Place XC in front of the Volvo model number and you create an SUV. Place the XC after the number and you result in an off-road capable but on-road prodigious 4x4 estate car. The latest V60 model line-up (we have had the estate car since late last summer; the saloon arrives this late-spring) is almost complete. Apart from the R-Design variant, which is subjected to a forthcoming separate test story, the load-lugging, multi-surface, family car is now available.
Powered by the D4, 190bhp version of Volvo’s uniquely attractive, 2.0-litre modular engine, which develops a modest 295lbs ft of torque and drives all four wheels through an 8-speed automatic transmission, I would venture to suggest that it is an ‘everyman’ Volvo. Okay. As tested, it is priced at a whopping £50,915 (list, pre-discount), which includes £12,645’s worth of extras that ‘you just cannot live without’, such as a heated steering wheel-rim, advanced connectability (fancy hi-fi and smartphone integration), 19.0-diameter alloys and a spare wheel, with jack, but, if you have the money, it is kind of worth it.
To be fair, its standard specification is fairly comprehensive, including the Volvo-signature portrait touch-screen, sat-nav, City Safety, Oncoming Lane Mitigation, Run-off-Road Protection, LED lamps fore and aft, hill-start and cruise. Wise money says: choose the options carefully. What makes this car a ‘winner’ is its cosseting comfort and phenomenal on and off-road prowess.
On the picturesque roads of Suffolk (I really need to travel more!), it hikes up its skirts, despatches 0-60mph in 7.9s and, given a German-like autobahn, would bounce off 130mph at the top-end. Delivering a silken, progressive and refined power delivery, the V60XC is the executive wagon par excellence, capable of large mileage consumption at up to 47.9mpg (WLTP), conducted in a leggy, loping style.
Mention of which leads to its eminently stylish street presence. It is not as long as a V90 but its luggage bay, extendible of course, is cavernous. Its interior is beautifully decked out, in full Nappa hide, with machined alloy trim detailing. No single element seems out of place and it feels as well tailored as the finest Savile Row suit, further underscoring its business-like potential. The digital instrument display is as clear as day and, apart from a tendency for the heel of my right hand to skim annoyingly the steering wheel spoke-located radio channel-changer, with every other twirl of the tiller, it is a fault-free design.
Externally, it casts a purposeful shape, with hints of the ‘Horbury shoulders’, upright LED rear lamp arrays and the latest Volvo corporate snout. There exists bags of space inside, while the outside dimensions fit perfectly with upper-medium sector rivals. I love this car! I guess that I had better start saving.
