VOLVO S60 Review

Summary:

What we like: Styling, Solid feel, Performance.

What we don't like: Wind noise

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VOLVO S60 review in detail:

The Volvo S60 fills the middle range in Volvo's lineup: It's larger than the S40, but not quite as large as the premium-luxury S80.

Zero to 100Km/h at around 5.5 seconds (in the S60R) is a full second quicker than the S60 T5, nearly two seconds faster than the S60 AWD, and most notably, only 0.3 and 0.5 second slower, respectively, than the Mercedes C32 AMG and the 340-hp Audi S4.

Wagons are frequently the bigger sellers in the Volvo range as they have a good-size cabin and a large, well-shaped luggage area.

The wagons are built to put function to the fore, providing an excellent 'box' that can carry loads that beat all others in the class in sheer useable volume.

It goes without saying that both the S60 sedan and V70 estate wagon are at the pinnacle of current automotive safety design.

These days, safety to Volvo doesn't just mean surviving a crash; a lot of work is put into dynamics (electronic and mechanical) to help them avoid collisions in the first place.

Ride comfort is good, even on rough and ready Australian roads. It's not as fun to drive as some other vehicles in this segment, such as the rear-wheel-drive Lexus IS 300 or BMW 3 Series.

The heating, ventilation and air conditioning controls are well designed and easy to operate, with big buttons that use Volvo's clever metaphoric design to direct the airflow.

Thus cars built to suit Sweden have done well in the sale races in Australia for generations.

A new V70 has been shown at the Geneva motor show and may be in Australia by the end of 2007.