Swedish junior executive saloon takes aim at Germany’s finest and is first Volvo to ditch diesel power.
It looks like a truncated S90…
That’s because it essentially is. The third generation of the Volvo S60 has just been unveiled in the US and sits beneath the S90 to rival the Audi A4, BMW 3 Series and Mercedes-Benz C-Class.
Like the S90, Volvo’s junior executive saloon is built on the SPA platform but with slightly shorter dimensions. Even so, the S60’s wheelbase length of 2,872mm is nearly 100mm longer than in the preceding model.
Volvo says the latest S60 is a better car to drive than before and promises driving dynamics matching its intended competition. The S60 is either front- or all-wheel drive.
I bet it’s got that T8 performance hybrid…
Yes it does. On top of the range of the S60 is the T8 which combines that familiar turbo and supercharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with plug-in hybrid tech. With four driven wheels and 400hp of power, the T8 goes from 0-100kph in less than 5sec.
Next up is the T6 producing a lesser 340hp, while the conventional petrol head is the 250hp T5. All engine variants are mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission.
The S60 is the first Volvo to ditch diesel power as the Swedes have already announced their intentions of eventually switching to electrified petrol engines and pure electric propulsion in the future.
Can it drive by itself totally?
Not yet. But Volvo is boasting some driver-assist technologies that are said to be superior over its competition.
The automatic braking system at city speeds, for one, has been upgraded to detect a wider variety of obstacles on the road and mitigate oncoming collisions.
The so-called Pilot Assist, which can support the driver with steering, acceleration and braking on marked roads, is also claimed to have improved cornering performance.
Like in other Volvos currently on sale in Thailand, the S60 will highlight a raft of standard features when sales start early next year.
Expect the plug-in hybrid models to take centre stage as the BMW 330e and Mercedes-Benz C350e have taken advantage of low excise taxation in the country to yield prices between 2.5 and three million baht.
