2011 Volvo S60 T6 AWD – First Drive Review

2011 Volvo S60 T6 AWD – First Drive Review «

2011 Volvo S60 T6 AWD – First Drive Review

As hard as it may be to believe, there have been sporty Volvos in the past. The Swedish brand, now under the stewardship of Chinese carmaker Geely, won its share of rallies on the backs of cars like the PV, and the 850T-5R was stunningly quick in its goings and haltings. But those cars were aberrations, rare instances when the Nordic penchant for drinking lighter fluid exerted itself on the product-planning process.

Now, however, Volvo is dead sober about running amid Autobahn-bred competition with its 60-series vehicles, a designation the brand hopes to make synonymous with athletic driving behavior. We had inklings of this when the powerful, fluid-handling XC60 impressed us in a comparison test last summer, and the S60 continues in that vein. Makes sense: When every other carmaker is touting its safety bona fides and honing in on Volvo’s self-declared turf, the Swedes need to dig a little deeper and find something new.

“Create the Sportiest Volvo Ever”

That was the engineering brief. But because Volvo knows that many of this volume model’s customers might not autocross their S60s on the weekends, it offers three chassis tunes: dynamic, touring, and Four-C. All begin with the strut-front, multilink-rear Y70 platform that underpins the XC60 and S80, as well as the previous generation of Volvo’s mid-size sedan and wagon. The dynamic chassis, shod with 18-inch wheels, will be standard for the U.S. market. It boasts springs that are almost 35 percent stiffer, stouter bushings, and harder suspension mounts versus the S80. A new steering column uses thicker tubing relative to its platformmates, and the whole path from the steering wheel to the rack roughly doubles in stiffness.

The gentler touring setting is a no-cost option in the U.S. It is a tweak to the dynamic setting, with more relaxed damper valving and softer front and rear subframe bushings. For $750, you can get the third option, called Four-C (“continuously controlled chassis concept”). In it, adaptive dampers deliver three driver-selectable modes: comfort (analogous to touring), sport (dynamic’s equivalent), and advanced, for the flattest, stiffest response.

At launch there will be four engine options worldwide, ranging from a hobbit-ready 161-hp diesel four to the turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six from the XC60, here putting out a very competitive 300 hp and 325 lb-ft of torque. We will get S60s with just this engine initially, but expect a version of Volvo’s 2.5-liter inline-five within a year. The six, designated T6, hooks up to a six-speed automatic with manual shift control but no shift paddles. It feeds power through a Haldex all-wheel-drive system, which defaults to 95/5 front-to-rear torque distribution but can send all its power to the rear in cases of extreme loss of front grip. The S60 uses its traction-control sensors and braking system to act as torque-vectoring hardware, clamping the inside wheels during hard cornering to help the outside wheels put more churn down. Unlike more sophisticated mechanical systems such as the one in the BMW X6, this so-called corner traction control only works under acceleration, but its goal is the same: Negate understeer and help carve a tighter line through a turn.

Safety Second?

Don’t worry: Volvo’s protective impulses still fire away underneath, and safety systems abound. The big news for the 2011 S60 is the so-called pedestrian detection with full auto brake. It uses front-mounted cameras to pick out a person crossing in front of the car and will slam on the brakes if the driver doesn’t heed its warning. It’s a novel concept, especially considering that about 10 percent of U.S. traffic fatalities involve a pedestrian, but the system hit us with a false positive. You can get it as part of the $2100 Technology package that also includes collision warning, adaptive cruise control with queue assist, distance alert, driver alert control, and lane departure warning. We’d opt to skip all that and stick with the standard safety suite: “City Safety”—which mitigates low-speed collisions—plus inflatable side curtains, stability control, side-impact protection, and whiplash-protective seats.

Better Than IKEA

It all comes wrapped in an undeniably handsome exterior, with a Swedish take on the “four-door coupe” envelope that has become so popular with European (and therefore Korean) carmakers. There’s a welcome sense of Scandinavian simplicity and integration in the bodywork, as the shapes flow into one another. The C-pillars bend down to incorporate the taillamps; angled LEDs flank the grilles; and cursive shoulder lines connect the whole car and anchor its stance.