Compare the2023 Volvo XC90VS 2023 Cadillac Escalade

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and second-row seat shoulder belts of the Volvo XC90 have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Cadillac Escalade doesn’t offer pretensioners for its second-row seat belts.

Both the XC90 and Escalade have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The XC90 has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Escalade’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The Volvo XC90 offers an optional built in child booster seat. It’s more crash worthy than an added child seat because of its direct attachment to the seat. Cadillac doesn’t offer the convenience and security of a built-in child booster seat in the Escalade. Their owners must carry a heavy booster seat in and out of the vehicle; XC90 owners can just fold their built-in child seat up or down.

The Volvo XC90 has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Escalade doesn’t offer knee airbags.

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the XC90 deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The XC90’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The Escalade’s side airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

The XC90 has a standard Whiplash Protection System (WHIPS), which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the WHIPS allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. At the same time the pretensioning seatbelts fire, removing slack from the belts. The Escalade doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The XC90 has standard Post-impact braking, which automatically apply the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Escalade doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the XC90. But it costs extra on the Escalade.

The XC90 has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them and moves the vehicle back into its lane. Only the Escalade Premium/Platinum/Sport offers a blind spot warning system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the XC90 has standard rear cross-path warning, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the Escalade Premium/Platinum/Sport offers Rear Cross Traffic Alert.

The XC90’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Escalade doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

For better protection of the passenger compartment, the XC90 uses safety cell construction with a three-dimensional high-strength frame that surrounds the passenger compartment. It provides extra impact protection and a sturdy mounting location for door hardware and side impact beams. The Escalade uses a body-on-frame design, which has no frame members above the floor of the vehicle.

Both the XC90 and the Escalade have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras and available around view monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Volvo XC90 is safer than the Cadillac Escalade:

	XC90	Escalade
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	137	146
Neck Stress	252 lbs.	312 lbs.
Neck Compression	18 lbs.	51 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	217	233
Chest Compression	.4 inches	.6 inches
Neck Injury Risk	31%	47%
Neck Stress	177 lbs.	272 lbs.
Neck Compression	25 lbs.	66 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	383/334 lbs.	333/811 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Volvo XC90 is safer than the Cadillac Escalade:

	XC90	Escalade
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	12 inches	14 inches
HIC	209	239
Spine Acceleration	29 G’s	38 G’s
Hip Force	383 lbs.	764 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the XC90, with its four-star roll-over rating, is 2.1% to 6% less likely to roll over than the Escalade, which received a three-star rating.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, daytime pedestrian crash prevention, and nighttime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the XC90 its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2023, a rating granted to only 29 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Escalade has not been tested, yet.

Warranty

The XC90’s corrosion warranty is 6 years longer than the Escalade’s (12 vs. 6 years).

Volvo pays for scheduled maintenance on the XC90 for 3 years and 36,000 miles. Volvo will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance. Cadillac only pays for the first scheduled maintenance visit on the Escalade.

Reliability

For smoother operation, better efficiency and fewer moving parts, the engines in the XC90 have an overhead cam design, rather than the old pushrod design of the engine in the Escalade.

The battery on the XC90 is in the trunk, which protects it from hot underhood temperatures that can degrade battery life. By keeping the XC90’s battery 20 to 30 degrees cooler, its life is increased by years. The Escalade’s battery is in the hot engine compartment.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Volvo vehicles are more reliable than Cadillac vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Volvo 3 places higher in reliability than Cadillac.

Engine

The XC90 T8’s standard 2.0 turbo/supercharged 4-cylinder hybrid produces 35 more horsepower (455 vs. 420) and 63 lbs.-ft. more torque (523 vs. 460) than the Escalade’s 6.2 V8.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the XC90 running on electricity gets better mileage than the Escalade:

			MPGe
XC90
	AWD	Extended Range Electric Motor	64 city/68 hwy
		T8 Electric Motor	58 city/53 hwy
Escalade
			MPG
	RWD	3.0 turbo 6-cyl. Diesel	21 city/27 hwy
		6.2 OHV V8	14 city/19 hwy
	AWD	3.0 turbo 6-cyl. Diesel	20 city/26 hwy
		6.2 OHV V8	14 city/18 hwy

On the EPA test cycle the XC90 running its gasoline engine gets better mileage than the Escalade:

			MPG
XC90
	AWD	2.0 turbo/supercharged 4-cyl. Hybrid	26 city/28 hwy
		Extended Range 2.0 turbo/supercharged 4-cyl. Hybrid	25 city/27 hwy
		2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/28 hwy
		2.0 turbo/supercharged 4-cyl.	20 city/26 hwy
Escalade
	RWD	3.0 turbo 6-cyl. Diesel	21 city/27 hwy
		6.2 OHV V8	14 city/19 hwy
	AWD	3.0 turbo 6-cyl. Diesel	20 city/26 hwy
		6.2 OHV V8	14 city/18 hwy

The XC90 can travel with zero emissions for 18 to 36 miles (dependent on model). The Escalade can’t move without running its internal combustion engine.

Regenerative brakes improve the XC90’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Escalade doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Volvo XC90 higher (5 to 7 out of 10) than the Cadillac Escalade (3 to 6). This means the XC90 produces up to 24.5 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Escalade every 15,000 miles.

Brakes and Stopping

The XC90 stops much shorter than the Escalade:

	XC90	Escalade
70 to 0 MPH	167 feet	174 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	126 feet	136 feet	Consumer Reports
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	137 feet	145 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

The XC90’s optional tires provide better handling because they have a lower 35 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Escalade’s 50 series tires.

Suspension and Handling

The XC90 B6 Core handles at .84 G’s, while the Escalade Sport Platinum 4WD pulls only .67 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The XC90 B6 Core executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 3.3 seconds quicker than the Escalade Sport 4WD (26.8 seconds @ .65 average G’s vs. 30.1 seconds @ .53 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the XC90 has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Escalade (8.8 vs. 8 inches), allowing the XC90 to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

Chassis

The Volvo XC90 may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 900 to 1050 pounds less than the Cadillac Escalade.

The XC90 is 1 foot, 4.9 inches shorter than the Escalade, making the XC90 easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The XC90 is 5.4 inches narrower than the Escalade, making the XC90 easier to handle and maneuver in traffic.

Unibody construction lowers the XC90’s center of gravity significantly without reducing ground clearance. This contributes to better on the road handling and better off-road performance and stability. In addition, unibody construction makes the chassis stiffer, improving handling and reducing squeaks and rattles. The Escalade uses body-on-frame design instead.

As tested by Car and Driver while under full throttle, the interior of the XC90 B6 Core is quieter than the Escalade Sport Platinum 4WD (71 vs. 75 dB).

Cargo Capacity

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the XC90 easier. The XC90’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 30.8 inches, while the Escalade’s liftover is 37 inches.

The XC90 has a standard third row seat which folds flat into the floor. This completely clears a very large cargo area quickly. The Escalade doesn’t offer seats that fold into the floor.

Ergonomics

Heated windshield washer nozzles are optional on the XC90 to prevent washer fluid and nozzles from freezing and help continue to keep the windshield clear in sub-freezing temperatures. The Escalade doesn’t offer heated windshield washer nozzles.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The XC90 offers available headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Escalade doesn’t offer headlight washers.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the XC90 to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Escalade doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

Economic Advantages

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the XC90 is less expensive to operate than the Escalade because it costs $237 less to do the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance for 50,000 miles. Typical repairs cost much less on the XC90 than the Escalade, including $649 less for a muffler, $490 less for front struts, $457 less for a timing belt/chain and $363 less for a power steering pump.

Recommendations

The Car Book by Jack Gillis recommends the Volvo XC90, based on economy, maintenance, safety and complaint levels.

Motor Trend selected the XC90 as their 2016 Sport Utility of the Year. The Escalade has never been chosen.

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the XC90 as the 2016 North American Utility Vehicle of the Year. The Escalade has never been chosen.

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