Volvo enjoy enviable customer loyalty and many current XC90 owners will have been eagerly waiting for the new model, which began UK deliveries earlier this year.

In fact they will have probably been waiting some time as it is now 12 years since the original and much lauded first version was launched in the UK.

But it appears worth the wait as the full seven-seater premium SUV is so good it has been named a ‘game-changer’ at the 2016 Autocar Awards and was also the Auto Express Car of the Year 2015.

Autocar have honoured the XC90 as ‘transforming Volvo’s standing for combining cutting-edge technology with comfort, practicality and desirability’.

Highlights of the new model include a large tablet-style infotainment system and ground-breaking safety aids as standard across the range.

Priced from £46,850 and offered with diesel and petrol engines there is also an innovative plug-in hybrid.

Our test car was the D5 AWD R-Design with a very impressive 2-litre, four cylinder 225bhp diesel unit that had both performance and economy, 0 to 60 in 7.4 seconds and up to 52mpg… all from a big SUV that weighs over 2-tonnes.

Top speed is also an impressive 137mph and the car pulls well through its eight-speed auto box in all conditions - feeling more like a 3-litre V6.

A trip with some old pals to see an airshow at Duxford in Cambridgeshire was the perfect opportunity to give the roomy Swedish powerhouse a good workout.

And we certainly flew down in comfort as the XC90 proved a superb motorway cruiser with adaptive cruise control, queue assist, lane keeping aid, blind spot and cross traffic alert plus rear collision mitigation (which I am glad to say we did not need) all part of the optional ‘Intellisafe Pro’ pack (£1,025).

Other options fitted to our car were the ‘Winter’ pack (heated front seats and washers plus heads up display at £1,500) and ‘Comfort’ pack (four zone climate control, cooled glovebox, third row air conditioning and power fold headrests).

Adding to the enjoyment were electronic air suspension (£2,150) and a premium Bowers and Wilkins sound system (a somewhat hefty £3,000).

Add that lot to the standard car’s equipment - which includes sat-nav, LED headlights, air-filtration, keyless entry, hands-free power tailgate opening, a powered driver’s seat, auto-dimming mirrors and DAB radio plus climate control and leather - and you have a very formidable vehicle which can hold its own in the company of Range Rover Sports, Audi Q7s and BMW X5s.

Particularly impressive is the large, ipad style Sensus touch screen control system. Not only does it include pinch, zoom and swipe functionality – unlike many rivals – it even works when you’re wearing gloves giving access to the internet and a range of cloud-based apps and internet radio stations in addition to controlling car settings, the DAB radio and sat nav.

Safety is a byword in any Volvo and the 2016 XC90 has two world-first safety aids - automatic emergency braking at a junction, which will apply the brakes if you inadvertently attempt to turn into the path of an oncoming vehicle, and run-off road protection, which includes a collapsible section in the front seats to reduce the likelihood of spinal injuries if the car leaves the road.

A range of 2.0-litre, 4-cylinder Drive-E engines power the XC90. The 225bhp D5 diesel unit in our test car starts the range, while there is also a 316bhp T6 316bhp turbocharged and supercharged petrol unit.

The flagship XC90 is the £63,705 T8 Twin Engine, a petrol plug-in hybrid with a maximum combined power output of 395bhp.

The hybrid is claimed to achieve 134.5mpg on the combined cycle.

All models get that superb 8-speed automatic gearbox and the trim levels are the entry level Momentum through the sportier R-Design of our test car up to the more luxurious Inscription version.

The XC90 has permanent ‘on demand’ four-wheel-drive that puts most of the power down through the front wheels. It can, however, send torque to the rear when conditions demand.

The T8 Twin Engine hybrid version has a different 4x4 system as it uses its electric motor to drive the rear axle.

Our test D5 AWD R-Design model starts at £49,285 but had extras that took that up to £59,730... which is still not too bad when you look at the pricing of its premium SUV competitors. More details at volvocars.com .