WATCH  New 2017  Volvo XC60 Review
Channel: Auto Today
Date: 10/01/2017

WATCH  New 2017  Volvo XC60 Review. Volvo’s XC60 crossover, which debuted as a 2010 model and was last updated for 2014, is a competent and sophisticated luxury ute when viewed in isolation. But park one next to the brand’s excellent new XC90 SUV, and its gray hairs immediately become apparent—an observation we made in our review of a front-wheel-drive 2015 T6 model with Volvo’s then new Drive-E gasoline four-cylinder. With so many newer alternatives in the white-hot crossover class, simply adding all-wheel drive to a similar T6 model—the focus of this review—doesn’t change the XC60’s aged status.

The mid-size XC60 T6 Drive-E is motivated by the more powerful of Volvo’s two 2.0-liter turbocharged fours (the XC60’s turbocharged inline five- and six-cylinder engines, still available on non-Drive-E variants, will be discontinued for 2017). With assistance from a belt-driven supercharger in addition to the turbo, the T6 version produces a stout 302 horsepower at 5700 rpm and 295 lb-ft of torque at 2100 rpm. Despite some coarseness at high revs, it’s a power-dense engine capable of moving even the larger, three-row XC90 with ease. There’s notably more thrust and better throttle response than there is in the 240-hp, turbo-only T5 Drive-E, which shares the smooth-shifting eight-speed automatic with this T6 version; lesser XC60s get by with a six-speed automatic.

Mediocre Moves

As you’d expect, all-wheel drive adds both cost and weight: $2000 on the XC60’s window sticker and about 100 pounds. Our 4205-pound test car reached 60 mph in 6.4 seconds and covered the quarter-mile in 14.8 seconds at 97 mph—respectable figures that put it midpack among competitors such as the Audi Q5, the Lexus RX350, and the Lincoln MKX. With the engine’s grunt distributed between both axles instead of just to the front, there’s less torque steer tugging at the wheel during hard acceleration and a greater sense of stability in turns. The super-turbo-four is even more potent (rated for 14 more horsepower) in the XC90 T6, which is 500 pounds heavier and which, in our last comparison test in California, hit the same acceleration marks in 6.0 and 14.6 seconds, respectively. The all-wheel-drive XC60 carries an EPA combined fuel-economy figure of 22 mpg versus the front-driver’s 24 mpg. We only averaged 21 mpg over nearly 900 miles of mixed driving, but that’s about on par with our measurements for others in the class and actually 1 mpg better than what the front-wheel-drive version returned in our hands.

The XC60 prioritizes safe and secure handling over driving enjoyment, which makes sense for this segment. Ride quality is generally calm and composed, except for some loud clomping over large pavement seams. But the chassis and the numb, electrically assisted steering refuse to contribute any fun when pushed hard into a corner. Predictable understeer is the overriding quality regardless of the number of driven wheels. Our test car’s 19-inch Michelin all-season tires had grip rivaling the front-drive XC60’s 20-inch Pirelli Scorpion Zeros—we measured 0.79 g versus 0.82, with both vehicles limited by intervention from a stability-control system that can’t be fully disabled. Despite an initially soft-feeling brake pedal, our example’s so-so stopping performance (70 to zero mph in 183 feet) was, again, average for the segment.

Little of the Volvo’s at-the-limit performance matters, however, when sitting in our test car’s optional $500 Contour seats—some of the most comfortable and supportive thrones extant. While the XC60’s back seat is a little tight on legroom, there’s ample space in total for four people and their stuff; the split-folding seatbacks fold flat in a cinch, which opens up the capacious 31-cubic-foot cargo hold to a full 67 cubes.

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