Driving Review: Volvo S60 T5
Safety. This word is key when speaking about Volvo. And for some reason, when people hear the safety thing they think boring. But Volvo is anything but boring. It’s like those days at school when the people who got A’s were considered dorks, but look at them now! I bet some of you are working for them or at least watching their Facebook pages, green with envy. You see, safety, like excelling, is actually pretty darn cool.
Package it in a really good looking body and you have the whole, well, package. The Volvo S60 may not be the hottest car on the road. It certainly doesn’t scream young party animal. But it does appeal to those who have left the dancing shoes behind and opted for the more comfy crocs flat shoes. And there is nothing wrong with that. In fact, I can’t even remember the last time I wore heels and I consider myself to be pretty cool. I no longer want to stand on stilts trying to look as if I am not in pain. I want to be comfortable…but not unattractive! This is the S60 for me.
Another word we hate, “practical”. But this car is practical, and really, what is wrong with wanting to drive something that actually fits your lifestyle perfectly? Nothing, I say absolutely nothing!
I had the S60 T5 R-Design for the week. I currently have the V40 Cross Country as my longterm test car and to say I love it is an understatement, so I figured I would be as in love with this S60 because, well, they are the same family really. I didn’t love it, but I didn’t dislike it either. It is what it is and I think that is practical, comfortable and drama free. So if you are looking for excitement, then stop reading now. The S60 was recently facelifted and the whole S60 range has Drive-E engines. They’re all 2,0-litres and promise a great balance between performance and fuel economy.
I took the S60 for a lovely drive to Hermanus over the weekend and I cannot say this enough, comfort is key! I was so comfortable I could have taken a nap…thank goodness for the Driver Alert Control which will beep at you and display a little cup of coffee suggesting you pull over and sort yourself out! The seats hug you in a warm embrace with great side support. The cabin in general is spacious and uncluttered. Everything on the console is easy to identify and easy to use.
The S60 now sports the instrument cluster we first saw on the V40. Like the V40, you can choose between three display modes namely, Elegance, Eco and Performance. I had it in Performance mode for the roadtrip as the analogue speedo is replaced by a digital one and I like to see how fast I am going, I am tired of those sneaky fines making their way to my letter box undetected. The display may all be a bit gimmicky but who doesn’t love a gimmick?
The 2,0 engine is smooth and punchy. It produces 177 kW of power and 320 N.m of torque. There is a hint of turbo lag but there is enough useable pulling power. I was sitting on about 9,8 l/100km which was higher than I was expecting, but then again, I headed into a fair amount of traffic leaving the city and it didn’t ease up too much throughout the journey.
The S60 may lack that driver appeal, but like I said, if you want performance and excitement then this is not the place to look. But if you want a car that not only looks good, but drives beautifully and just makes like that much less complicated then the sizeable S60 needs to be on your options list.
When stacked against some of its competitors, Volvo may have a tough challenge on its hands. With that said however, the Germans, namely BMW’s 328i and Mercedes-Benz’s C250, may be outselling the Volvo but with the S60 T5 priced at R467 900 and given the standard equipment’s list, Volvo may steal a few more sales from the Germans.