Any feedback on the Volvo XC60

[JBomb3000]

Hi guys,
I'm currently kicking tyres on a replacement for my Territory Ghia. Must be a diesel, 6 speed auto, 2000 kg minimum braked tow rating and have 2nd row seats that fold flat leaving a reasonable load space. Needs to have the usual luxury appointments such as leather, dual zone climate etc.

Looking spend up to 60k but could maybe stretch that a little for the right car. So far the XC60 is ticking all the boxes. Anyone have an XC60 or any feedback regarding them? Also any other suggestions of what might suit what I’m looking for.
http://www.volvocars.com/au/All-Cars...s/default.aspx

[SVTVNM]

The new Volvo's are a great looking car and the reviews of the new model are full of nothing but praise, Would certainly put it on my wishlist when updating.

[csv8]

Edward Cullen drives one

[ZDI-970]

theres only one problem as far as i can tell.... its a Volvo!!

[JBomb3000]

Originally Posted by D3v[]

theres only one problem as far as i can tell.... its a Volvo!!

There is that issue Given the way the XC60 looks that's becoming less of a problem though. I'd be keen to hear from anyone who has bought one and what the dealers were like as far as negotiating on price.

[1TUFXR]

i would def go for a CX9.... look awesome and go like weapons too... or even a TDV6 2004/2005 range rover sport... might be able to pick on up cheap

[JBomb3000]

Originally Posted by 1TUFXR

i would def go for a CX9.... look awesome and go like weapons too... or even a TDV6 2004/2005 range rover sport... might be able to pick on up cheap

No diesel in the CX9 and i don't know alot about range rovers but i don't want to go second hand.

[territory05]

I'd definitely recommend the XC60 at this stage since there is no diesel territory. They are a very good car, when its time to replace our 05 territory in a year or 2 we'll be getting either the new diesel territory or a XC60, so if we were buying now like you it would be the volvo

[JBomb3000]

Yesterday i went down and took the XC60 for a test drive. The car looks as good in the flesh as it does in pictures, it's a really classy looking motor vehicle. The interior looks great, top quality materials and well put together. The dash is nice with clean lines, well laid out and logical. The rear seats fold flat leaving a good sized flat load area with a handy little under floor storage compartment. The electric folding tailgate is a bit gimmicky IMO it has novelty value for a while but by the time it opens or closes you could have done it yourself in half the time. It could also be a bit of a problem when you’re opening it in tight spaces, it's a one piece tailgate as well which is a bit of a negative compared to the terri.

Sitting in the car about to head off for a test drive the driving position feels weird. You sit low in the car compared to the relatively high waistline of the car meaning your sitting to low to comfortably rest your right elbow on the window still. When you have your seat adjusted so the steering wheel is in the right spot the pedals feel to far away, bring the seat forward and your to close to the wheel. Adjustable pedals like my terri sure would be handy now. The footrest sits to high so you cant really stretch your left leg out and when you’re on cruise control where you’d like to rest your right knee there is a cut out for the door pocket. The centre console sits to low and to far back so you can't rest your left elbow on it comfortably, overall the driving position feels a touch cramped and awkward.

Once underway the road noise is almost inaudible the handling is brilliant and the ride is superb. Feedback through the wheel is a little lacking though and you do fell a touch removed from the car as opposed to integrated with it. The stereo is disappointing given it was Volvos “high performance sound” which is a $1,425 option, it was well below the stock stereo of the Peugeot 4007 I drove last week. If I had to describe the engine in one word it would be uninspiring, it’s smooth until the very high end of the rev range but it’s an uninspiring engine to drive. It relies on torque to get things moving and does so in a workman like fashion but it’s not engaging like the 4007. The 4007 claims 115 kW and 380 Nm and the Volvo 151 kW and 400 Nm, the way they drive you’d think it was the other way around. No complaints about the gearbox though, it’s smooth and it’s logic seems good, the tiptronic mode is the wrong way around but works well and does what’s asked of it when it’s asked.

If the driving ergos were better I could probably forgive the engine but I went in expecting to get blown away and sadly came away disappointed. Seeing I’ve made reference to it I’ll post my thoughts on the 4007 I posted in another section of the forum. But as it stands now I’m leaning towards keeping the terri a while longer and waiting until it hits the market with a diesel motor because as yet I haven’t found anything that ticks all the boxes.

“So i went and took the Pug for a drive. It looks really good in the flesh but looks are subjective so i won’t dwell. As we know it’s smaller than the terri but it wasn’t enough of a difference to worry me initially. The interior is well put together with really nice materials. The dash looked a little plain to me in the pics i’d seen but i really liked it in the flesh. Better than i’d expected. So everything was going well until i looked in the back.

The space in the back with all the seats folded is ordinary, The 3rd row fold flat into the floor so they are ok but the 2nd row only fold 60/40 and take up extra room when folded as well as making the whole space awkward to load. The floor slopes as well which is another black mark. The cargo area is narrow whilst still being fairly tall so overall space is probably ok but practicality is very poor.

The split folding tailgate was ok until the salesman told me with a tow bar fitted and the ball on it would hit the door if i folded it down. WTF!!!!! You must be joking, i honestly can’t believe how stupid some designers can be. By this stage the demo 4007 has arrived back and i’m off for a drive having already decided i don’t like it.

I return from my test drive very conflicted. I did my best not to like this car but after driving it that became very difficult. The drive train is a gem, the engine pulls strongly right from idle. It remains smooth, quiet and well mannered even past the red line. The gearbox logic was really good when left to it’s own devices and using the paddles in manual mode it does what you tell it when you tell it, always remaining smooth and composed.

The seats are comfortable i couldn’t fault the driving position, the steering is well weighted with good feedback and the handling is precise and engaging. Despite trying my best not to, i found it a likable and appealing car to drive.

So where to now? Well if it had seats that folded flat like the terri and you could open the tailgate with the tow ball on i’d probably already own one by now. It’s amazing how some relatively minor things can spoil an otherwise good car. So right at the moment i'm really conflicted about the 4007, i tried to hate it but couldn't, but i don't know if i like it enough to over look 2 pretty obvious flaws.”

[7apples]

good looking car, and if it is what you say........BUY IT