When most people think of Volvo, they think of boring, box shaped vehicles, that are a safe buy. But this is beginning to change, as Volvo recognized that you can have a safe car with dangerously good looks.
This may not be at the top of most college students' shopping lists, as certainly only a few college students with established trust funds can afford one. Realistically, most students will be getting this car as a hand-me-down from their parents in a few years.
The model we tested was about as close to base as one could get. It featured halogen headlamps, and it only featured the cold weather package.
As far as the exterior is concerned, Volvo has come a long way from its boxy 850 and 240 sedans, with this new XC60 having a look that is neither boxy nor pretentiously curvy. The XC60 features a high belt line that is made to give occupants the feeling of being in a larger vehicle and it also gives an impression of implied safety.
Out front, the 2010 XC60 is the first Volvo to show the company’s new design language. The large trapezoidal grille with the Volvo iron mark gives this vehicle a more aggressive stance. Flanking the grille are two lights, known as “DNA lightsâ€.
These “DNA lights†help identify this vehicle as a Volvo and improve its down the road graphics. These types of lights are not new to the industry as BMW created this feature in the mid 1990’s with their “halo eye†park lights and Audi began adding their “Egyptian eyeliner†LED markers a couple years ago.
Long story short, Volvo “DNA lights†reinforce “V†shaped styling cues that can be seen in the grille, on the hood, and at the rear of the vehicle.
Speaking of the rear, the Volvo XC60 features a design that is very close, and in my opinion, better than the XC60 concept car revealed in 2007. LED’s and light piping flank the tailgate, and create a modern look that brings cool and tranquil thoughts to the mind. Combine this with the small circular dots in the plastic surrounds and this is a feature you could find yourself staring at for hours.
Below this you will find the brake lights, reverse lights, and turn signal which I can only describe as, "simply placed". On a vehicle like this I would expect them to get a similar styling treatment as the tail lamps and CHMSL. It is surprising that none of these are LED’s.
Capricious ranting aside, Volvo did get the styling of the rear end right. An additional feature we found that no one else has written about is, if you suddenly brake very hard, two additional brake lights on the lower bumper fascia will light up. This aids others during high speed driving by helping them better determine that the vehicle is making a panic stop.
Plain and simple, Volvo interiors are located at the intersection of form and function. The interior of the vehicle expresses what I call the “simplified sophistication†theme seen in all modern Volvos. What that essentially means is that you have very organic forms, textures, and colors that conceal technology and the extra thought that gives them a high visual quality.
The seats are comfortable and most are offered in leather trims. Since the XC60 is Volvo’s small CUV, there isn’t a third row offered. This is a good thing since vehicles in this class that do offer a third row are made people without heads, shoulders or legs.
In the XC60, Volvo gives the highest variety of interior color options of any vehicle in this segment. This gives potential owners a better opportunity to match the interior with their personality. From the “plain Jane†'Sandstone Beige' to the eclectic blends of the 'Lemon Green on Offblack' leather, you will find and interior finish that you won’t regret having chosen.
For the United States, there only three interior trim options, which are brushed aluminum, Nordic light oak, and the Bauxite trim that is reserved for the R-Design model. Most of this trim can be found on the thin floating center console. This is probably the most noteworthy portion the interior as it has an iPhone-like design quality and you can store many items behind it.
This car can be optioned out with a variety of innovative and seamlessly implemented options. First is BLIS, Volvo’s BLind-spot Information System that will alert you to when someone is lurking in one of your blind spots.
There is also a front and rear parking assist that can be mated with a rear camera. I highly recommend that if you only get one option, to get the parking camera as this thing has dumps like a truck.
You could probably convince most car dealers to include the Bluetooth hands-free system and maybe even the MP3 connector with USB and AUX input. Our tester was also equipped with the integrated Volvo navigation system.
What threw us off about the navigation system was how you input destination. Volvo gives you a choice of using a 4-way nipple located on the collar of the steering wheel or a remote. That’s right, a remote, no touch screen or key pad. The screen resolution could be better, as it looks like something V-tech could have made about ten years ago.
There is also an upgraded audio system by Dynaudio that is greater than standard, but is not worth calling your friends about. It has great sound quality if you are into jazz or classical music, but it does not have enough power or bass to fully appreciate Top 40, Hip-Hop, and alternative music that young drivers listen to.
This is the most technologically advanced vehicle Volvo has ever made, and it has so many standard and available safety features that if you crash this vehicle into something you definitely have a problem.
This is actually the first production vehicle that can stop itself. Using a system called City Safety, cameras and lasers can determine if you are about to be involved in a collision.
If so, the system will pre-charge the brakes for shorter stopping distances and even apply the brakes to stop the car or lessen the impact. You can put this system on steroids if you opt into the Technology Package in which you get Collision Warning with Auto Brake.
Collision Warning with Auto Brake is intended for highway use and does the same thing as City Safety, only at higher speeds, and with an audible and visible alarm. Also included in this package is a Lane Departure Warning system, adaptive cruise control, and a feature called Driver Alert Control. It uses cameras to sense whether you are asleep, sleepy, or otherwise distracted. Driver Alert Control, will prompt the driver by displaying a coffee mug and asking them to pull over and take a break.
Remember this is a Volvo, so there are plenty of dual-stage airbags in front and beside you to walk away from nearly any crash in the land of the tank-sized SUV. The vehicle also features seat belt pre-tensioners and a whiplash protection system that is the best in the industry.
And finally for those late night rides back home from parties, Volvo offers active bending headlamps. These are basically self-leveling bi-xenon projector headlamps that turn when you turn the steering wheel. How much they turn is dependent on your speed.
This is definitely a car that you will get as a hand-me-down, so go with your parents to the dealership and pick out the options you want. At nearly $33,000 base and upwards of $47,000 fully loaded, this isn’t a cheap car, which is why we recommend waiting at least 3 years for this car to depreciate to the mid $20,000 range before considering purchasing one.
This vehicle is also very safe, and we hope that Volvo will let many of these features trickle down into some of their smaller car offerings. As for the navigation system, it is not terrible, it just seems outdated and the inputs seem a bit wonky.
We expect Volvo to update this system in around the 2013 model year, when we anticipate the model will be facelifted and get a navigation and information system that more closely resembles that in the 2011 Volvo S60.
