Six things you might not know about the Volvo XC60 T6

Volvos are boxy, right?   Well, exterior designer Doug Frasher evidently didn’t get the memo.  From the front three-quarter view, the XC60 looks downright aggressive.  And when’s the last time you saw an angry box? Volvos are poky.   This is in keeping with the first point.  When you think “box” you probably imagine something ponderous, not powerful.  Yet the XC60 T6 AWD has a 3.0-liter six with DOHC, continuous variable valve timing, a variable intake system, and cam profile switching (yes, this is a CUV, not a performance sedan) that produces 281 hp @ 5,600 rpm and 295 lb-ft of torque @ 1,500 rpm.  In addition to which, there is all-wheel-drive with instant traction.  You step on the accelerator, and it grips and goes, even though it weighs in just north of 4K lb. Volvos have suspension setups for the straight and narrow.   The XC60 features independent strut suspension with an anti-roll bar and anti-dive geometry in the front and a multilink suspension mounted on an alloy subframe in the rear.  There’s power-assisted rack-and-pinion steering.  This system is more in keeping with the aforementioned ability to get up and go than with some stiff and stultifying piece of Scandinavian furniture. Volvos are expensive.   The base price is $37,200.  And this brings you all manner of features and functions, from the amazing Volvo-developed City Safety system (it uses a laser sensor at the top of the windshield near the rearview mirror that monitors what is ahead; active at speeds up to 19 mph, if a vehicle ahead brakes suddenly, the brakes are precharged for better stopping power and if the driver doesn’t hit the brakes, then the car applies the brakes automatically—I’ve had the opportunity to experience this under controlled conditions, and it works amazingly well) to quality leather seats (the quality of leather in some cars seems as though it comes from animals that aren’t partial to hay).  While the Mercedes GLK350 4Matic starts lower, at $35,500, the Lexus RX AWD starts at $38,200 and the Infiniti FX35 AWD at $43,600. Volvos are for seasoned citizens.   My 15-year-old niece asked if I was going to take her to school in “that cool car.”  Yes, she meant the XC60.  While she is far from being the demographic, the sensible-shoes-and-umbrella notion of the Volvo goes right out the window or the laminated panoramic roof that is featured in the vehicle. Volvo ought to be sold off by Ford.   Apparently, that’s what the management of FoMoCo thinks.  While they might be presently perceived as savants because they haven’t been in Washington, cup in hand like a character out of Oliver Twist, their putting Volvo on the market so that they can concentrate on their “core brands,” they are missing the fact of the manner, which is that not only does Volvo have some incredible engineering capabilities (City Safety, for example, was developed in-house, which I noted in point 4, but which bears repeating), but let’s face it, Volvo has more panache than Lincoln among those who are concerned with that.  The selling of Volvo would lead me to put a derogatory adjective in front of savant.

Vehicle as Driven

Engine: 3.0-liter, six

Horsepower: 281 @ 5,600 rpm

Torque: 295 lb-ft @ 1,500 rpm

Transmission: Six-speed automatic

Wheelbase: 109.2 in.

Length: 182.2 in.

Height: 67.4 in.

Width: 84.3 in.

Curb weight: 4,174 lb.

EPA fuel economy: 16 mpg city; 22 mpg highway