Well, it’s an end of an era of sorts for Volvo, some may say this Volvo milestone is half-hearted others may say it doesn’t go far enough. Electric cars will become the defacto standard once governments wean auto manufacturers off fossil fuel-powered cars. But at the moment car manufactures want to extend the end-of-life period for petrol and diesel cars for as long as possible. Why? Because they want to earn as much money from fossil era cars as they possibly can. So the Volvo S90 Plugin Hybrid is really giving extended life support to a dying technology.

Anyway, for the time being, something strange is happening with the S90. Volvo has decided to phase out ‘Plus’ trim levels. So the entry-level S90 now starts from £55k for the R-Design and £56k for the top-spec Inscription. But the T-8 Plugin, a name Volvo uses for the 2.0-liter petrol hybrid engine, is now called Recharge T8 Hybrid… man my head is hurting right now.

However, the V90 estate is still available with 4-cylinder petrol and diesel engines and also the Recharge T8 Hybrid. The V90 petrol and diesel variants now make use of mild-hybrid technology. It comprises of a 48V battery, an integrated starter/generator and energy recovery system.

The Volvo S90 and V90 also get a number of exterior styling updates and new look rear LED taillights. The interior receives minimal upgrades two rear USB-C charge points, and an option to choose vegan leather. Which is plastic leather to you an I.