The Reviews Are In for Volvo’s New EX90 SUV

Current conditions: Japan recorded its hottest summer ever • Tropical Storm Yagi killed at least 14 people in the Philippines and is forecast to strengthen as it heads toward China • Cooling centers are open in L.A. as another powerful heat wave bakes California.

THE TOP FIVE

1. U.S. and China to hold more climate talks

U.S. climate envoy John Podesta will head to Beijing this week for a second round of formal climate talks with his Chinese counterpart Liu Zhenmin. From Wednesday through Friday the two men will discuss their countries’ respective 2035 emissions targets and climate finance ahead of November’s COP29 climate summit. The U.S. is trying to encourage China to commit to more ambitious emissions cuts, and contribute funds to the New Collective Quantified Goal to help developing countries build climate resilience. According to Reuters, “few analysts expect this week’s talks to deliver much progress.” The U.S. and China are the world’s top greenhouse gas emitters.

2. Eerily calm Atlantic baffles storm watchers

The Atlantic Ocean has been strangely quiet over the last few weeks, and meteorologists are baffled. “Despite several disturbances peppering the Atlantic from the Gulf of Mexico to Africa this Labor Day – a traditionally active turn in the hurricane season – none show any immediate signs of development,” wrote Michael Lowry in his Eye on the Tropics newsletter. Indeed the National Hurricane Center currently shows two areas of interest, both with very little chance of forming into a storm system to be worried about. “The quiet is eerie but no one is complaining,” said research meteorologist Ryan Maue. Hurricane season peaks one week from today.

National Hurricane Center/NOAA

3. Grand Canyon deaths rise as extreme weather intensifies

With four months left in 2024, the number of deaths reported in Grand Canyon National Park this year has reached 14, just shy of the annual average of 15, according to The Hill. There are a number of factors at play but the rise in fatalities comes as climate change brings more dangerous weather to the popular park, including extreme heat and flash floods. Just in the last 10 days, three people have been found dead. A recent study from the National Park Service concluded that more extreme heat is significantly increasing the risk of heat-related illness for visitors. Temperatures at the bottom of the canyon regularly reach 120 degrees Fahrenheit and can go higher as the dark stones absorb heat. But flash floods are common, too, and can catch hikers off guard. “The arid, sparsely vegetated environment here means that rainfall quickly generates runoff because the ground doesn’t absorb it well,” National Park Service spokesperson Rebecca Roland said. A flash flood tore through the canyon on August 22 and killed a 33-year-old woman.

4. Study: The ‘neighborhood effect’ accelerates solar panel uptake

If you’re thinking of installing solar panels but still on the fence, maybe consider that taking the plunge could turn you into an influencer who inspires your neighbors to install their own solar panels, too. A recent study published in the journal Energy Research & Social Science looked at solar installations in Australia and specifically the so-called neighborhood effect that’s observed when a technology becomes more visible and subsequently more popular. The researchers found that “once a few houses in a neighborhood had solar, solar got installed faster – translating on average to 15-20 extra solar installations per postal area per year.” They estimate that in 2018, the neighborhood effect was responsible for about 18% of the annual number of installations in Australia. “We do care what our peers are doing,” the researchers wrote. “This is nothing to be ashamed of. As we work to secure a liveable climate, the neighborhood effect can play an important role.” While this study focused on uptake in Australia, the neighborhood effect has been observed in relation to solar installations in the U.S., too.

5. The first-drive reviews of Volvo’s EX90 SUV are in

Today seems to be the day everyone is publishing their first-drive reviews of the Volvo EX90, the company’s new flagship all-electric SUV. The long-delayed, three-row vehicle starts at a base price of $82,290, and has a range between 296 and 308 miles. It’s being manufactured in South Carolina and U.S. deliveries are expected toward the end of 2024. Here’s a distilled version of what everyone is saying:

The good: The SUV is comfortable, cushy, and beautifully designed. “The cabin has a nice ambience and a cool, premium feel.” It has a very smooth ride and incredible torque considering its hefty weight. And the sound system is “genuinely astonishing.”

The bad: Software glitches (no Apple CarPlay or Android Auto at launch, non-functional lidar), buggy connectivity (the phone-as-key feature seems particularly confused), battery drain when parked, and a cramped back row.

The bottom lines:

• “If you’re interested in an EX90, and its promise of serene emissions-free motoring, you’re just going to have to keep waiting. Wait until Volvo can polish the software, then buy the finished product. You shouldn’t spend $90,000 on a promise.” –Mack Hogan, deputy editor of InsideEVs
• “Unless the need for a third row is not optional, it's hard to ignore the Polestar 3, built alongside the EX90 in South Carolina, which is several thousand dollars cheaper and much more fun to drive.” –Jonathan M. Gitlin, automotive editor at Ars Technica
• “The launch of the EX90 has been delayed by almost a year due to the complexity of getting the software right, and even that delay has not been enough to get it to a level you’d rightly expect of any new car launched in 2024, let alone one like the EX90.” –Mark Tisshaw, editor at Autocar
• “As a minimum viable product, the EX90 is still pretty good. Future updates and bug fixes will make it the luxury vehicle that Volvo hopes it will be, with all the promised bells and whistles.” –Abigail Basset at The Verge

THE KICKER

“It’s getting so hot that the pieces that hold the concrete and steel, those bridges can literally fall apart like Tinkertoys.” –Paul Chinowsky, a professor of civil engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder, explains how extreme heat affects infrastructure.