Even though the 2014 model has a facelifted front end and redone interior, the Volvo S60T6 R-Design still manages to give me the anonymity I crave with the sporty feel I love. Anonymous and fun to drive in the city -- that's what I'd say after a weekend in it.
Unless you have a BMW M5, hardly anyone's going to take a larger sedan like this to an autocross. So rather than alienate most buyers with a harsh suspension fit only for a racetrack, Volvo has managed to straddle sporty and luxurious and deliver a car that makes everyday urban driving a little more fun than it might otherwise be. The R-Design trim level gets actual performance enhancements, too, and not just those stickers and wings. Yes, it gets the silly aerodynamic cosmetics that I would just as soon do without, as well as the R-Design aluminum inlays and sport pedals, but it also gets stiffer springs, bushings, sway bars and monotube shocks. It rides more than a half-inch lower than the stock S60, too. The result is a practical sedan that is remarkably comfortable yet still mostly responsive for spelunking into city traffic. Maybe if I'd entered it in an autocross, I'd notice different handling traits exhibited only at the limit like, maybe, understeer. But I didn't. On empty freeway interchanges taken much faster than those yellow recommended speed signs suggest, it held on smoothly. From a standstill, it got to 60 mph in just 5.0 seconds, a figure that would surely have dropped by half a second if I could have switched off the traction control. As it was, TC and DTSC eliminated any benefit that might have come from brake-torquing off the line, leaving a half-second's worth of launch time at the starting line. Stomp on the gas and it sort of sits there as five tenths tick on by. Then off it goes, the shifter in Sport and the six-speeds clicking off as you vroom away. After the suspension upgrades, the next best thing I liked was the R-Design seats. They grasp your gizzard like a long-lost lover and don't let go until you're ready to leave, which might be a while. The rest of the interior was fully functional and not at all hard to live in.
My preconceived notion of price about this thing was about $15K more than it actually cost. Even in R-Design trim it was only $44,165. You could get a Chevy SS for that. The SS is more powerful and a half-second quicker to 60, and of course the SS is a little less refined, more of a beast, but it's a delightful beast, if you can imagine that, one you will enjoy wrestling with. The Volvo offers European refinement to go with its sporty character. The SS is a brawling Aussie who's had a few Fosters. You like both of them, but the Aussie will get you in more trouble, which maybe you could stand lately. A comparable Mercedes-Benz (say an E350 Sport Sedan with the 3.5-liter six and seven-speed automatic) is eight grand more, a BMW 535i xDrive Sedan with AWD, 3.0-liter turbo six-cylinder and eight-speed automatic is $10K more; but everybody has those. You're not going to see R-Designs going back and forth on your street. The Volvo is a way to satisfy both the spouse, who wants “a safe car” (said without knowing anything at all about all those FMVSS hoops all cars have to leap through nowadays) and yourself, who wants a “fun” car (said knowing how much fun cars can be). You're both happy and both think you've pulled one over on the other. But you know best, don't you?
The 2014 Volvo S60 T6 R-Design comes in at a base price of $43,615 with our tester topping off at $44,165.
ASSOCIATE WEST COAST EDITOR BLAKE Z. RONG: This Volvo arrived during the most tenacious storm Los Angeles had seen in three years. The rain came down in sheets. Clouds marched overhead like an impending invasion. The 3.0-liter turbocharged six-cylinder, breathed upon by Polestar, is a beaut -- it's soon to be phased out for the 2.0-liter turbo four underpinning Volvo's entire lineup, so we had better salute this while we still can. Haldex AWD felt light on its feet. The S60 T6 is fast as all hell but its throttle is touchy, and launching from a stoplight in a non-frenetic way involves tapping the throttle, lurching forward, and lifting off before the turbo lag finishes. Whoosh.
The S60 has some strange options, some advanced luxury features that omit some seemingly basic ones. There are adaptive headlights, but no navigation. Then there are automatic mirrors, but no rear camera. Those are part of a $3,000 Platinum package, one that we think will be a leap of faith for Volvo buyers.
Volvo aims to double down and become a global player in the premium game once and for all. In that case, tactility is important -- the way things feel impart further feelings of quality, of detail, of getting what you paid nearly $44,165 for. Heck, I'm typing this on an IBM keyboard old enough to graduate college, for that very reason: because I love the way the keys feel. In the S60's case, every lid and cover in the center console feels reluctant to open, for one. The headliner can be pushed in by a good 3 inches. Doors close with mushiness, not Scandinavian safety-minded surety. Stalk-mounted trip computers need to go away. An aggressive driver doesn't so much as bang the shifter into Sport mode but creak it over like a recalcitrant front door. Volvo could do little better than to make every touch point and every button and every sweateddetail feel like an IBM Model M from 1984.
Volvo did nail it on the seats, which look and feel great and feature bolsters fat enough to smuggle medium-sized waterfowl. The gauges themselves are beautiful, responsive and accurate. Volvo's floating dashboard is still chic but aggressively aging -- this might be the only carmaker in the world that makes its dummy placeholder buttons, the ones that remind you how poor you are, for not ordering more options, actual press-able buttons. Europeans are obsessed with telephone numbers -- see Benz, who only recently started hiding them. They work well for presets, but who memorizes phone numbers anymore?
And yet, what's brilliant about this Volvo is a button in the dashboard that, when pressed, orders the rear headrests to flop down as if ordered by a drill sergeant. There, maximum visibility. Genius. The government should make this a requirement on every new car in America, possibly the world.
As-Tested Price: $44,165
Drivetrain: 3.0-liter turbocharged I6; AWD, six-speed automatic
Output: 325 hp @ 5,400 rpm, 354 lb-ft @ 3,000 rpm
Curb Weight: 3,835 lb
0-60 MPH: 5.0 sec (AW)
Fuel Economy (EPA City/Highway/Combined): 18/25/21 mpg
AW Observed Fuel Economy: 21.9 mpg
Options: Metallic paint ($550)
Unless you have a BMW M5, hardly anyone's going to take a larger sedan like this to an autocross. So rather than alienate most buyers with a harsh suspension fit only for a racetrack, Volvo has managed to straddle sporty and luxurious and deliver a car that makes everyday urban driving a little more fun than it might otherwise be. The R-Design trim level gets actual performance enhancements, too, and not just those stickers and wings. Yes, it gets the silly aerodynamic cosmetics that I would just as soon do without, as well as the R-Design aluminum inlays and sport pedals, but it also gets stiffer springs, bushings, sway bars and monotube shocks. It rides more than a half-inch lower than the stock S60, too. The result is a practical sedan that is remarkably comfortable yet still mostly responsive for spelunking into city traffic. Maybe if I'd entered it in an autocross, I'd notice different handling traits exhibited only at the limit like, maybe, understeer. But I didn't. On empty freeway interchanges taken much faster than those yellow recommended speed signs suggest, it held on smoothly. From a standstill, it got to 60 mph in just 5.0 seconds, a figure that would surely have dropped by half a second if I could have switched off the traction control. As it was, TC and DTSC eliminated any benefit that might have come from brake-torquing off the line, leaving a half-second's worth of launch time at the starting line. Stomp on the gas and it sort of sits there as five tenths tick on by. Then off it goes, the shifter in Sport and the six-speeds clicking off as you vroom away. After the suspension upgrades, the next best thing I liked was the R-Design seats. They grasp your gizzard like a long-lost lover and don't let go until you're ready to leave, which might be a while. The rest of the interior was fully functional and not at all hard to live in.
My preconceived notion of price about this thing was about $15K more than it actually cost. Even in R-Design trim it was only $44,165. You could get a Chevy SS for that. The SS is more powerful and a half-second quicker to 60, and of course the SS is a little less refined, more of a beast, but it's a delightful beast, if you can imagine that, one you will enjoy wrestling with. The Volvo offers European refinement to go with its sporty character. The SS is a brawling Aussie who's had a few Fosters. You like both of them, but the Aussie will get you in more trouble, which maybe you could stand lately. A comparable Mercedes-Benz (say an E350 Sport Sedan with the 3.5-liter six and seven-speed automatic) is eight grand more, a BMW 535i xDrive Sedan with AWD, 3.0-liter turbo six-cylinder and eight-speed automatic is $10K more; but everybody has those. You're not going to see R-Designs going back and forth on your street. The Volvo is a way to satisfy both the spouse, who wants “a safe car” (said without knowing anything at all about all those FMVSS hoops all cars have to leap through nowadays) and yourself, who wants a “fun” car (said knowing how much fun cars can be). You're both happy and both think you've pulled one over on the other. But you know best, don't you?
The 2014 Volvo S60 T6 R-Design comes in at a base price of $43,615 with our tester topping off at $44,165.
The S60 has some strange options, some advanced luxury features that omit some seemingly basic ones. There are adaptive headlights, but no navigation. Then there are automatic mirrors, but no rear camera. Those are part of a $3,000 Platinum package, one that we think will be a leap of faith for Volvo buyers.
Volvo aims to double down and become a global player in the premium game once and for all. In that case, tactility is important -- the way things feel impart further feelings of quality, of detail, of getting what you paid nearly $44,165 for. Heck, I'm typing this on an IBM keyboard old enough to graduate college, for that very reason: because I love the way the keys feel. In the S60's case, every lid and cover in the center console feels reluctant to open, for one. The headliner can be pushed in by a good 3 inches. Doors close with mushiness, not Scandinavian safety-minded surety. Stalk-mounted trip computers need to go away. An aggressive driver doesn't so much as bang the shifter into Sport mode but creak it over like a recalcitrant front door. Volvo could do little better than to make every touch point and every button and every sweateddetail feel like an IBM Model M from 1984.
Volvo did nail it on the seats, which look and feel great and feature bolsters fat enough to smuggle medium-sized waterfowl. The gauges themselves are beautiful, responsive and accurate. Volvo's floating dashboard is still chic but aggressively aging -- this might be the only carmaker in the world that makes its dummy placeholder buttons, the ones that remind you how poor you are, for not ordering more options, actual press-able buttons. Europeans are obsessed with telephone numbers -- see Benz, who only recently started hiding them. They work well for presets, but who memorizes phone numbers anymore?
And yet, what's brilliant about this Volvo is a button in the dashboard that, when pressed, orders the rear headrests to flop down as if ordered by a drill sergeant. There, maximum visibility. Genius. The government should make this a requirement on every new car in America, possibly the world.
2014 Volvo S60 T6 R-Design
Base Price: $43,615As-Tested Price: $44,165
Drivetrain: 3.0-liter turbocharged I6; AWD, six-speed automatic
Output: 325 hp @ 5,400 rpm, 354 lb-ft @ 3,000 rpm
Curb Weight: 3,835 lb
0-60 MPH: 5.0 sec (AW)
Fuel Economy (EPA City/Highway/Combined): 18/25/21 mpg
AW Observed Fuel Economy: 21.9 mpg
Options: Metallic paint ($550)
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