Model Update

When you talk about the best luxury cars, the list is usually inundated with the best Marques from Europe, and with a face-lifted new Volvo S80 available, this is one of the cars that will be at the top of the tree.

Inside a new Volvo S80 are all the best luxury items which include things like audio visual technology, cruise control, pedestrian detection, heated seats, crafted leather seats, premium materials, an energy absorbing interior, cabin temperature control, and a simple and clear layout.

Three models are available. The D5 is a diesel donk that offers effortless high speed touring. A straight six, turbo, petrol is known as the T6, while the V8 is the flagship. Sprint times from 0-100km/h for both the T6 and the V8 are performed with AWD, and under seven seconds!

If you thought Volvos still looked square and boxy like they did back in the 1980s, think again. The new Volvo S80 nicely curvy – subtly curvy, such as the details around the lights, as opposed to the flagrant curves of a VW Beetle or a Porsche 911, but curvy nevertheless. Not only is the Volvo S80 a safe car to drive, as Volvos always have been, but this is an attractive car, too.

And, quite naturally, given Volvo’s reputation for building ultra-safe family vehicles, the Volvo S80 is packed with safety features, both active and passive. On all model variants of the Volvo S80 (the D5, the T6 AWD and the V8 AWD), you’ll find an anti-skid system, brake assist and ABS brakes, plus some small-seeming features that make a big difference, such as the water-repellent front side windows for extra visibility during wet weather driving, active bi-xenon headlights and fog lamps (these lamps just happen to contribute to the good looks of the Volvo S80, which is a happy coincidence). Passive safety features include a super-tough passenger compartment with impact-absorbing front crumple zones and side intrusion beams. A whiplash-prevention system is in place, as are head restraints on all seats, front, side and curtain airbags, antisubmarining protection, pretensioned seat belts… and pedestrian protection. What more could you ask for in a four-door sedan? To get much safer, you’d have to drive an army tank.

But enough about the safety features. Yes, it’s good to know that the Volvo S80 can keep you safe in a crash – and has the active safety features to get you out of one – but these are only needed in an emergency. Safety features don’t affect your day-to-day driving. What about comfort? What about interior design? Well, the Volvo S80 comes up with the goods – after all, we already know how clean and practical (and tasteful) Swedish interior home design is. Let’s start with the leather upholstery: four different colours are available as standard choices with the standard black interior trim – and the options allow for perforated or Sovereign Hide leather, plus another fascia trim option (beige). The seats, naturally, are palatial: heated front seats (heated front and rear as an option) which are electrically adjustable. The temperature is regulated with the electronic climate control, and the audio system, which comes with steering wheel mounted controls, takes 6 CDs, is MP3 compatible and has an auxiliary input jack. Bluetooth integration also comes as standard.

Other bells and whistles for the driver of the Volvo S80 to enjoy include park assist, cruise control, trip computer, a rain sensor, an auto-dimming rear view mirror and electrically adjustable heated wing mirrors. For the back seat, a 12-volt power socket is provided as standard, with a rear seat entertainment screen available as an option.

Now to take a look under that subtly styled bonnet – or to sit in the driver’s seat and start the engine up. The three model types of Volvo S80 refer to the engine types on offer, which will determine what your driving experience will be like – although you already know that the Volvo S80 will offer you a good one. The D5 motor is a five-cylinder turbocharged diesel engine that sees the power peaking at 136 kW at 4000 rpm, and the torque hitting the maximum at a very juicy 400 Nm in the 2000–2750 rpm range. The petrol-powered T6 AWD has a few more horses under the bonnet (210 kW at 5600 rpm) but has the same amount of torque, which has a flat torque “curve” in the 1500–4800 range. But the oomphiest engine in the Volvo S80 is the petrol V8: how does 232 kW of power at 5950 rpm and 440 Nm of twist at 3950 sound? It sounds good: a delicious V8 burble and roar… All engines come paired with a six-speed geartronic transmission, and the petrol variants come with an AWD drive train, making these into the quintessential luxury softroaders that handle like a dream; the D6, by contrast, has front wheel drive. Interested in the 0–100 times and the top speeds? All right, the D6 is the slowpoke, with a top speed of 220km/h and a 0–100 time of 9 seconds, and the V8 is the speedster, with a top speed of 250 km/h and a sprint time of 6.5 seconds. The T6 comes in the middle, with the same top speed as the V8 but a 0–100 time of 6.9 seconds.

However, if fuel economy rather than horsepower is what tips the scales for you, then the most economical variant of the Volvo S80 is the D6, with a combined fuel consumption figure of 7.3 l/100 km. This engine also has the lowest CO2 emissions of the three. The better of the two petrol engines is the T6, with 11.2 l/100 km, but the V8 is only just a tiny bit thirstier at 11.9 l/100 km.

The current model series includes the:

• Volvo S80 D6
• Volvo S80 T6 AWD
• Volvo S80 V8 AWD

For any more information on the Volvo S80, or for that matter any other new car, contact one of our friendly consultants on 1300 303 181. If you’d like some fleet discount pricing (yes even for private buyers!), we can submit vehicle quote requests out to our national network of Volvo dealers and come back with pricing within 24 hours. Private Fleet – car buying made easy!

Back to Volvo Car Reviews