If you’ve been watching telly recently you’ll have seen that Volvo‘s XC60 has just gone on sale, but what you won’t necessarily know is that 97% of sales are expected to be diesel.
While both the 185PS 2.4-litre D5 and the 163PS 2.4-litre 2.4D diesels have the same CO2 figures at 219g/km (34% BIK tax band) for the automatic, the latter is £1000 less expensive, which is why we’ve tested it here.
The only noticeable sacrifice is a 0-60mph time that’s one second slower at 10.4 seconds. This small difference apart, the rest of the car is as good as the rest of the range. There’s plenty of room inside for five adults plus a massive boot. The seats and ride are ultra comfortable, and you’ll be extra safe thanks to the City Safe system, which brings the car to a stop when travelling at city traffic speeds and it senses you’ve not seen a car stopped ahead. Its most useful application is the elimination of rear-ending the car in front when approaching roundabouts.
The system is standard on all models, which in the 2.4D auto SE’s case means it’s all part of the £27,435 P11D price and the 63.8p per mile running costs.
Verdict: The Volvo XC60 is bigger and more comfy than the Audi Q5 but not as sporty, making them joint class leaders