V60 rides the rough stuff in comfort

I’M writing this in a ski chalet in France. I don’t do the skiing bit due to a couple of prangs a few years back that snapped ligaments in both my knees.

They’re fixed but the NHS will run out of patience if I bust one again so these days I go straight to the après-ski. We drove here from home via the Geneva motor show in a Volvo V90 Cross Country. A quite brilliant car but one that’s rather bigger than I needed.

The perfect choice would have been its baby brother – the V60 Cross Country. The V60 that was launched last year was a massive improvement on the previous generation car, with an extra 100mm in the wheelbase and more legroom front and rear, plus extra baggage capacity.

The Cross Country spec brings four-wheel drive as standard, an extra 60mm of ride height, black plastic wheelarch extensions, scuff plates, hill descent control and softer suspension.

There’s only one engine choice at the moment and that’s the 2.0-litre D4 diesel which produces 187bhp. A T5 2.0-litre petrol Volvo V60 Cross Country D4 four-door estate

Price: £38,270

Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder diesel, 187bhp 0-60mph: 8.2sec Fuel consumption: 47.9mpg

engine with 247bhp will be available soon.

The V60 Cross Country is for people who prefer estate cars over SUVS but could do with some mild off-road ability and extra toughness. Volvo says that about 10% of V60 buyers will go for this rufty-tufty version.

You have a drive selector that offers Comfort, Dynamic and Offroad. I see no point in using