Volvo S60 saloon
AS car makers strive for ever-improving fuel economy, we start to take for granted mpg figures which could only have been dreamt of a few decades ago.
One such magic mileage motor is the 2015 model Volvo S60 saloon – our test car this week – which has generous size, style, interior space and comfort... but is positively miserly when it comes to consuming diesel.
On paper the figures are impressive – a class-leading 74mpg extra urban (67 overall) yet capable of 143mph and a very respectable 0 to 62 time of 7.4 seconds from its 1969cc, 181bhp all-new D4 diesel engine that emits just 99g/ km CO2.
But it is only when you put those figures into context you realise this car, with only a standard 67.5 litre (just under 15 gallon) fuel tank, could drive from Manchester to Monaco (more than 1,000 miles) without ever stopping at a filling station, or that the average motorist doing 10,000 miles a year would only have to fill up nine times between now and 2016.
And then it’s a Volvo – so it comes loaded with safety kit, including antilock braking with electronic brake distribution, brake assistance and auto braking, collision warning with pedestrian and cyclist detection, queue assist, lane assist, driver alert control, road sign information display, self cleaning headlights which ‘bend’ the light around corners and blind spot monitoring.
It is also well-equipped – heated seats, adaptive cruise control, climate control, speed sensitive steering, DAB radio, voice command, touch-screen sat nav, auto lights and wipers… even a grocery bag holder!
On-the-road prices for the S60 start from £20,675 for the T3 Business Edition, with a 136bhp petrol engine, through SE, SE Lux and R-Design up to the R-Design D5 Lux Nav at £35,340.