Among the car brands there are ordinary and popular ones: Ford, Honda, Volkswagen and so on. There are premium ones - BMW, Audi, Mercedes. And there are also cars with the Volvo logo, which seem to be on their own. And in the light latest news and it is not at all clear what will happen to this brand next. But it's still before us last reincarnation Volvo S60, during a test drive of which we find out what kind of beast it is and for whom.
— D-class sedan produced since 2010. The car is equipped with gasoline engines of 1.6, 2.0 and 3.0 liters, with a power of 150, 180, 203 and 304 hp. respectively, as well as two diesel engines with a volume of 2.0 and 2.4 liters, with a power of 163 and 215 hp. Front-wheel drive, in the version with a three-liter engine - all-wheel drive. The test vehicle was a Volvo S60 2.0 AT Kinetic worth $44,072.
3D panorama of the Volvo S60 interior*
*To view the image, move the mouse cursor while holding down the left button
We are used to the fact that Volvos are such boxy cars for middle-aged and older people. This was facilitated by the abundance of such square cars in the 90s, and the occasional sarcasm about this in American films and TV series, where successful doctors of pre-retirement age drive Volvos. But the S60 tries to break out of this stereotype with both design and positioning. In official materials he is called nothing less than daring. What kind of a daring guy is this sedan?
Design: either a grandfather or an athlete
Indeed, the appearance of the current generation S60 is far from those 740s and 840s models that we are used to seeing on the streets of Ukrainian cities. More smooth lines, a somewhat oriental squint of the headlights, which still did not become Korean, extending far onto the wings. It's immediately obvious that this is a Volvo, but from the 21st century. The sloping profile of the roof also tries to hint at sportiness, as well as the fact that the main place in this car is not the right rear, but still the driver's. So you can expect a good drive
The edges of the hood smoothly bend around the headlights and end at the bumper, highlighting a massive beak with a radiator grille. Which is still traditionally cut diagonally. The corporate identity has been preserved, the car is recognizable, and the fresh design attracts attention, people turn around and hold their gaze. The rarity of such cars on the streets also contributes to this; even the most expensive XC90 SUV can be found more often than this sedan.
Due to the strongly sloping rear part of the roof, the S60 does not look massive, although it hides a traditionally impressive trunk. But the victim of the design was the opening, which may no longer allow a large suitcase to fit through.
Salon: make yourself at home
The fact that I was dealing with a Volvo for the first time, not counting a test drive in the S40, did not prevent me from immediately feeling at ease. This happens rarely and is worth a lot. The seat settings are minimal and you are ready to travel a thousand kilometers in it, all the controls are where they should be, they are pressed without looking and they are responsible for exactly the functions that you expect from them. And the on-board computer menu is just some kind of holiday among all the elaborate car interfaces. There is no need to think about which button to do what, a simple, understandable and Russified tree menu. This is happiness.
The only surprise, and a pleasant one at that, was a button on the center console that folds the headrests in the back row in one fell swoop for better visibility.
The interior design can best be described as “sophisticated simplicity.” There is no pretentious luxury, no designer delights. But there is absolutely nothing to complain about. Everywhere where the eye and hand can reach there is soft or simply pleasant-to-touch plastic. The leather on the door cards and seats is simply excellent, you'll want to sit on it forever. The seat itself seems to hug you softly and unobtrusively, like a home sofa, but at the same time continues to hold you securely in sharp turns. The settings memory, by the way, is as much as three positions; electrical adjustments are only for the driver.
Naturally, the signature features are in place: a floating console with a niche, pockets at the ends of the front seats and cup holders with a curtain. There is also a good niche in the center armrest, there is also a USB port and an AUX input. By the way, the Volvo S60 is the first car in my memory that correctly recognized an iPhone 4 connected via cable and was able to play music from it, even recognizing Cyrillic tags. And since we're talking about multimedia system, then I note that it produces excellent sound, and the Bluetooth hands-free system deserves applause. The interlocutor on the other side of the line does not even notice the difference from a conversation on the phone. Although its functionality is limited, the phone book and call list cannot be read, the maximum it can do is dial a number using the buttons on the console.
Despite the sloping roof, tall passengers will not feel discriminated against. With a height of 187 cm, the author calmly sat behind the driver’s seat, customized for himself. And he didn’t rest his head on the ceiling. So, if desired, the car is quite suitable for seating the driver in front, and doing business on the road.
Drive: comfort and more comfort
If you imagine characteristics such as comfort and sportiness coordinate axes, where X will be comfort, and Y will be sportiness, then the direct driving impressions from the Volvo S60 will go up at an angle of thirty degrees. That is, comfort is put at the forefront here, although they have not forgotten about controllability.
The feeling that you are sitting in your favorite leather chair in front of the TV while driving the S60 never leaves you. This seat is very comfortable, and the suspension and steering in every possible way protect the driver from information about the quality of the road surface. Only a really serious pothole, which you did not have time to drive around, will be able to break through the suspension and shake the car, but still not be transmitted to the spine of the driver and passengers. This is probably the time to note the excellent sound insulation, which also contributes to a comfortable ride over any distance.
When driving quietly, the six-speed automatic switches gears almost imperceptibly for the driver. And it adapts very quickly to your driving style. You press to the floor - it turns until the red zone, but you just drive a little calmer - it already switches at three or four thousand or earlier. The manual mode is conditionally manual; before the red zone, the box itself will shift up and will not allow you to drop the gear down at four thousand rpm.
Overall the engine/transmission combination is excellent and complements each other well. The manual mode here is more for controlling the engine in the mountains or in winter than for sporty driving. Moreover, the automatic one works just fine. Even the pause on kickdown is kept to a minimum, while the box still has time to decide one or two downshifts need to be reset. In general, the dynamics both during direct acceleration and when overtaking (60-100 km/h 80-120 km/h) are sufficient. But still I can’t help but feel that I want more. After all, as you know, there is never too much power. Therefore, I would still look at the three-liter version, especially since the car is already in the price range where fluctuations of several thousand are not so significant. But then you won’t catch yourself thinking that something is missing, and the sound of a three-liter aspirated engine will be much more pleasant than a supercharged four-cylinder. Although, I repeat, this engine is enough for normal dynamic driving.
As for consumption, in the urban cycle during quiet driving it never dropped below 13 liters per hundred, but if you drive actively, it tends to reach 15.
And one cannot fail to note the presence of many additional systems safety, we still have Volvo, which for many is still the benchmark in the implementation of active driver assistance systems. WITH full list can be found on the manufacturer's website.
Eventually
The Volvo S60 is a great car. It drives great and is nice and comfortable inside. Why don’t we see it among the BMWs and Audis flashing on the streets? The answer is simple - the price is too premium, but there is no premium at all. The car is undoubtedly good in terms of all its characteristics. And if you compare directly with the Bavarian three and the Ingolstadt four, then it will seem more interesting, especially if you are for a comfortable ride. But, really, it’s not in this country that you can sell a Volvo at the same price as an Audi and a BMW, no matter how good it is. So the S60 remains the lot of very few originals. Therefore, probably, the location for the shooting was not chosen by chance. Kiev Vozdvizhenka, which was supposed to become either a center of concentration big business, or an elite residential area, has been striking for many years now with its beauty and desolation. The Volvo S60, just as expensive and practically useless, fits perfectly into this landscape. And he is just the tip of the iceberg, because the whole company is now experiencing far from better times. The hope for a second wind, which should come from the Middle Kingdom, remains only hope. Rather, China will absorb many years of developments, technologies and patents, chewing and dissolving the once legendary brand over time.
This happens in life: you drive ordinary cars and, it seems, you get used to their behavior in the “gas/brake” mode. But as soon as you get behind the wheel of a frankly powerful car, for some time you cannot understand why a weak, at first glance, touch of the accelerator pedal leads to instant depression muscle mass into the back of the chair.
You experience similar sensations when you find yourself behind the wheel of a Volvo S60 T5 AWD. I’ll say right away: this is not the most powerful version of the “sixty”, however, the characteristics of the 2.5-liter 5-cylinder engine are, as they say, “for the eyes and ears.” At least for the reasons that the car goes from 100 to 100 in just 7 seconds. Actually, this is an indicator of a good, sporty hatchback, but before us is a car of a completely different type - a solid 4.6-meter business sedan, moreover, all-wheel drive.
Do you think it would be interesting for its successful owner to forget about his greatness and play “catch-up” on the road? In some cases, it is undeniable. Moreover, not only on weekends and outside the city. The “Te Fifth” engine has an impressive torque for a gasoline internal combustion engine - 360 Nm (the same, for example, in the 2-liter turbodiesel SY Actyon), which, thanks to the turbine, is achieved already in the low speed zone.
In practice, it looks something like this: you’ve been trailing for a block behind some run-of-the-mill Solaris, and as soon as there’s a gap ahead, you press the pedal to the floor... After a couple of seconds, the poor fellow already occupies the entire area of your outside mirror. This is the traction reserve that the T5 has in its arsenal.
As you can see in the photographs above, the test S60 in our hands is one of the restyled ones. This is the same car that appeared in Russian showrooms relatively recently. According to Volvo Car Russia, over 500 new cars have been sold in the country in just a couple of months. The T5 modification accounts for 20% of S60 sales, another 20% is shared between the T3 (150 hp) and T6 (304 hp) versions. The sales leader in this model line is the 180-horsepower T4. The data, I repeat, is fresh, but, as noted at Volvo’s Moscow headquarters, it completely repeats the balance of power for the pre-restyling S60.
Sellers say that buyers appreciated the work carried out by Volvo designers to rejuvenate the appearance. They may not be so radical, but they were quite fitting. The radiator grille has become wider and more aggressive, losing the chrome surround, and the Volvo logo has become larger. Headlights were also added in volume. The Swedes say that when designing the S60 optics, they imagined the eyes of a wolf, they say, with them the updated sedan received “a confident and focused look - like a strong beast that just needs to look at you without baring its fangs.”
The comparison is, of course, emotional and figurative, but it is far from new in the global auto industry. Let us at least remember the story of the Kia Quoris radiator grille, which its creators correlated with the mouth of a tiger. Anyway. De facto, the radiator itself is now painted in glossy black and is virtually invisible behind the grille. The rear of the S60 has also been transformed, receiving fashionable LED taillights.
There are innovations in the cabin as well. Now you will more often see leather and wood here, which, by the way, have a wider color palette than before. The dashboard became graphical, but personally this decision did not surprise me, because back in the spring I saw it on. It’s not bad, in any case, it’s convenient to read the readings of the operation of certain devices. In addition, there is a choice of 3 graphics modes: Elegance, Eco, Performance. And if anyone does not agree to see the graphic option in business class, they say, not because of their status, I can redirect them to a more luxurious one. Then a lot will become clear.
The quality of the interior finishing is up to par, without any “concrete” plastic. The interior is leather, the seats are comfortable enough: you can drive and not think that your butt or, say, your back will get tired. My test case included a heated steering wheel and windshield wiper nozzles, a rear view camera and a traditionally full range of safety systems, including the proven City Safety technology.
It was accompanied by a BLIS system paired with a cross-traffic warning system, an EBA emergency braking assistance system, a lane departure warning system and a number of other high-tech features that there is no great need to list.
And indeed: Volvo has stepped far forward in the “safe” direction, and plenty has been said about this. All of these systems, as I was convinced during the test, function, and I can say that I can’t describe any of them as useless: everything blinks, signals and sounds on time, so to speak, preventatively.
It is clear that the full “stuffing” is available only in the maximum configuration, which dealers usually put up for testing (in my case - Summum, from 1,489,000 rubles), but the car, excuse me, claims to be premium - with good equipment it looks , perhaps, more holistically. True, it’s a pity that for some reason there was no place for the sunroof and front parking camera in the test version...
According to Volvo Car Russia, it is the top trim level for the S60 that is most in demand (65% of sales). The second in consumer interest is Momentum (20%, from 1,379,000 rubles). The remaining 15% is divided between the starting version of Kinetic (1,329,000 rubles) and the R-Design package (1,589,000 rubles).
I don't know how the S60 R-Design drives, I'm guessing it's sharp. But even in a simple “jacket” the sedan is no slouch. In the autumn thaw, may the dealer forgive me, I drove the “sixty” through pits and puddles into the tail and mane - he should be damned. I just added more work to my beloved in terms of washing the body three times.
I believe that the positive impression of the driving capabilities of the S60 T5 AWD was largely influenced by this abbreviation - “AWD”. Under normal driving conditions, the automation provides 95% of the traction to the usual front axle, and fully loads the rear axle only when absolutely necessary.
You don’t seem to feel the intervention of the all-wheel drive, but this is all its “intelligence”. You can always be sure that on a straight line caught in the frost, not to mention the slippery foliage of a copse, all four wheels will respond in unison to you pressing the accelerator pedal. The suspension may be a bit harsh, but I think that’s how it should be when it comes as a “kit” with a turbocharged engine.
The engine turns willingly, and the 6-speed automatic transmission Geatronic is not stopping him from demonstrating his Scandinavian potential. The stabilization system allows you to detect a tendency to skid at a very early stage and makes it possible to more accurately perform sharp maneuvers. The Swedish sedan is inferior to its German competitors in the sharpness of its handling.
The hum in the cabin appears somewhere after “130”, but in my case, winter studded Gislavedas, which, of course, are not appropriate on dry asphalt, contributed to the confusion in the process of sound perception. Fuel consumption in the city turned out to be a little over 14 liters per “hundred”. This is adjusted for an average speed of 21 km/h. At the same time, branded performance characteristics give a different figure - 12.8 l/100 km. The truth, as usual, is somewhere nearby.
So, it’s hardly possible to come to a car dealership and immediately drive away in a Te Fifth. Sellers say that of the cars already available at the auto center site, most have been reserved. There is only one alternative to purchasing - to order. If you leave a request today, your car will arrive at the showroom in February 2014.
The warranty for the Volvo S60 is 2 years without mileage limitation. Maintenance - every 20,000 km or once a year. Oil change - after 60,000 km. Transport tax - approximately 18,000 rubles.
The road signs seem to be mocking you: in front of a 400-horsepower car, and ahead flash restrictions of 25, 35, 50 mph. Now the navigator shows a purple traffic jam ahead. It later turned out that a World War II-era plane with crosses on the wings crash-landed on the highway and caught fire. We cruised along in silent electric power the rest of the way, wondering where the Polestar-tuned Volvo S60 T8 sedan could use all its outstanding sporting talents.
The S60 sedan is the first Volvo car to roll out of the Charleston, South Carolina plant. After coming under the wing of Geely, the Swedish brand turned into a global player. It has retained its main national feature - security, but has increased ambitions. Volvo seems to have its sights set on rivaling the Germans. The new S60 with its entire appearance demonstrates its intention to invade the territory of the BMW 3-Series and Mercedes-Benz C-Class. Otherwise, why would a front-wheel drive sedan with a transverse engine have such a long hood? A longitudinally in-line “six” can easily fit under this one.
However, this is not news: the older Volvo S90 is also big-nosed, and the new S60 repeats its design findings, right down to the characteristic break in the window sill line. The main difference is in the silhouettes. The Sixty does not strive to look like a four-door coupe; it has a pronounced trunk step. On the one hand, this gives the car a somewhat conservative look, on the other hand, the joke about the fact that the Volvo index indicates the age of the owner will not hit the target.
The car looks bright, and the fold above the rear wheel arch gives it additional speed. And, by the way, the S60 designers did a better job with the trunk lid - it’s not bulky and doesn’t look like it was made from Lego.
The interior seems to be made from a construction set with a set of identical parts: a steering wheel familiar from other Volvo models, a characteristic panel with a “canopy”, vertically elongated air ducts and a “I want to be Tesla” display between them, seats with a complex topography. A few oddly shaped handles and knobs shine like jewelry.
The back row of the previous S60 was spacious, despite the sloping roofline. The new sedan is longer, has a longer wheelbase, and is inferior in width and noticeably lower. There is more room in the legs and shoulders - the Chinese will like it, and it is not a fact that they will also want an extended version. There are still no handrails on the doors, but the second row now has its own dual-zone climate control unit.
The trunk has become roomier and deeper, but there are no special fasteners in it, and the upholstery is budget-friendly and flimsy - a case where you should not follow the example of Asian automakers.
The S60 is the first Volvo car that won't be available with a diesel engine. Volvo decided to end this type of internal combustion engine, switching to gasoline and electricity. To set the tone for the environment, each participant in the premiere test drive was given personalized water bottles made of biodegradable plastic. I lost mine, but I hope that the container with the Davydov inscription will dissolve into nature and will not irritate Americans for long.
It’s strange to talk about ecology when your hybrid develops 400 hp. More precisely 415 hp. and 670 Nm in the version modified by the Polestar division. What can an ordinary hybrid please you with, besides saving? And this Swedish monster easily accelerates to 100 km/h in 4.7 seconds, which is quite comparable in dynamics to a Porsche. At the same time, Volvo has no choice but to use electricity for the benefit of sport - the new platforms are designed to install only 4-cylinder internal combustion engines.
The sedan, which is destined to win away buyers from the BMW 3 Series, Audi A4 and Mercedes C-Class, has become much younger and more aggressive, almost catching up with the German trio in terms of the width of the smile of a driver enjoying fast cornering. The stylish unisex Swede with a coupe-shaped profile and fashionable air ducts will be appreciated by men and women, young and old. And the interior, judging by the wide range of adjustments for the steering wheel and driver's seat, will accommodate both thin and fat people.
The front panel design is both simple and sophisticated. The “floating console” took its place in the center of the cabin; in its center the music and climate control panels were crowded together - only two pairs of washer-regulators emerged from the “heap”. The plump optional steering wheel with three spokes and buttons is pleasant to hold and rotate, but using the parking brake, which is located in the American style on a lever handle on the left under the steering wheel, is not so convenient.
The instrument panel is two gray-edged circles with microdisplays inside; they display information and readings from on-board systems. For example, if you frequently disturb the optional lane control system or make sudden movements with the steering wheel, a cup of coffee will appear inside the left circle and a call to rest. The coffee machine is not built into the car, but – thank God – the car doesn’t stop on its own yet. Although Volvo already has the necessary technologies for this.
The back seat is not very spacious. There is enough space here for two, although individual heating is offered for each of the two (for a fee) seat. Great, right?! You can’t reach the ceiling with your head, there’s almost too much room in your knees, and not enough room for your feet. In general, taxi companies would be better off looking at roomier sedans like the S80.
Our test was an S60 with a 2.4-liter turbodiesel, 6-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive in the maximum AWD Auto Summum configuration (from 1,899,900 rubles). However, the list of equipment included many useful devices that were not included even in the top version. Such as active cruise control with a collision warning system, electric seats, a parking camera, heated rear seats, decorative body trims, which made the final cost significantly higher than 2,000,000 rubles.
Driving the sixty is easy, although the pleasure is not quite the same: rear-wheel drive or all-wheel drive Germans behave differently, due to a greater emphasis on the rear axle. And the Volvo feels like a front-wheel drive car - mainly due to the transmission setup, as well as the weight distribution along the axles, in which the front "wins". Volvo hasn't stopped being safe.
But he became more agile; Thanks to double supercharging, the Swedes have taught the diesel a quick response to the gas pedal and quite dynamic acceleration. With an average consumption of about 11 liters per “hundred” in the urban cycle, the sedan can drive fast! In addition, the chassis is perfectly balanced: smooth ride and road stability do not conflict with each other.
Testing the technologies used in a test car can take a very long time. For example, active cruise control not only maintains a set speed, but also maintains a distance to the vehicle in front in your lane, which you set yourself (with the wheel on the left of the steering wheel). Compliance with traffic lanes is monitored by cameras mounted in the side mirrors; When crossing a road marking line, the light at their base will light up. The system works 9 out of 10 times (worn markings under snow are not always recognizable to the eye), and sometimes even prematurely, when the wheel only approaches the line, but does not cross it.
Volvo continues to fight to rejuvenate its audience; Until now, the main advantage of the brand’s cars in the eyes of most motorists is safety. It is logical that people who can afford a Volvo and who worry about the safety of their own lives (and their loved ones) more than about demonstrating their own well-being are mostly already aged. The S60 has every reason to show that Volvos are no longer boring, either inside or outside, and are not bad at all to drive...
What is the price?
The Volvo S60 is sold as a sedan (a station wagon on the same platform will go on sale next year) with front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive. There can be three engines: a basic 2.0-liter 203-horsepower turbo engine (from 1,186,900 rubles) can be equipped with a 6-speed manual transmission, as well as a 6-speed automatic transmission (from 1,259,900 rubles), which comes with all other powertrains units: 205-horsepower 2.4-liter turbodiesel (from 1,599,900 rubles) and six-cylinder 3.0T with 304 hp. (from 1,799,900 rubles).
