2009 Volvo XC90 AWD

Boy could be which about that automobile obtaining ancient. From the legal antiquated dash
artwork to the squeaks plus rattles around city, I suppose it appearance previous point
for Volvo
to discover started brooding concerning launching a recent 3-row SUV. Also,
the three.2-liter inline-six isn't always any or each one smoother compared to a good amount up of V-6 engines
and the final fuel economy of the current XC90 is simply not spectacular.
Like most Volvo models, the nice qualities shine after you
settle keep to the cosseting seats on a swish highway run. In that
state of affairs, this Swedish SUV continue to feels lovely sensible.



Yep, the smartest factor about this Volvo
XC90 tend to be its terribly handsome, very comfortable seats, swathed in
wealthy, creamy leather and accented allowing for contrasting piping. They
virtually appear to be they returned from a choice Rover. Less than the remainder of the
vehicle, as Marc points out, is pretty superseded, and the vehicle's
dynamics are a comprehensive generation in the dirt the competition.
It's troublesome to inform what is definitely going on to take place to Volvo
- its owner, Ford,
is attempting to locate somebody to install the Swedish carmaker - but after it
lands a new caretaker, the first order of industrial desires to be
development of a fashionable, three-row crossover SUV. Readily available are purely a just
approach too several crossovers out there for this kind of money that are
a heap better to drive than the XC90.



I additionally suffer from never driven an XC90 in years, thus I consideration it might be a
good concept to spend a weekend with this R-design example. As Marc
and Joe have pointed out, the 3.2-liter I-6 is getting tired together
with the remainder of the vehicle. There have been a couple squeaks and rattles
present, but I did not mind that the maximum amount as Marc because I spent most
of my time making an attempt to plow through a fresh dusting of snow. I
appreciated the awd but the braking performance, with all-season
tires, used to be pretty poor in snow.
Inside, the XC90 still looks and feels good. As Joe points
out, the seats appear upscale and are supremely comfortable. It has
amazing what percentage automakers carry out not have comfortable seats in luxury
automobiles. Volvo
might not have much right with the XC90 anymore but a minimum of there is
no physical discomfort and the ergonomics are acceptable.



Yes, the XC90 is beginning to demonstrate its age, but the qualities
for which Volvo
is better currently known - its security measures - are still there in spades,
with roll stability management, a blind-spot warning system, and high
ratings in each and every NHTSA crash take a look at. On the plus facet, the cabin
environment is comfortable (the better seats during the business), and,
with all-wheel drive, this SUV is comforting to plow through the
snow. Still, the XC90 would absolutely advantage from a bunch of upgrades,
starting with the base engine - the 281-hp 3.0-liter inline six
that can gain be in the hot XC60 would appear to be an excellent work. Updated
interior and exterior styling would not damage, either.



I concur: seats from the gods! If I could have pulled one out
and dropped it in my living room, I might have. The leather is
amazingly cushy and the contrasting colour insert and side piping is
a rich, engaging detail which, as DeMatio noted, brands them look
as though they came from a Number Rover. The upright seating position
and tall side windows can assist in giving the driving force a commanding view of the line
underneath, a closer aspect that could be paying homage to a
Land Rover.
If only the remainder of the vehicle felt as prime quality. After
only a couple of minutes in the XC90, the mechanism inside the direction
wheel adjustment lever broke exiting the lever dangling from the
side of the column and forcing me to brace the wheel for the rest
of my drive so it did not move up, down, or forward. The lever
ultimately popped back into place but it is indicative of the
second-rate quality that is sprinkled throughout the XC90's
cabin.
The engine is not particularly smooth and it struggles to move
this almost 4500 pound vehicle with any urgency. Another negative
is the legal giant turning radius which I discovered pulling into my
side-entry garage. I had to back up and take a look at out once added. Twice. This
would definitely come back into play around town and in decent parking
lots.



These posh seats that everyone's fawning over are reputedly
a section of our tester's R-design package, which explains one of the number of
attempts Volvo's
constructed at modernizing the XC90. Between the flowery seats, sporty
wheels, and an auxiliary audio jack awkwardly placed right smack
between the cupholders, there's small to distinguish this 2009
XC90 from an original 2002 model.
Perhaps this wouldn't feel so dated if Volvo did not have more moderen
all-wheel-drive crossovers in its lineup. Nevertheless it does. And when the
all-new XC60 (or even a XC70, for that matter) looks and drives so
much better, you may begin puzzling over if the new model isn't value
the additional $200 over a base XC90.
Although you'll get rid of two seats and a few interior space in the
process, I would argue that the XC60 is the legal much better vehicle. You'll
still get the identical all-wheel-drive grip, but during a package that's
both sublime and latest. Unless you absolutely wish to have your next
Volvo to be a seven-seater, I'd have a look at the second XC models.



Inline sixes seldom shake prefer wet dogs at idle. This one
does. The explanation why few manufacturers cram such an engine sideways
between the front wheels is that it results in a massive flip circle.
In the Volvo
XC90, you want a full 40 feet to whole a U-turn between
curbs, 2.4-feet more than just in an Acura
MDX. To take a look at winter mobility, I drove into the teeth of a
Michigan hurricane, an assignment this hulk completed with pride.
Except for a marginally lazy stability-system engagement, the XC90
soldiered forth sort of a letter carrier anticipating the finish of his
route. To learn about passenger accommodations, I ushered four adults and
three youngsters aboard to move to Detroit's gala boat display. Loading the
back row posed a more awkward climb than is typical of minivans but
otherwise this mid-size SUV performed like a consummate servant.
For $40,000+, it ought to. But since fun-to-drive is missing, I'd
sooner invest in a Grand Caravan and pocket the $10,000 value
difference.



2009
Volvo XC90 AWD
Base Price (with destination): $42,245
Price as tested: $47,590
Options:
- Metallic Paint - $525
- Climate & Technology Package - $2970
- Heated Front Seats, Rain Sensor/Headlight Washers, Dynaudio
Premium Sound System, Rear Seat Headphone Jacks and Audio
Controls
- Electronically Controlled AWD - $1850
Fuel Economy: Fourteen / 20 / Sixteen (city/hwy/combined)
Engine:
Size: 3.2 Liter 6-Cylinder DOHC Alloy Engine
HP: 235 HP @ 6200 RPM
Torque: 236 lb.-ft @ 3200 RPM
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Weight: 4464 lb.
Wheel/Tire Info:
- 19" Alloy Wheels
- All-Season Tires

2009 Volvo XC60

In March, the legal every one new Volvo
XC60 could be sufficient to persist sale during the u. s.. Launched about that fall in
Europe, the XC60 is Volvo's entry in the "small premium utility
segment," where it will take on the likes up of the BMW
X5, the Acura
RDX, the Audi
Q5, plus the overall
Infiniti EX35. Expecting to build on its "safety first" image,
Volvo has got added measure of performance and a laugh to its newest
vehicle, emphasizing styling, high-tech content, and all-around
capability.




SALES TARGETS
Volvo
sees the XC60 though "the C30 owner's next car" and expects to sell
Fifty,000 pertaining to year worldwide, allowing for the U. s. expected to
account for 40 p.c of the market. The XC60 is the entry-level
automobile for Volve's XC number, which also contains the XC70 wagon and
the XC90 SUV/crossover. As such, the base value for an XC60 T6 AWD
(the purely model on the market at launch) ought to be concerning $36,000.
Be expecting to spend $40,000 for an XC60 provided with all the goodies,
which included navigation and a wide ranging roof.
Unfortunately, the XC60 is predicted to go back back only Fifteen mpg in
the city and Twenty-two mpg on the highway. Ask for a somewhat lighter
front-wheel-drive model sometime later in the year, which should always
come back better numbers.
Volvo XC60 SUV/crossover
Base price (estimated): $36,000
Engine: 1.6-liter turbocharged I-6, 281 hp, 295 lb-ft
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Drive: 4-wheel
Fuel economy: 15/22/ mpg (est.)
On sale: March 2009

First Look: 2011 Volvo S60

It used to be no longer which long ago that Volvos were basically thought about to be safety boxes on wheels. Less than over the go back on decade or thus, the automobiles up from Gothenburg suffer from evolved back into curvaceous automobiles that retain the security of his or her boxy predecessors. The 2011 Volvo S60, perhaps the the majority of elegant Volvo nevertheless, could be determined to debut at the 2010 Geneva motor display about that March. Allowing for the 2011 S60, Volvo aimed for a sportier plus added visually engaging artwork by incorporating the search of a four-door coupe. The S60's new rakish roofline is the legal a phase of the flowing styling dubbed "racetrack" design, which suggests therefore the car's lines carry out not finish abruptly at every one or any purpose but instead flow organically around the whole vehicle. With its sculpted front fascia, short overhangs, and flowing taillights, we tend to even have to claim the S60's design really works. Volvo did not leave the sporty adjustments simply to the S60's styling, nonetheless, because the hot S60 contains a more dynamic chassis in comparison to any Volvo prior to it. The S60 sports stiffer is derived all around and a stiffer chassis to increase grip and can help give the motive force more management. Together with all of these upgrades during the brand name of sporty driving, Volvo improved the damping to supply a balance between stiffness and ride comfort. "We spent a lot of weeks fine-tuning the dampers out in the English countryside," says Stefan Sallqvist, who led the S60 chassis development. "We drove on ancient Roman roads that experience solely ever received a couple layers of tarmac over the centuries -- a excellent atmosphere for locating the concession damping qualities." Powering this sporty Volvo is a similar 3.0-liter turbocharged in-line six-cylinder engine found in different vehicles in Volvo's lineup. Though of currently, this holds the the majority of effective engine referred to now to be returning to the U.S. Whether or not different engines have a tendency to be going to be out readily available continues to be to be seen. In Europe, drivers also is enough to discover the decision of two diesel powerplants once the A60 is launched, together with a more in-depth diesel and three gasoline engines available shortly afterward. These engines are all coupled to either a six-speed automatic or a six-speed manual transmission. The manual transmission decision can additionally be omitted from the yankee S60 lineup. Volvo's designers continued with the racetrack-design scheme inside the auto. The entire interior was engineered to appear as though it possesses in motion. There is more legroom in the keep and the final seats back there have been reshaped to provide more lateral support, but, in contrast to other four-door coupes, three passengers is continue to to ride on the back bench. The S60 also adopts a hot infotainment system that permits the motive force access via guidance wheel controls, customary controls underneath the screen, or voice recognition, when equipped. A new high-end radio from Audyssey Laboratories also equalizes the sound system automatically. As with every Volvos, the S60 projects with a number of security features. Volvo's City Safety, which automatically applies the brakes to cut back the wear and tear from or completely get shot of crashes beneath Eighteen mph, is standard. A new pedestrian detection system can follow full braking power to lessen the force of a collision with a pedestrian at speeds up to 21 mph. In addition, the new S60 is accessible with driver alert control, a blind spot warning system, lane departure warning, and various airbags. Request the 2011 Volvo S60 to form its global debut this March at the Geneva motor show. Volvo has not yet released any further
principal points on pricing or an on sale date, but be expecting the automobile to build
it into showrooms later this year.

2009 Volvo XC60 - Noise Vibration & Harshness

I would favor I liked the assumption from crossover vehicles added. Then I might
suffer from solely great situations to claim concerning the hot Volvo
XC60, which I am thinking could be probably the better of the
not-so-big, not-so-small, near-luxury crossovers. It possesses an important
segment in today's depressed market in which it isn't always dying
outright, also though occasionally I wish it would.
Yeah, crossovers build more sense for almost each one American citizens in comparison to the ones
hulking, truck-based SUVs on which we've got wasted gazillions of
hydrocarbons over the years, whereas simultaneously sacrificing therefore
much driving pleasure. Nevertheless crossovers have a tendency to be rarely though amusing or make as
much sense because the automobiles they are definitely primarily based on. They are already a step during the
right guidance, less than - a spotlight, carmakers - why can no longer we tend to simply be
in the privilege starting place with? Simply because a fat midget weighs
fewer than an overweight linebacker does not imply he is just not fat.
The analogy breaks down, however, because even the the majority of obese
midgets have centers of gravity that are nice plus coffee, which explains not
something you can say about crossovers. Allowing for his or her or him bodies jacked up
to provide seldom-used ground clearance (the Volvo's
9.1 inches leads it class), their appearance (bloated), handling
(tippy), aerodynamics (bluff), and economy (what economy?) are
invariably compromised by their height. So, too, the five-seat
XC60, which weighs a decidedly non-Lilliputian 4174 pounds in its
stocking feet. Based on the platform that underpins the large S80
and its XC70 sibling, in addition to a bunch of hefty Fords, the
all-wheel-drive XC60 returns an un-Volvo-like Fifteen mpg in urban make use of
and Twenty-two mpg on the highway, serious demerits in my book.
But then I drove the XC60, and that i are going to be damned if it did not
begin melting my frozen heart. The flip facet of the XC60's thirst
is lusty performance. Its customary turbo in-line six brands 281 hp
and 295 lb-ft of torque, each and every little touch of the latter obtainable from
1500 rpm. Snappy, swish, and delightful, the engine runs happily on
regular unleaded, which is able to prohibit your output of money, if not CO2
emissions. Less thirsty possible choices - a sensible amount of likely a nonturbo six -
are on their approach, although one can not facilitate puzzling over whether or not the
Swedes would possibly not wish they had diverted all the money spent
developing a low-volume V-8 back into federalizing an abstemious but
torque-crazy diesel. They may gain certain use it currently.
In a segment marked by snoring similarities, the XC60 looks
distinctive, with an excellent deal of Volvo character, but we note (as
we did after the new XC70 debuted) the way the coherence of Volvo artwork
appears to be forced crested with the brilliant C30. The swoopy new S60
concept is cool, but as Honda
discovered with its third-generation Civic, which achieved a
never-to-be-repeated level of design rightness at its 1984 launch,
sometimes on hand is nowhere to head but down.


Most shocking, the XC60 is not all or any drag to drive. Not only is it
quick, quiet, and refined, it's less ponderous than several alternative
crossovers, with alert guidance, a taut structure, and a decent
ride. Volvo's
admission that it is sufficient to be recalibrating dampers on U.S.-bound cars
to compensate for American highways' "expansion cracks" sent a
shiver up my spine, as no automobile that is been "retuned" for America has
ever been better for it. A minimum of Volvo will not be fiddling with the
brakes, which have stopping power to conquer the band and offer more
feel, in my subjective estimation, than something about that side of a Lotus
Elise. No one could explain why.
The XC60 is the potent reminder that Volvo continues to have
serious design and engineering smarts at its disposal. Once once more,
it has place the lie to the, er, lie that you just have to sell 1,000,000
cars a year to be competitive. Volvo says it will be pleased with
yearly North American sales of about Twelve,000 XC60s.
Pricing it at $38,000, Volvo ought to not have trouble. The XC60
projects neatly equipped, with leather seats, all-wheel drive (the
fourth-generation Haldex system), and every one demeanour of traction
management and stability devices standard.
Ever keen to strengthen its safety heritage, Volvo talked up
City Safety, a laser-based, low-speed version of
Mercedes-Benz's more costly and sophisticated driver-override
system, the radar-based Distronic Plus. It automatically stops or
slows the XC60 to avert impending collisions (with cars, but not
pedestrians, cyclists, or hearth hydrants) at speeds up to Nineteen mph. It
worked well in parking lot demonstrations, but one could write a
book about the legal, political, and philosophical implications of
such intrusive nannying systems, however helpful or well
intentioned.
Important because it looks, safety isn't everything. Volvos were once
now known for warm fuel economy, too, not figures slightly better than
a Hummer
H3's.
Frankly, the XC60 is so good, if Volvo could obtain the mileage
factor straightened out, I would even forgive it for ending up as a
crossover.

2010 Volvo XC60 T6 AWD

I drove the XC60 purely temporarily, less than it could be the legal handsome little
crossover, certainly better shopping compared to the
Mercedes-Benz GLK350, if not kind up of as horny because the Audi
Q5. The interior is a letdown. The Volvo
center stack is basically, really obtaining ancient, plus it isn't every one or any longer
specifically user-friendly. The navigation screen displayed the
same old legal warning language and instructed me to "push Go back back to to
settle for these stipulations." I pushed the ENTER button lots of times,
to no avail; the screen retained the legalese and which i never saw a
map.



A turbocharged in-line six constructing 281 horsepower ought to
generate a handful of driving excitement. But wrapped in an exceedingly significant Volvo
body, the outcome is smooth but not speedy acceleration and a massive
flip circle (caused by mounting the engine sideways between the
front wheels). Turn-in is crisp, but aggressive cornering produces
a nervous tippy-toe feeling because of the tall build and
comparatively slender track. I carry out can assist in giving the latest XC60 style points,
because on hand is not a Volvoesque square corner to be found and the overall
interior is elegantly finished in leather, aluminum, stainless
steel, and deeply grained plastics. I might spend my $40,000 somewhere else,
but dog homeowners who rate his or her or him safety as the over-riding priority
is enough to am keen on the XC60.



Joe and Don seem quite satisfied allowing for the XC60's artwork, but I
consideration it looked favor all alternative Volvo
once i checked out it in my driveway. Certain, the taillights have a tendency to be terribly
stylized and appearance quite great, but the remainder of it appearance lovely tame.
The interior is no alternative than any recent Volvo and the
navigation system requires a remote control to be employed, which explains a
joke.
Still, about that Volvo
XC60 drives really smartly. Acceleration is robust enough and
quite smooth, as Don points out. It has a comparatively sensible value with
a $38,000 base price, but I would like the interior were as up to date as
that of the competing
Mercedes-Benz GLK or Audi
Q5. Either one of its German rivals supply much better infotainment
systems that also are added intuitive to apply.



I attended the launch of the current automobile six months ago, and I
need to claim that I continue to like its exterior styling, the hottest
evolution of Volvo's
decidedly unboxlike design language. As to its interior, which a
couple of my colleagues be afflicted by expressed unhappiness in, I'm going to only
say that whereas it's matters that the center stack is now not cutting
edge, the controls work well and are quite intuitive. The seats are
as comfy as Volvo seats necessarily are, even though I do not believe
they're employed quite as well visually once upholstered in black leather,
as throughout this vehicle. The two-tone interior of the check automobiles I
drove in October were, in my estimation, more attractive.
What does not work on behalf of me, because it doesn't for my colleagues, is
the undeniable undeniable reality that the navigation system is operated purely by a remote
control device. I remain confounded by the decision to forgo an
in-dash controller--what a strange decision. I do like that the back
seats fold totally flat, making for an extraordinarily spacious shipment hold,
although I did not have occasion to exploit all that space
during my previous point with the XC60. Driving this crossover isn't precisely
a scintillating experience, but then once more, it's a crossover, not a
sports automobile. Power delivery from the turbo in-line six is kind of
smooth, but fuel economy is pretty disappointing at simply 18 mpg
(combined EPA rating). Persist but not least, the city Safety system
(which brakes the auto at speeds up to Nineteen mpg to bypass collisions)
is quite spectacular. I had a possibility to check the system at the
vehicle's launch, but it's not something anybody should attempt out on
public roads. It's one of these features that you simply cannot appreciate
until it projects into make use of, which brands it troublesome to guage in a particularly
short test such as this. Nonetheless, owners of the XC60 would certainly be
enamored of it should it ever be wanted.



If we tend to predict of smaller crossovers just like the XC60 as the new
circle of relatives sedan, we'll be thinking more like the folks who purchase them.
As such, the XC60 shines. It's safe, comfortable, spacious, smooth,
modestly attractive, and reasonably powerful, with great cargo
space and a flat load floor. All that and priced right, especially
if you dispose of the stupid remote-controlled nav option.



2010
Volvo XC60 T6 AWD