Volvo S60 2019 Review

The latest Volvo S60 arrived in the local market earlier this year, introducing the company's modular SPA architecture to the medium passenger car segment. Unlike the previous model to wear the T5 R-Design label, the vehicle tested here drives all four wheels and produces extra power. That comes at a cost in terms of fuel economy, although the move to a WLTP rating probably plays a part in that too.

Nothing makes the previous generation of Volvo S60 look old quite like the new Volvo S60. Adopting the design language pioneered on the large XC90 SUV from 2015 and the marque’s S90 flagship, the S60 may be a little late to the party, but it has brought with it plenty of booze and house-warming gifts.

The interior of our S60 T5 R-Design test car could be summed up as 'Bauhaus-meets-glitz', but it's practical and cossetting.

Starting with the core comfort features, the front seats feel firmly cushioned initially, but are really comfortable over longer trips, and the base can be extended forward for those who are longer in the leg. There's seat heating available as well, for those cold wintry mornings.

The driving position is commendable too, and the instruments are informative at a glance and restful on the eye.

To start the engine, the cube-shaped device (dial? switch? 'cube'?) in the centre console is clearly labelled and requires a 45-degree turn clockwise, then release. It's easy to locate and use, compared with the button concealed behind the steering wheel that some car-makers serve up.

With the optional sunroof fitted, rear-seat headroom is marginal for taller adults (over 180cm tall), but knee room is fine. Rear-seat occupants have their own adjustable vents.

A three-pin (220V) outlet is located in the rear of the centre console for recharging devices that don't have a USB lead. Two USB ports are tucked away inside the storage bin under the centre armrest between driver and front passenger.

Luggage space is a little restricted. It's a shallow boot, but runs forward far enough to pack some long items, and features a ski port and handy fold-down bag hooks. There’s a space-saver spare under the floor.

Unusually, for a Volvo, the autonomous emergency braking and forward-collision warning didn't activate once during the week. The car's auto park function was tested though. In an urban setting this facility rates as one of the best systems we’ve used. It's so good that even drivers who know how to parallel park might use it – it's that fast and efficient.

There's no delay while the on-board processor works out whether the car will fit in a parking spot, by which time you've already sailed past it. The Volvo system doesn't demand you have the left indicator operating either. You just swipe left to bring the system up in the infotainment display, press 'Park in' and the Volvo does (most of) the rest for you.

For those preferring DIY parking, Volvo has supplied a phalanx of cameras for the S60. The 360° view is presented in a large, portrait-format centre infotainment screen and is fantastic for backing into a driveway. A quick press of the camera points displayed on the screen brings up a singular view – the reversing camera, for instance. Very easy to use.

There's a lot of driver-assist technology in this car, including a little pop-up graphic in the speedo to advise when the car is approaching a speed camera.

Another example of driver-assist tech is the excellent satellite navigation system. Excellent in our view due to the car's voice recognition system, which is a much faster means of entering an address than the olde-worlde method of stabbing at alphanumeric characters on a touch screen or laboriously selecting them with a single-point controller.

Using your voice to set a destination is not new, but the Volvo's system elevates this method to new heights. It found the right street for one address, despite the street name being a homophone for a common English word, spelled differently.

My smartphone assistant didn't manage as well...

Other advanced driver-assist and connected features available in the S60 T5 R-Design include a driver performance function in the infotainment system, advising the driver of the fuel consumption. This is distinct from the fuel economy readout from the trip computer and can be reset separately and customised to reset automatically on start-up -- if that's what you want.

Demisting functions are positioned below the infotainment screen, flanked by the hazard warning light button on the right and audio switchgear on the left. It's not ergonomically ideal to separate the demist functions from the rest of the climate control interface in the infotainment touch screen. But they are easy to find, admittedly.

The Volvo touch screen comprises three menu displays, each one providing a different array of icons for different functions. Swiping right (the left screen) brings standard infotainment functions such as music sources, for example. To the right of that screen is the main display, a quick-reference look-up for satellite navigation, audio, phone, fuel economy and other functions the driver or front passenger can select.

The right-most screen enables common driver-assist functions, such as automated parking, lane keep assist, sport mode stability control, cross-traffic alert, idle-stop disable, parking cameras, traffic sign information and head-up display adjustment.

To figure it all out really does demand 15 minutes parked by the side of the road to work your way through those various functions. New owners will spend the time no doubt…

Adding to the relative complexity of using these systems is selecting trip computer functions in the instrument cluster. You scroll through the functions available (distance travelled, for instance) in what would have once been named a 'drop-down menu', and select a specific function with a further press of a button.

Volvo has matched the Germans in one particular way: flexibility. The driver can have satnav route directions and prevailing speed limit displayed in the HUD, the audio track or radio station listed with the cabin temperature setting in the infotainment screen, and distance travelled or average fuel consumption displayed in the instrument binnacle.

In other words, there is no need to drill down through seemingly endless menus to find whatever it is that needs changing.

The engine powering the Volvo S60 T5 R-Design rings out a charming musical type of note, sounding like a five-cylinder – which is curious, given the powerplant is actually a four.

It's a very refined and free revving engine, offering plenty of torque across the midrange and right up to the 6500rpm redline. Between the engine output and the soundtrack, the S60 T5 R-Design is sure to appeal to Volvo fans who have previously owned five-cylinder.

Volvo claims a combined-cycle fuel economy figure of 7.3L/100km for the S60 T5 R-Design, but the test vehicle didn't come close to that number other than the occasions it was on a freeway.

Our S60 finished the week at 10.8L/100km from a mix of urban commuting and about 40km of freeway driving, when the engine is revving at around 1600rpm. In Eco mode for a substantial part of a test loop, the S60 returned a figure of 9.3L/100km.

The T5 variant delivers strong straight-line acceleration, in the same ballpark as the Jaguar XE, for instance, but can't match the carsales car of the year for 2019, the BMW 330i. Both rivals produce similar or better power figures and the same torque as the Volvo, plus lower weight.

Once again, the all-wheel drive Volvo is held back by weight, the added drivetrain components adding to its 1767kg tare mass, over 300kg more than the BMW. The enhanced all-wheel-drive traction would pay its way in wet conditions, however, given the T5’s prodigious torque.

At touring speeds, the Volvo's steering lacks on-centre feel, but the car steers into corners precisely. It’s close to neutral in its handling balance and delivers high levels of grip, all the while feeling stable and secure.

Although the Continental tyres fitted to our test car do squeal at higher speeds or under heavy braking, they also instil confidence in the driver.

Despite its 'Four-C' chassis control and air suspension, the S60 T5 R-Design does bounce off heavier bumps on country roads when set to the 'Polestar Engineered' drive mode. The car does fare better over smaller ripples in the road surface and ride comfort is further improved in the Comfort or Eco settings.

The S60's headlights cast a wide beam when dipped, but they don't project far ahead for darkened country roads. While they're adaptive, which is great, and there are static cornering lights to illuminate street corners, I didn't find the high-beam assist control for the test drive.

The S60 T5 R-Design undercuts its opposition by thousands, and yet it also meets them head-on in most criteria.

This is a Volvo that could actually conquest sales from the three Germans. To that extent, it's a game changer.

How much does the 2020 Volvo S60 T5 R-Design cost?
Price: $64,990 (plus on-road costs), $71,490 (as tested, plus on-road costs)
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 192kW/400Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel: 7.3L/100km (ADR Combined); 9.3L/100km (as tested)
CO2: 167g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: Five-star (ANCAP, 2018)