced our leased 2016 XC90 Momentum with the Ascent Touring trim, and have absolutely no regrets.
Nothing really wrong with the Volvo, on the contrary, we liked it a lot, despite the numerous software glitches and annoying creaks and rattles you would not expect from a car of that price range. The seats and interior feel nicer, but frankly not significantly. Cabin noise is about the same, maybe even slightly less in the Ascent; like many people report, contribution is mostly tire noise.
It was actually so easy slipping into the Ascent after the Volvo, everything feels the same, with regard to driving and seating comfort.
Both cars definitely feel a lot more alike than the specs and price difference would imply. It was a no-brainer switching to the Subaru.
Nothing really wrong with the Volvo, on the contrary, we liked it a lot, despite the numerous software glitches and annoying creaks and rattles you would not expect from a car of that price range. The seats and interior feel nicer, but frankly not significantly. Cabin noise is about the same, maybe even slightly less in the Ascent; like many people report, contribution is mostly tire noise.
It was actually so easy slipping into the Ascent after the Volvo, everything feels the same, with regard to driving and seating comfort.
Both cars definitely feel a lot more alike than the specs and price difference would imply. It was a no-brainer switching to the Subaru.
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I rented the XC90 once and found their informant system to be very tricky.
I wouldn't even consider the Volvo in terms of reliability. Never mind the lease. Most of the Volvo cars have become seriously unreliable thanks to the majority ownership of Geely Group. In the 80s I owned a 240GL and a 740GL, both excellent cars. Price an XC90 and compare it to the Ascent, then read the ratings on Consumer Reports.
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18 Volvo S90 / Volvo XC90 vs Ascent
Hello all -- I am new to the thread but not new to the car scene. I actually currently lease a 2018 Volvo S90 Inscription with the B&W Sounds System + Rear air ride. I was also looking at a 2019 Volvo XC90 for my wife's car in replacement of her 2017 Lincoln MKC. Instead we decided to get a 2019 Subaru Ascent Touring. I will be doing a car videos on my "Tangent Daily" YouTube channel later on this, but I figure I can speak as to why we decided to NOT go with an Volvo XC90. The Ascent is being built in the factory as we speak, and we will get delivery of it in late April.
I'd like to start with "why the Volvo"...
I had a 2017 Lincoln MKZ 3.0 Twin turbo, that I had a tremendous number of mechanical issues with it. So many, that we ended up claiming lemon on the car. That sent me on a pursuit for another car, which made me test drive almost every Sedan on the market. I have a thread on all the variations that I drove
-- Audi A7 -- Shoulder clearance issues (i couldn't get in and out without hitting my shoulder. )
-- Mercedes C63 AMG -- AMAZING sounding car, absolutely fun to drive -- my shoulder was pinned to the A pillar.
-- BMW 540i -- I owned a 2011 335xi //M Sport before, and I felt like it was a bigger version of the same car. Each "feature" was an upgrade. Very little included, and a lack of exterior styling differences from previous models.
-- Lexus GS350 - The infotainment joystick + mouse pad is absolutely STUPID. Very not safe to drive with, and the 3.5L engine is too old for what is out there.
-- Infinity Q50 Red Sport - Boat load of fun to drive, but you feel that the car is a stripped down luxury car. The moon roof has the thin glass sound, that really bugged me.
-- Lincoln Continental - I was disillusioned by Lincoln with the issues I had, I just ruled it out.
-- Cadillac CT6 - Fun to to drive, but not a great infotainment system. Most features are upgrades, and the price to lease was crazy like $1200/mo
-- Jaguar XJ - Fun, but the big engine was in the upper 80k range for price.
I never would have thought I'd like the Volvo, but the interior styling of the Inscription is hands down better than any of their competitors in their segment. The T6 with the super charged and turbo charger working as one scoots the vehicle 0-60 in 5.9 seconds. It also gets about 21-28MPG depending if your are in the city or on the interstate. I opted for the Polestar tuning, but it was very bland in comparison to other tunes I've done. The Volvo infotainment system is killer especially with the Bowers and Wilkins system. I can have the stereo to max, and its 100% crisp, SUPER LOUD, with no distortion. They got it right. The car price was in the upper of what I wanted to spend for a car, but I loved the look of it, I went with it.
Now that I've owned the Volvo for a year.
Well the gremlins always find their way to come to the surface. The first thing we need to talk about is the Volvo braking bias. It is VERY important. The cars are rear braking biased. My car has 19k on it, and the rear pads are almost ready for replacement. Yes. I need to replace my REAR pads at 19k. Why? Well Volvo feels rear breaking is better and more smooth than the front brakes. It also helps with brake fade, and control of the car in slides. Whatever the reason, I very shortly will need to spend $750.00 to replace the rear pads on the car. For this I am NOT HAPPY.
The second ding against the Volvo is that the inscription model comes with Summer P-Zero tires. I didn't know this going into the vehicle -- with it being sold in Wisconsin... i just assume all season... I had to shell out another $920.00 for Continental Extreme Contacts. For this I am NOT happy.
The third ding is against the infotainment system. It is extremely slow to start from a "cold start" or 8+ hours of inactivity. You can't turn on your seat warmers until it is fully started. Its pretty annoying, but not a show stopper.
From quality issues, well I've had to had my car reprogrammed 4 times since I got it due to several CELs that keep showing up with the car. I also have issues with the trunk motor, where it doesn't always lift the trunk after "popping". Just an annoyance without resolution. The last issue I had was with the dash by the heads up display. The leather started to separate at the seam, which they had to replace the whole dash.
All in all, I still love the car -- and get tons of complements on it wherever I am. Just like having any other overpriced car, its fun to look at, just not fun to keep up with the maintenance. Hence why I leased the vehicle (and no, brakes are not covered for the lease or obvious maintenance reasons).
Why I bought the Ascent?
I wouldn't be on this forum with a cheeky name if I didn't end up buying an Ascent. Since we just had our first kiddo, I have been very in-tune to rear facing car seats. For anyone without kids, rear-facing seats take up a lot of room for your front passenger -- 28" to be exact. My wife's Lincoln MKC with the rear facing seat gives my wife all 5'2" height about an inch of leg room. So I needed a full-sized vehicle. We looked at the Dodge Durango R/T, the Volvo XC90, and the Subaru Ascent. My friend works at the local Subaru dealership and asked me to check out the car to give it a shot. I was pleasantly surprised! While the engine isn't as big/fast as my Volvo, its much faster than the 2.0T in my Wife's MKC. The interior of the Touring is outstanding. I favor the brown leather, but that's because my Volvo also has the upgraded brown leather. I am also a fan of the wood trim, as the XC90 also has. Vehicle per vehicle, the XC 90 has a SLIGHTLY better front safety and lane keeping / autopilot system. Subaru does have a smaller infotainment screen -- which I favor the larger screens.
The Subaru does have:
- Same Tow rating at 5000LBS. The hitch is also less expensive to have installed.
- Bigger Engine than the MKC.
- Better Safety systems than Lincoln
- More rear passenger room
- Rear Pilot seat option (Touring)
- WAY WAY better price.
Even if the cars were feature per feature dead on to each other, the XC90 inscription is about $56,000 fully loaded. The Subaru is $46,000 fully loaded. The discounts put the Subaru WAY less than the Volvo, and I feel that feature per feature they basically the same car.
I hope everyone found this informative in their decision to purchase either a Volvo or a Subaru.
Hello all -- I am new to the thread but not new to the car scene. I actually currently lease a 2018 Volvo S90 Inscription with the B&W Sounds System + Rear air ride. I was also looking at a 2019 Volvo XC90 for my wife's car in replacement of her 2017 Lincoln MKC. Instead we decided to get a 2019 Subaru Ascent Touring. I will be doing a car videos on my "Tangent Daily" YouTube channel later on this, but I figure I can speak as to why we decided to NOT go with an Volvo XC90. The Ascent is being built in the factory as we speak, and we will get delivery of it in late April.
I'd like to start with "why the Volvo"...
I had a 2017 Lincoln MKZ 3.0 Twin turbo, that I had a tremendous number of mechanical issues with it. So many, that we ended up claiming lemon on the car. That sent me on a pursuit for another car, which made me test drive almost every Sedan on the market. I have a thread on all the variations that I drove
-- Audi A7 -- Shoulder clearance issues (i couldn't get in and out without hitting my shoulder. )
-- Mercedes C63 AMG -- AMAZING sounding car, absolutely fun to drive -- my shoulder was pinned to the A pillar.
-- BMW 540i -- I owned a 2011 335xi //M Sport before, and I felt like it was a bigger version of the same car. Each "feature" was an upgrade. Very little included, and a lack of exterior styling differences from previous models.
-- Lexus GS350 - The infotainment joystick + mouse pad is absolutely STUPID. Very not safe to drive with, and the 3.5L engine is too old for what is out there.
-- Infinity Q50 Red Sport - Boat load of fun to drive, but you feel that the car is a stripped down luxury car. The moon roof has the thin glass sound, that really bugged me.
-- Lincoln Continental - I was disillusioned by Lincoln with the issues I had, I just ruled it out.
-- Cadillac CT6 - Fun to to drive, but not a great infotainment system. Most features are upgrades, and the price to lease was crazy like $1200/mo
-- Jaguar XJ - Fun, but the big engine was in the upper 80k range for price.
I never would have thought I'd like the Volvo, but the interior styling of the Inscription is hands down better than any of their competitors in their segment. The T6 with the super charged and turbo charger working as one scoots the vehicle 0-60 in 5.9 seconds. It also gets about 21-28MPG depending if your are in the city or on the interstate. I opted for the Polestar tuning, but it was very bland in comparison to other tunes I've done. The Volvo infotainment system is killer especially with the Bowers and Wilkins system. I can have the stereo to max, and its 100% crisp, SUPER LOUD, with no distortion. They got it right. The car price was in the upper of what I wanted to spend for a car, but I loved the look of it, I went with it.
Now that I've owned the Volvo for a year.
Well the gremlins always find their way to come to the surface. The first thing we need to talk about is the Volvo braking bias. It is VERY important. The cars are rear braking biased. My car has 19k on it, and the rear pads are almost ready for replacement. Yes. I need to replace my REAR pads at 19k. Why? Well Volvo feels rear breaking is better and more smooth than the front brakes. It also helps with brake fade, and control of the car in slides. Whatever the reason, I very shortly will need to spend $750.00 to replace the rear pads on the car. For this I am NOT HAPPY.
The second ding against the Volvo is that the inscription model comes with Summer P-Zero tires. I didn't know this going into the vehicle -- with it being sold in Wisconsin... i just assume all season... I had to shell out another $920.00 for Continental Extreme Contacts. For this I am NOT happy.
The third ding is against the infotainment system. It is extremely slow to start from a "cold start" or 8+ hours of inactivity. You can't turn on your seat warmers until it is fully started. Its pretty annoying, but not a show stopper.
From quality issues, well I've had to had my car reprogrammed 4 times since I got it due to several CELs that keep showing up with the car. I also have issues with the trunk motor, where it doesn't always lift the trunk after "popping". Just an annoyance without resolution. The last issue I had was with the dash by the heads up display. The leather started to separate at the seam, which they had to replace the whole dash.
All in all, I still love the car -- and get tons of complements on it wherever I am. Just like having any other overpriced car, its fun to look at, just not fun to keep up with the maintenance. Hence why I leased the vehicle (and no, brakes are not covered for the lease or obvious maintenance reasons).
Why I bought the Ascent?
I wouldn't be on this forum with a cheeky name if I didn't end up buying an Ascent. Since we just had our first kiddo, I have been very in-tune to rear facing car seats. For anyone without kids, rear-facing seats take up a lot of room for your front passenger -- 28" to be exact. My wife's Lincoln MKC with the rear facing seat gives my wife all 5'2" height about an inch of leg room. So I needed a full-sized vehicle. We looked at the Dodge Durango R/T, the Volvo XC90, and the Subaru Ascent. My friend works at the local Subaru dealership and asked me to check out the car to give it a shot. I was pleasantly surprised! While the engine isn't as big/fast as my Volvo, its much faster than the 2.0T in my Wife's MKC. The interior of the Touring is outstanding. I favor the brown leather, but that's because my Volvo also has the upgraded brown leather. I am also a fan of the wood trim, as the XC90 also has. Vehicle per vehicle, the XC 90 has a SLIGHTLY better front safety and lane keeping / autopilot system. Subaru does have a smaller infotainment screen -- which I favor the larger screens.
The Subaru does have:
- Same Tow rating at 5000LBS. The hitch is also less expensive to have installed.
- Bigger Engine than the MKC.
- Better Safety systems than Lincoln
- More rear passenger room
- Rear Pilot seat option (Touring)
- WAY WAY better price.
Even if the cars were feature per feature dead on to each other, the XC90 inscription is about $56,000 fully loaded. The Subaru is $46,000 fully loaded. The discounts put the Subaru WAY less than the Volvo, and I feel that feature per feature they basically the same car.
I hope everyone found this informative in their decision to purchase either a Volvo or a Subaru.
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118 Posts
Appreciate your comments. We also seriously considered the XC90 when we started our hunt for a 3 seat vehicle late last year. The price range meant a used 2-3 year old Volvo T6/XC90/Transcription model. It's a great vehicle and definitely says luxury.
Deciding points for our family (4 incl. 2 pre-teens) which lead us to the Ascent:
~ New vs. a year or two old with an unknown history
~ Back seat room (especially 3rd row)
~ Back seat comfort (I was surprised at the difference)
~ Infotainment (one is definitely more complex than the other)
~ Engine size for needs
~ Gas octane requirement.
~ "Felt" comfortable, easy to drive.
Again, I'm not bashing Volvo, they make a great luxury vehilce. You gotta choose the vehicle that fits you and your style.
It just didn't "fit" us like the Ascent does. 1000 miles later, it still brings joy when we "hold it". ;-)
Deciding points for our family (4 incl. 2 pre-teens) which lead us to the Ascent:
~ New vs. a year or two old with an unknown history
~ Back seat room (especially 3rd row)
~ Back seat comfort (I was surprised at the difference)
~ Infotainment (one is definitely more complex than the other)
~ Engine size for needs
~ Gas octane requirement.
~ "Felt" comfortable, easy to drive.
Again, I'm not bashing Volvo, they make a great luxury vehilce. You gotta choose the vehicle that fits you and your style.
It just didn't "fit" us like the Ascent does. 1000 miles later, it still brings joy when we "hold it". ;-)
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