In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the EX90 are reminded to check the back seat when a sensor determines the back seat is occupied. The EQB doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.
The Volvo EX90 (except 6-Passenger) 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. Mercedes doesn’t offer the convenience and security of a built-in child booster seat in the EQB. Their owners must carry a heavy booster seat in and out of the vehicle; EX90 owners can just fold their built-in child seat up or down.
The Volvo EX90 has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The EQB doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.
The EX90 has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The EQB doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.
The EX90 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. The EQB doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.
The EX90 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 EQB 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.
Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The EX90 has standard CTA Auto Brake that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The EQB doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.
To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, Full-Time Four-Wheel Drive is standard on the EX90. But it costs extra on the EQB.
The EX90’s standard lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. A lane departure warning system costs extra on the EQB.
Both the EX90 and the EQB have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.
The Volvo EX90 weighs 1374 to 1570 pounds more than the Mercedes EQB. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.