Volvo has built its reputation on producing safe, sensible cars. Its cars ended up on top of lists such as “the car you’d buy for your wife.” Yourself? Probably lusting after a Porsche. This left Volvo with an interesting problem. Safety and sanity may clinch the deal but it’s the sex (in the cars’ styling, we mean) that actually lures the buyers into the showroom and onto the driver’s seat.
They shouldn’t have a problem with the S60, then. This car doesn’t just break out of the Volvo box; it smashes it to pieces. The trend towards curves started with elder sister S80. The S60 looks even slimmer and better proportioned than its larger sibling. Volvo’s designers seemed to have achieved what most sedan styling aspires to these days—smartly integrating four doors with a sweeping profile.
The eggcrate grille is thrust prominently forward, with the V-shaped hood folds and front fenders flowing smoothly rearward with no right angles anywhere in sight. The S60’s rear, where so many sedans blink and fail miserably, is particularly enticing, positively inviting one to run one’s hand over its curves. The trunk lid pivots on its complex hinges and gas struts to reveal a cavernous, unobstructed trunk space.
The feeling of solid construction continues with the simple act of pulling on the door handle. Swing up the thick plastic handle and you’ll feel a smooth, weighty motion that ends with a solid click. Pull open the heavy door and you’ll see that the interior is generously proportioned, with comfortable seating for five passengers. Both the driver’s chair and the navigator’s—er, front passenger’s—are equipped with motors for reach, rake and height. The driver’s seat has a three-setting memory function but it doesn’t include the side mirror settings.
We think we actually be forgiven for thinking “navigator” as the dashboard looks almost aeronautical, what with its multitude of buttons. It may look confusing at first, but the controls are grouped logically. This approach of having all the buttons exposed is actually the opposite of rival manufacturers’ approach of integrating multiple functions into a single control, and in this case, the simplest solution works quite well. Some of the principal controls, like radio volume and aircon fan speed, have a large, protruding knob for easier use. To boost the accessibility further, the center panel housing all the controls is distinctively slanted towards the driver.
There are just a couple of bits in the interior that seem to suffer from cost-consciousness, and unfortunately, they are parts that you see and touch often. One is the door pull, and the other the aft part of the automatic shift lever. Both are capped with a hard, shiny plastic that seems out of sync with the rest of the plush interior appointments. Another minor gripe is that the headrests can’t be adjusted, but then they are already optimized to protect the occupants from whiplash injuries.
This being a Volvo, the protection continues all around the cabin, with dual airbags and an inflatable side curtain along the top of the side windows that will help protect the occupants’ heads if the car goes through a severe side impact.
A meaty door-slam completes the feeling of being in a secure cabin. A sporty sedan isn’t just about feeling secure, though; it’s about feeling confident while hitting the open road. Crank the engine to life and very little sound filters into the cabin. In fact, the 2.0-liter 20-valve turbo engine has just two volume levels: low and off. At idle and part throttle, it’s all but inaudible. It sings its warbling 5-cylinder song only when the tach spins above 4500 rpm. Pity, as the turbocharged whine doesn’t sound out of place in a sporty sedan.
Tip the throttle and response from the engine is initially muted, but that’s mainly due to the pedal’s long travel. The engine has plenty of torque to dish out if you’re willing to push a little further. There’s 180 bhp at 5300 rpm and a stout 240 Nm from as low as 2200 rpm. Press hard and that’s enough to leave most traffic far behind at a stop light. If you go easy on the gas, the 5-speed automatic gearbox shifts at 1800-2000 rpm for optimum fuel economy. We achieved 8.28 km/liter in mixed city and highway driving, despite our heavy-footed ways.
This turbo is light-pressure only, so don’t expect a sudden surge of acceleration anywhere in the rev range. Thankfully there’s also negligible lag; response is immediate and linear. The turbo also helps to ensure that the engine stays on the boil even on the twisty roads of Tagaytay City, 1200 meters above sea level.
For those who desire a little more power under the pedal (and who doesn’t), there’s a 250 bhp/330 Nm T5 model, and perhaps as early as next year, the S60R will arrive with an even 300 bhp/400 Nm on tap.
There’s no tiptronic-type override for the automatic, but thankfully the gearbox is smart enough to decipher when you need it to downshift or hold a gear for better acceleration. You can pull the lever backward to lock in a lower gear, but the shifts then turn a bit harsh.
The car stays in sporting character when you turn the steering wheel. Steering effort is pleasantly weighted, and on-center responsiveness is quick. There’s not much in the way of road feel, and there’s a tug of torque steer when performing sideways, deep-throttle launches. Otherwise, you’d be hard pressed to tell which pair of wheels the engine is connected to. There’s moderate understeer when negotiating tight turns, but the sedan’s Michelin Pilots (215/55 ZR 16 93W) felt firmly planted on sweeping curves. The cornering stance is quite flat, too.
The long wheelbase also pays dividends in comfort. The ride stays pleasant even on broken and bumpy Metro Manila roads, absorbing potholes and humps with aplomb. The rear seats are shaped like the front, and were comfortable for long distance touring.
The svelte new shape is not without its disadvantages. For one, ingress and egress through the sharply-cut rear doors requires some degree of bending and bowing of the head. Seems there’s something to be said for rectangular openings, after all. The steeply-sloped rear windshield collects raindrops and impairs rear visibility after a rainstorm. This is one sedan that needs a rear wiper.
Those are minor niggles, though, in an excellently designed and executed car. The engine, suspension and interior space are at par with its competitors, if not a notch higher. The S60 caps it all off with features you won’t find in a 3 series or C class of equivalent price. On the limit, it’s not as quick to respond as its German rivals, feeling more like a grand tourer than an outright sports sedan. You won’t be able to keep up with that Porsche or Impreza WRX down a twisty mountain road, but then it’s not what this car is all about.
This is a Volvo you can feel safe in and at the same time, look longingly at even as it sits in your driveway. It’s not just the looks, though. Its performance and features at this price level make for one convincing case that this may be the best luxury sedan for the money. Finally Volvo leaves the realm of sensible purchase and enters the territory of desirable automobile.
motioncars.com would like to thank
Viking Cars Incorporated for accommodating us for the Volvo S60 2.0T Road Test
By Jason Ang | Photos By Ulysses Ang and Jason Ang
Originally Published in the October 2002 Issue
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