Bucket Seat: Volvo ES90

There are some cars that leave an impression the moment you lay eyes on them, and then there are those that continue to impress long after you've handed back the keys. The new Volvo ES90 certainly falls into the latter category. I recently spent a few days with Volvo's latest all-electric luxury sedan in Cape Town, where it became my companion for a mixture of business appointments and leisurely drives through the city and surrounding roads. Those few days gave me the perfect opportunity to experience exactly what the ES90 is designed to do deliver effortless luxury, exceptional refinement and the kind of relaxed driving experience that only a premium electric vehicle can offer. While the ES90 represents Volvo's latest technological leap, it hasn't forgotten the Swedish values that have made the brand one of the most respected luxury manufacturers in the world.

DESIGN

Colvo has always mastered the art of understated elegance, and the ES90 is perhaps one of the finest examples of that philosophy. There's an unmistakable Swedish influence throughout the entire vehicle, where simplicity isn't a lack of design but rather a celebration of it. Every line has purpose, every surface feels deliberate and there isn't a single unnecessary styling element to distract from its overall presence. What immediately caught my attention was the Sportback-inspired rear design. For a sedan of this size, it is a masterstroke. Instead of the traditional three-box silhouette, the sweeping roofline flows effortlessly into the rear, creating a seamless profile that looks both sophisticated and surprisingly athletic. It gives the ES90 a dynamic character that many large executive sedans struggle to achieve while also improving practicality with a much larger rear loading area. The front remains unmistakably Volvo, with its familiar Thor's Hammer LED lighting signature and clean, minimalist fascia, while the rear lighting design complements the modern aesthetic beautifully. It's a vehicle that turns heads not because it shouts for attention, but because its confidence comes from restraint. The same philosophy continues inside. The cabin is wonderfully uncluttered, with premium materials, clean surfaces and an interface that never overwhelms the driver. It feels calm, luxurious and incredibly inviting. Volvo has created an interior where everything simply feels like it's in the right place, making every journey a genuinely relaxing experience.

PERFORMANCE

The ES90 Single Motor may be the entry point into the range, but there is nothing entry-level about the way it performs. Electric vehicles have become synonymous with instant acceleration, and the Volvo delivers exactly that with smooth, effortless power whenever you ask for it. Whether pulling away from traffic lights, overtaking on the open road or merging onto the highway, the responsiveness of the single motor drivetrain is immediate and confidence inspiring. What impressed me most was how naturally the different driving modes adapted to varying driving styles. Whether I was navigating Cape Town's busy urban traffic during work commitments or enjoying a more spirited drive along the coast, the ES90 adjusted its character accordingly. The steering weight, throttle response and overall driving feel changed subtly enough to enhance the experience without ever feeling artificial. Battery range is often one of the first questions prospective EV buyers ask, and the ES90 answers that concern convincingly. The generous battery capacity provides more than enough range for everyday commuting while comfortably accommodating semi-long-distance trips between major cities or weekend getaways. More importantly, it gives the driver genuine peace of mind. Rather than constantly monitoring the remaining battery percentage, you simply drive the car as you would any premium luxury sedan, which is perhaps the biggest compliment one can pay a modern electric vehicle. Volvo has done an excellent job of reducing the range anxiety that still prevents many motorists from making the transition to electric mobility.

COMFORT

If there is one area where the ES90 truly excels, it is comfort. From the moment you settle into the beautifully sculpted seats, it becomes immediately apparent that Volvo's reputation for producing some of the most comfortable seats in the automotive industry remains well deserved. Long hours behind the wheel never became tiring, with excellent support and an ergonomically designed driving position making every journey feel effortless. Luxury extends to every passenger as well. The inclusion of four-zone climate control means each occupant can personalise their own temperature settings, while both the front and rear seats benefit from heating and ventilation. It's a level of attention to passenger comfort that transforms every journey into a first-class travel experience, regardless of where you're seated. One of the standout features is undoubtedly the exceptional Bowers & Wilkins premium audio system. Whether listening to classical music, jazz, rock, electronic dance music or podcasts, the system adapts beautifully to every genre. The clarity, depth and balance are simply outstanding, creating a concert-like atmosphere inside the cabin without ever becoming overpowering. Adding to the feeling of spaciousness is the impressive photoelectric panoramic sunroof. With the touch of a button, occupants can choose exactly how much daylight they want to let into the cabin, creating either a bright, airy environment or a more private atmosphere depending on the conditions outside. It's a clever piece of technology that perfectly complements the minimalist interior. Ride quality is equally impressive. Volvo has clearly prioritised refinement, and the result is a suspension setup that glides over imperfections with remarkable composure. Whether driving on smooth highways or less-than-perfect city streets, the ES90 isolates occupants from the outside world exceptionally well. The suspension remains wonderfully soft without feeling floaty, maintaining excellent body control while delivering the kind of comfort expected from a luxury flagship.

VERDICT

The Volvo ES90 represents everything a modern premium electric sedan should be. It combines elegant Scandinavian design, impressive technology, outstanding comfort and effortless electric performance into a package that feels genuinely sophisticated rather than unnecessarily complicated. It doesn't rely on gimmicks or flashy styling to stand out. Instead, it focuses on delivering a refined ownership experience that will appeal to buyers who appreciate quality, craftsmanship and understated luxury. With South African pricing expected to start at around R1.65 million for the Single Motor variant, the ES90 firmly positions itself in the premium luxury EV segment. While it undoubtedly commands a significant investment, buyers are rewarded with a vehicle that offers cutting-edge safety technology, exceptional comfort, generous equipment levels and a driving experience that feels uniquely relaxing. For executives, business professionals and premium customers looking to embrace electric mobility without sacrificing luxury, the Volvo ES90 makes a compelling case for itself. It's not simply another electric sedan it is a beautifully executed Scandinavian luxury car that just happens to be powered by electricity.

SPECIFICATIONS

Engine	Single Electric motor 800V
Gear Box	Single gear system with driving modes
Power	245kW
Torque	480Nm
Range	755km
Price	R1,590,000*

*base model

 

 

Bucket Tech: Bowers & Wilkins 800 Series Diamond

The world’s best loudspeaker range introduces all-new industrial design plus a range of breakthrough technologies to set even higher standards for outright sound quality has arrived in South Africa -  Bowers & Wilkins, distributed exclusively through the Homemation distribution network.

How do you improve on the world’s most successful and iconic range of high-end loudspeakers? It’s a challenge that has occupied the past six years of the finest minds at the home of the world-renowned Bowers & Wilkins engineering team. Their solution is to combine continuous improvement of every component in each design with innovative and proprietary technology that re-imagines the fundamental basics of a conventional loudspeaker drive unit: the new, unique and revolutionary Biomimetic Suspension.

The new 800 Series Diamond range continues to feature seven models, including stand-mount speakers, floor-standing models and high-performance centre channel speakers. Every new model in the range combines hundreds of detail improvements plus several entirely new technologies to create the most transparent, detailed and natural-sounding series of loudspeakers Bowers & Wilkins has ever produced.

Refined Design - refined, elegant cabinet proportions plus luxurious, premium detailing combine to make this the most premium 800 Series Diamond range yet. Every stereo model in the range also enjoys a significantly upgraded cabinet design with an all-new rigid, cast aluminium top section – to offer even greater stiffness and thus improve cabinet quietness still further. Every model in the range adopts a revised version of the iconic Solid Body Tweeter-on-Top housing, with a new, elongated tube-loading system to produce an even more open sound for high frequencies.

New technologies - Bowers & Wilkins has combined the twin benefits of Continuum and FST with an all-new advance that transforms the other key element of a drive unit’s normal operation: the fabric spider. Over decades of continuous development to nearly all areas of speaker design, the fabric spider, a key element in the suspension of every conventional loudspeaker drive unit, has remained largely unchanged – until now. The all-new composite Biomimetic Suspension replaces the conventional fabric spider with a minimalist composite suspension system that revolutionises midrange cone performance by greatly reducing unwanted air pressure – aka sound – that a conventional fabric spider can generate, removing its unpredictable, non-linear effects. The result is unprecedented midrange transparency and realism.

Decoupled Midrange & Turbine™ Head - in all three-way models, midrange drive units include a highly stiff all-aluminium chassis featuring Tuned Mass Dampers (TMD) to quieten any resonance. Other models include the massively stiff all-aluminium Turbine Head enclosure for their midrange drive units, providing not only an outstanding acoustic form but also even better isolation – since the head assembly is itself further decoupled from the bass enclosure below.

Solid Body Tweeter - to minimise the unwanted transfer of resonance into each model’s Diamond Dome tweeters, an exceptionally stiff enclosure is required. The new 800 Series Diamond introduces a revised version of the iconic Solid Body Tweeter housing; this continues to be machined from a solid piece of aluminium, but now it features an elongated form (almost 30cm/12in long) with a longer internal tube-loading system. The new Solid Body Tweeter assembly is now decoupled from the speaker body or Turbine Head (depending on model) in two locations rather than one: this notably improves spaciousness and openness.

 

Reverse-Wrap Cabinet & Matrix™ - matrix has been a core Bowers & Wilkins technology for more than 30 years and has also been continually developed throughout that time. An internal structure of interlocking panels that brace the loudspeaker internally in all directions, Matrix helps to make speaker cabinets rigid, inert and quiet. Each model now has a stiff aluminium plate on the inside face of its cabinet, bracing its baffle against resonance. Inside, both models also feature updates to their Matrix bracing, with thicker panels made from solid plywood rather than the previous MDF, reinforced by aluminium bracing sections.

Aerofoil™ Cone - the result of advance computer modelling, the Aerofoil Cone is a composite bass cone with a varying thickness designed to offer maximum stiffness where it is most needed while preserving a low mass – thanks to its carbon-fibre skin and light syntactic foam core. Alongside revised and optimised motor systems, each floor-standing speaker in the 800 Series Diamond range now combines its Aerofoil Cones with a new foam Anti-Resonance Plug, which gently braces the voice coil and lowers distortion as the cone moves through its operating range, ensuring even cleaner bass.

 

Together, all these advances deliver unprecedented performance. The new 800 Series Diamond is the finest range of loudspeakers Bowers & Wilkins has ever created. Bowers & Wilkins, a legacy as one of the world’s leading luxury audio brand who are committed to doing what they love: empowering music lovers to truly hear music as the artist intended, with all the passion and emotion of the original performance. Boasting a range of speakers and headphones that deliver superior audio and that have redefined the design in the categories, which are visually highly impactful.

Bucket Tech: Bowers & Wilkins Home Audio

When it comes to home entertainment sound Bowers & Wilkins needs no introduction, they have been one of the leaders in speaker system as well as speaker designs for decades. Having this knowledge and knowing the products as well as dealing in this industry, Homemation have an exciting announcement to make. 

Homemation, South Africa’s audio, cinema and home automation specialists are proud to announce that they are now the official and exclusive distributors of the exciting premium brand Bowers & Wilkins.

 “Acquiring the distribution rights for Bowers & Wilkins in Southern Africa is a real feather in our cap with this new stallion in our stable creating a natural synergy between our current proud stock of premium brands. We are now able to offer discerning South Africans prime opportunities to expand their audiovisual and home theatre horizons – all the better for immersive rides into virtual sunsets”, says Nicholas Gliksman, co-Founder of Homemation.

Bowers & Wilkins

A legacy as one of the world’s leading luxury audio brand who are committed to doing what they love: empowering music lovers to truly hear music as the artist intended, with all the passion and emotion of the original performance. Boasting a range of speakers and headphones that deliver superior audio and that have redefined the design in the categories, which are visually highly impactful. The first Bowers & Wilkins speakers were built in the 1960s and their innovation and reinvention continues, in their extensive R&D facility.