The updated 2017 Volvo XC90 that features Pilot Assist, fitted as standard for semi-autonomous driving and PowerPulse diesel technology is now available in South Africa.
The Volvo XC90’s Pilot Assist semi-autonomous driving technology is able to take control of acceleration, braking and steering at speeds up to 130 km/h. This upgraded system is able to maintain safe semi-autonomous driving without a lead vehicle, provided that lane markings are clearly visible on both sides of the vehicle.
Pilot Assist is not a fully-autonomous system and the driver still needs to keep focused on the task of driving.
Fully-autonomous Volvos, which will allow for complete hands-off and feet-off autonomous driving will be driven by real customers in Gothenburg, Sweden, as part of Volvo’s Drive Me programme, in 2017.
The inclusion of Pilot Assist as standard means that all XC90 models now also come standard with Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), which uses radar to manage acceleration and braking in a more conventional manner, without steering control.
The XC90 D5 AWD will feature PowerPulse technology aimed at eliminating the effects of turbo lag.
This upgrade has the additional benefit of increased output. Power has increased to 173 kW at 4 000 rpm (up from 165 kW) and torque is up by 10 Nm to 480 Nm between 1 750 and 2 250 rpm. The manufacturer claims that average fuel economy on the combined cycle is now 5.7-litres per 100 km (down from 5.8) and carbon emissions now even lower, at 149 g/km (down from 152).
