Volvo V60 Review in Malaysia

Call it naughty or wicked, but Volvo just wants you to appreciate that its cars are crafted to be visually exciting beyond the perception that they are boringly safe.

Don’t misunderstand. Safe is good if you get to drive another day with all faculties intact, life being such a fragile entity.

Heap on more than a modicum of performance to the aesthetics and you have the makings of the modern-day Volvo.



The V60 showed up on local roads in January following the launch of the “naughty” S60 sedan the year before.

The test unit was the 2.0-litre V60 T5, one of two variants on sale here. The other is the 1.6-litre V60 T4 that exits the showroom at a friendlier price of RM230,000, nearly RM40,000 less than the T5.

Volvo’s latest – it’s not just a wagon, it’s a sportswagon – strives to inject more drama to its Scandinavian looks, going all curvy in places its designers seek to imagine and realise.

It’s a longer and broader car than the V50 wagon we tried in 2005, the better to show sensuous coupe curves to best effect. (We liked the V50, by the way.)

The end result of all those man-hours put into styling the new V60 is a product that looks thoroughly appealing – even to someone who might not consider such a body style in the first place.

The pronounced wedge shape and slim coupe-like roof line of the V60 are accompanied by the shoulder profile along the car’s sides, creating a gentle yet strong double wave from the headlamps at the front to the tail lamps at the rear.

The dip in the middle of the double wave visually pushes the car down, enhancing the stance and makes the car look sleeker and lower. The sculpted bonnet, and short overhangs front and rear also underscore the sports car feel.

In the minds of the collective at Gothenburg, the objective was on making the car as close to a coupe as possible, while retaining that handy extra space at the rear.

According to the pecking order in Volvo-world, the V60 – based on the S60 sedan – is slotted in between the S60 and the even bigger V70 wagon that’s not available on this side of the pond.

Jump into the driver’s seat, and you see a fascia that resembles that of the S60, portraying a look that is at once understated and elegant.

Apart from the usual meter cluster, which should by now have gone coloured instead of the staid monotone, the other island of busy-ness is the floating centre stack where the stereo/air-conditioner/car setting buttons are lumped together.

The 17.8cm colour infotainment screen above the stack displays a variety of vehicle comfort and control settings as well as navigational information.

The centre stack of the V60 is angled a little towards the driver to give the impression of focus and control.

The new three-spoke steering wheel and new sports seats with extra side supports are standard.

Integrated booster cushions in the rear seats allow two children to be positioned at the correct height for the safety belt. It’s a nifty feature that parents would appreciate.

The dark ambience is contrasted by cream-colour leather seats that offer a striking but pleasant counterpoint to the interior design.

Seats are firm and supportive, and there’s adequate head and leg-room all round.

Rear view is excellent even with the two head restraints in the rear seats up. They fold down at the push of a button.

Forward view is not an issue though one wishes the slab housing the cameras for advanced safety features, known as City Safety/Collision Warning, in front of the rearview mirror would be smaller and less visible to free up a wider viewing angle.

Some folks are rather miffed with the luggage space, describing the 430 litres as rather small for such a big car. The criticism is it seems, that space was sacrificed for style as is often the case for many a pretty car.

But from the viewpoint of, say a family of four, there is quite enough room to work with, whether to fill it up with the monthly groceries or the luggage that accompanies the occasional balik kampung trips to some backwater of Malaysia.

And of course, like most cars, the back seats fold forward for extra space if required.

If you are sold on the looks, the driving experience of the locally assembled car is another talking point.

Get it moving and what you feel is a sensation of quietude and comfort as it makes its way smartly through traffic.

It is a quick wagon, thanks to a responsive turbocharged 4-cylinder engine that dials up 240bhp at 5,500rpm and 320Nm at 1,800 to 5,000rpm. It despatches the 0-100kph sprint in 7.7s.

Power delivery is linear and the engine pulls strongly from low revs.

Complementing the engine is the dual-clutch Powershift transmission, a carryover from the days of Ford ownership. The six-speeder is Volvo’s retort to the Direct Shift Gearbox (DSG) of VW.

It shifts quickly, smoothly, decisively and doesn’t hesitate on take-off. Further. it’s designed to withstand high twisting forces exceeding 400Nm.

The potholes and irregularities that local roads have to offer can intrude into the interior, and this is attributed to a firm ride that still manages to stay comfortable in most cases.

To its credit, the firm but compliant dampers make for terrific control on twisty roads, with plenty of grip displayed by 17-inch Continental ContiSportContact 3 tyres.

A holistic approach to safety underlined by a stable chassis and effective deployment of electronics serves to impress upon the driver that the car could tackle any misadventures that may arise.

Volvo has said before that its ultimate aim is to build a car that cannot crash.

Going by the arsenal of safety equipment fitted in the V60, it looks like the car maker is well on its way to making that an achievable goal.

Among others, the V60 T5 includes ground-breaking supportive technology to help avoid collisions, detect pedestrains and alert a distracted driver.

Standard safety equipment are airbags, Active Bending Lights, Blind Spot Information System, City Safety and Dynamic Stability, and Traction Control.

The Adaptive Cruise Control, available only for the T5, automatically maintains a set gap from the vehicle in front. What is new is that the Adaptive Cruise Control operates from standstill up to 30kph.

Sleek as it is with the performance to match, the V60 T5 will likely remain a niche model in this country where preference for wagons in whatever flavour remains an “exotic” choice.

What Volvo is offering is a stylish and soundly-engineered product to those who are not afraid to be different.