Sportier Volvo V90 Could Challenge The Likes Of Audi’s RS6

There is no doubt that the Volvo S90 is one appealing ride overall. Its more versatile variant, the V90 station wagon that will come out next year, on the other hand, is a very enticing, and practical, proposition too.

Adding a powerhouse of an engine under the hood and creating a super estate that can mix it with supercars is not a novel idea. Audi has being doing it for many years, starting with the original S2, and others like BMW, Audi and Jaguar, have followed suit.

Having acquired Polestar and rolled out performance versions of the S60/V60 duo, Volvo’s head honcho Hakan Samuelsson is entertaining the idea of doing the same on its flagship models. Though he did not discuss details, he did comment that hybrids are the way to go for future Polestar-engineered Volvos.

The new S90 is already available with a plug-in hybrid powertrain in T8 Twin Engine version, which combines a 318hp four-cylinder turbocharged and supercharged engine with an 80 hp electric motor and a 46 hp starter generator for a total output of 349hp, and we don’t have to be clairvoyants to predict that it will power the V90, too.

Not bad, but far from having the slightest chance to challenge the almighty 605hp RS6 Performance Edition. Of course, Volvo won’t go into a gunfight with a knife and, though it’s not official, it seems like it plans to reveal its own weapon at some point.

This, naturally, gives artists an incentive to dream of how such a car might look. The latest rendering comes from Rain Prisk Designs. The front fascia doesn’t change much, but the suspension is significantly lowered and the car rides on much bigger wheels that house larger-diameter brakes with red calipers. All the hallmarks of a performance estate, then, though we doubt the sloping roofline and longer third window will ever make it to production even if the S90 Polestar does.