Is it a wagon? Is it a utility vehicle? Does is matter?
Through decades of ups and a few downs, Volvo has maintained a strong relationship with buyers who appreciate understated elegance along with the automaker’s abiding concern for safety. The 2020 XC60 epitomizes both of these values along with leading-edge technological advancements.
The utility vehicle is one of a quartet of Volvos with a 60 suffix in the name, including the S60 sedan, V60 wagon and V60 Cross Country wagon.
The XC60 (XC stands for cross country) seems somewhat duplicitous since the V60 Cross Country also comes with a hike-up stance, but the five-passenger XC falls into the tall-wagon bracket. It’s sort of a junior version of the sevenpassenger XC90 and with the current utility-vehicle craze will ultimately be more popular than the V60.
In terms of design, however, the V60 and V60 Cross Country arguably get the nod over the square-ish XC60, but the XC dominates in terms of cargo and passenger capacity even though it’s noticeably shorter.
You know a Volvo is a Volvo by the way the interior is designed, especially the XC60’s standard leather-covered seats with power lumbar support. The suggestion here is that aching backs after long drives just might become a thing of the past.
A vertically positioned nine-inch touch-screen is the centerpiece of a clean and tidy dashboard that’s notably absent of knobs and dials. The XC60 retains an actual shift lever instead of buttons.
The standard eight-speed automatic transmission is part of the three available powertrains. A turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder— called the T5— is standard in the front-wheeldrive XC60. It makes 250 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque. Add allwheel-drive and you get a turbocharged and supercharged version of the 2.0, called the T6, that’s rated at 316 horsepower and 295 pound-feet. At lower engine speeds, the supercharger alone provides the boost, but above 3,000 rpm the turbocharger joins in.
The top performer is the T8 eAWD plug-in hybrid, which puts you in charge of 400 horsepower and 472 pound-feet of torque. The system’s two electric motors (front and rear), supported by a lithium-ion battery pack, contributes 87 horsepower to the hybrid’s output and can operate independently of the internal-combustion engine for up to 17 miles.
Opt for the Polestar Engineered trim and the T8’s output climbs to 415 horses and 494 pound-feet. Polestar is a Volvo offshoot that specializes in electric vehicles.
The T8 eAWD has the greatest output of all available powertrains and also has the lowest fuel consumption. Volvo estimates 59 mpg in combined city and highway driving. By comparison, the T5 is rated at 24 mpg, combined.
Pricing for the XC60Momentum FWD starts at $41,800 and, along with the leather seats, includes a panoramic sunroof and power-operated tailgate.
The R-Design adds a sport-tuned suspension, blacked-out grille and trim, premium leather seats and 19-inch wheels.
The Inscription is topped up with chrome exterior trim, unique “Driftwood” interior finishings, Harmon Kardonbrand sound system and adds more electronic active-safety features that help mitigate or completely avoid collisions.
At the pinnacle of theXC60 lineup, the $70,500 Polestar Engineered comes with beefier brakes, 21-inch wheels (22s are optional), high-end Bowers and Wilkins audio package, and shock absorbers that are manually adjustable to one of 22 firmness settings. The fact that they can’t be electronically controlled from inside the XC60 likely means that few buyers will bother fiddling with them once the novelty wears off.
On the options list is Volvo’s semiautonomous Pro Pilot assist that handles steering and braking at speeds up to 80 mph on well-marked highways.
If your taste in luxury automobiles tends to eschew the usual mainstream contenders from Germany and Japan, Volvo is certainly worth considering and the XC60makes a solid starting point.