I'm currently shopping for an XC90. I'm generally looking at 2020 models, with a primary focus on a T6 R-Design. I've found a couple that are pretty comparable but one has the air suspension and the other does not. How big a difference does that make?

 

the idea behind air suspensions is that you can adjust the ride height and firmness to match your driving conditions. So the question is, how are you going to use your car? ie towing? carrying heavy loads, driving on rough roads? Planning on keeping the car "forever"?

 

I don't know about keeping it "forever", but I'm not a new-car-every-3-years kind of guy either. I don't anticipate using it in any unusual conditions. I've got a small trailer that I'll tow from time to time, but that certainly isn't a primary consideration. I understand the benefits of air suspensions in general; I'm just curious as to the implementation that Volvo uses.

 

It's implemented in much the same way as Mercedes. The problem is after X time the pump or an air shock is going to fail. And then it's $$$$ to fix. Much more expensive than just a pair of regular shocks when one goes bad.

The self leveling is a very good thing if you load the rear of the car up, and you can have the car drop down when you turn it off to help those of shorter stature get in and out of the car easier.

But I wouldn't own one outside of warranty.

 

Thank you. Those are helpful insights.

 

that's the reason I asked if you plan on keeping the car for a long time - should the air suspension break, its big bucks. Even owners of R models with the 4Cs and older cars with Nivomats complain about the added costs to service the more sophisticated suspensions.