Compare the2025 GMC AcadiaVS 2025 Volvo XC90

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics
Model Availability
Recommendations

Safety

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The Acadia 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 XC90 doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

In a Vehicle-to-Vehicle Frontal Crash Prevention 2.0 test conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the GMC Acadia achieved a “Good” rating - the highest possible - for its performance in forward collision warning and automatic braking systems, demonstrating its excellent capabilities in preventing collisions. The Volvo XC90 has not been tested.

The GMC Acadia’s rear backup camera has a standard washer for maintaining a clear view under various conditions. In contrast, the Volvo XC90 does not offer a rear camera washer, meaning its effectiveness relies on manual cleaning by the user when necessary.

Both the Acadia and the XC90 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive, front parking sensors and driver alert monitors.

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

	Acadia	XC90
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	20.1%	27%
Neck Stress	178 lbs.	252 lbs.
Neck Compression	2 lbs.	18 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	32/13 lbs.	567/631 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 flat barrier at 38.5 MPH, results indicate that the GMC Acadia is safer than the Volvo XC90:

	Acadia	XC90
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Chest Movement	.6 inches	.7 inches
Abdominal Force	73 lbs.	153 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	518 lbs.	608 lbs.

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

Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the GMC Acadia is safer than the XC90:

	Acadia	XC90
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	GOOD
	Driver Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Head Injury Criterion	55	123
Neck Tension	178 lbs.	245 lbs.
Torso	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Shoulder Deflection	.47 in	.91 in
Shoulder Force	-156 lbs.	245 lbs.
Torso Max Deflection	.79 in	1.42 in
Torso Deflection Rate	4 MPH	7 MPH
Head Protection	GOOD	GOOD
	Passenger Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Torso	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Shoulder Deflection	.83 in	1.38 in
Shoulder Force	-312 lbs.	290 lbs.
Torso Max Deflection	1.06 in	1.42 in
Torso Deflection Rate	8 MPH	8 MPH
Pelvis	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Pelvis Force	602 lbs.	915 lbs.
Head Protection	GOOD	GOOD

Warranty

GMC’s powertrain warranty covers the Acadia 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Volvo covers the XC90. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the XC90 ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are almost 6 times as many GMC dealers as there are Volvo dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Acadia’s warranty.

Reliability

To reliably power the ignition and other systems and to recharge the battery, the Acadia has a standard 220-amp alternator. The XC90’s 210-amp alternator isn’t as powerful.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that GMC vehicles are better in initial quality than Volvo vehicles. With 41 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks GMC higher than Volvo.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that GMC vehicles are more reliable than Volvo With 39 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks GMC higher than Volvo.

Engine

The Acadia’s 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 81 more horsepower (328 vs. 247) and 60 lbs.-ft. more torque (326 vs. 266) than the XC90 B5’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid. The Acadia’s 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 33 more horsepower (328 vs. 295) and 16 lbs.-ft. more torque (326 vs. 310) than the XC90 B6’s standard 2.0 turbo/supercharged 4-cylinder hybrid.

As tested in Consumer Reports the GMC Acadia is faster than the XC90 B6 2.0 turbo/supercharged 4-cylinder:

	Acadia	XC90
Zero to 60 MPH	7.6 sec	7.7 sec
45 to 65 MPH Passing	4.1 sec	5 sec
Quarter Mile	15.8 sec	15.9 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	93 MPH	92.8 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

Both the Acadia and the XC90 have a standard automatic start/stop engine feature to stop unnecessary fuel waste and pollution at stoplights and heavy traffic. All Acadias have a standard disable switch for the system, so a driver can keep the engine from shutting off when the vehicle stops temporarily. The XC90 T8 doesn’t offer a way to disable start/stop.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the GMC Acadia uses regular unleaded gasoline. The XC90 requires premium, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

The Acadia AWD’s standard fuel tank has 2.9 gallons more fuel capacity than the XC90 (21.7 vs. 18.8 gallons).

Brakes and Stopping

The Acadia stops much shorter than the XC90:

	Acadia	XC90
60 to 0 MPH	113 feet	123 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

The GMC Acadia’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Volvo XC90 only has 5 wheel lugs per wheel.

The Acadia has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The XC90 doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

Suspension and Handling

The front and rear suspension of the Acadia uses coil springs for better ride, handling and control than the XC90, which uses transverse leafs springs in the rear. Coil springs compress more progressively and offer more suspension travel for a smoother ride with less bottoming out.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Acadia’s wheelbase is 3.4 inches longer than on the XC90 (120.9 inches vs. 117.5 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Acadia is 2.3 inches wider in the front and 2.1 inches wider in the rear than the track on the XC90.

For better maneuverability, the Acadia Elevation’s turning circle is .9 feet tighter than the XC90’s (38.8 feet vs. 39.7 feet).

Chassis

The front grille of the Acadia uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The XC90 doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Acadia uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The XC90 doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

Passenger Space

The Acadia offers optional seating for 8 passengers; the XC90 can only carry 7.

The Acadia has 3.7 inches more front headroom, 3.4 inches more front legroom, 3.2 inches more front hip room, 4.3 inches more front shoulder room, 1.5 inches more rear headroom, 4.5 inches more rear legroom, 1.9 inches more rear hip room, 5.5 inches more rear shoulder room, 1.9 inches more third row headroom, .2 inches more third row legroom, 3.7 inches more third row hip room and 11 inches more third row shoulder room than the XC90.

Cargo Capacity

The Acadia’s cargo area provides more volume than the XC90.

	Acadia	XC90
Behind Third Seat	23 cubic feet	12.6 cubic feet
Third Seat Folded	57.3 cubic feet	35.6 cubic feet
Second Seat Folded	97.5 cubic feet	85.7 cubic feet

Pressing a switch automatically lowers the Acadia Denali’s second and third row seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The XC90 doesn’t offer automatic folding second row seats.

Ergonomics

The Acadia’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The XC90 has neither an oil pressure gauge nor a temperature gauge.

The Acadia’s front and rear power windows all lower with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside of the car. The XC90’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open them fully.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Acadia’s headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the XC90’s headlights are rated “Acceptable.”

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Acadia has standard extendable sun visors. The XC90 doesn’t offer extendable visors.

The Acadia has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the vehicle heater warms up. A heated steering wheel costs extra on the XC90.

The Acadia’s optional Enhanced Automatic Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, stopping and changing direction automatically. The XC90 doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Model Availability

The Acadia is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The XC90 doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the GMC Acadia and the Volvo XC90, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The GMC Acadia outsold the Volvo XC90 by 23% during 2024.

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