1. My young lady completes one year this month and has clocked 14,000 kms. These 14,000 have been clocked on the crowded roads of Delhi-NCR and several out station trips including a few fast runs on the Yamuna Expressway. The verdict in brief is - the Volvo XC60 has been a delight to drive and has given trouble free service. She is a solidly built car, runs fast and is tiredness-free over long drives. The longest drive I've done virtually non-stop (but for a single bio-break) was one of 6.5 hours/425 kms (U.P. to Delhi) and arrived home without a headache or backache.The tank swallows 70 litres and the longest highway drive without re-filling done is 845 kms and the 'fuel low' light had not blinked on by the time we drove into our residence.
2. The torque, the acceleration, the throaty growl, solidly planted stance on the road, park assist camera, emergency brake assist and fantastic braking are the driving qualities I like best. The ergonomic seat, the sunroof, the quality of materials on the inside, the keyless door, the park assist camera and the sinewy looks are the non-driving features that tickle my palate.
3. The real value of the AWD came on a recent vacation to the Chambal area where the AWD and hill descent/ascent features were used in full over about 30 kms of dirt track. On the road the Volvo XC60 has a well ballasted stance. The car has an automatic leveling system and a corner traction control both of which make driving serious fun. The latter helps the car not have a top heavy SUV gait but more of a road hugging style. Now I am no sports car aficionado so can't compare with a BMW or Jaguar but for my driving needs the XC60 is fun to drive and has 440Nm of torque which is more than adequate for acceleration. As an aide memoire the powerplant is a 2400cc, 215 horsepower 6-speed All Wheel Drive.
Seats are the best I have seen in a car - front & rear. The back seats two comfortably and 3 with a pinch. I've done 1 hour plus journeys with 3 adults at the back so I guess it works well enough. The front seat hugs you from the thighs to the hips to the shoulder. I agree with Volvo's claim that one can sit for hours driving from these seats without getting tired. The comfort at the rear is high, the leg space is okay - not as good as a Camry and definitely not comparable to a Superb. The rear seat ride is comparable to the Camry though.
For those interested the full body PPC is doing its job to full satisfaction of both protecting the natural lustre of the paint as well as protecting the paint & body from the innumerable super-tiny scratches that develop especially during fast highway driving from tiny road particles hitting the car.
I won't repeat here all the points of feedback that was elaborated upon in post #102 on the 10,000 kms service. But instead I'll spell out the little things in the car's design that indicate thoughtfulness for safety & convenience and good engineering practice.
For example:-
- the side windows are laminated with a water repellant that causes rain drops to quickly slide off the side windows thus improving visibility
- the door handles on the inside open on two lever actions and not one thus reducing the chances of a mishap from a door being opened accidentally if the central lock is not engaged.
- automatically dimmed inside rear view mirror
- front headlamps bend actively, upto 15 degrees, when on a turn
- hill descent control takes the vehicle at gentle speed down a hill, without pressing the accelerator or brake pedals. When going uphill, it holds position (need not press the brake) till you accelerate. It works in both, forward as well as reverse gears.
- the steering weighs up as the speed increases
of course the 6 airbags/curtains and the emergency brake assist at speeds below 50 kmph. This latter is useful in slow moving traffic when some bright spark suddenly cuts.
- the brakes are powerful and the stability systems hold the car steady and avoid skidding even in violent braking situations.
- Volvo has built in a Dynamic Stability & Traction Control (DSTC) which prevents the car from losing stability by automatically cutting engine power and applying brake power differentially to one or more of the 4 wheels as needed to prevent skidding. The system has a gyroscope to sense the car's angle and figure out when the rolling is getting out of hand. Needless to say I haven't had occasion to discover if it works or not!
4. Rear seats with reasonable space; seats three comfortably; for long distance two is right
5. Photo depicts a well set man height about 5'7" sitting behind drivers seat adjusted for 5'10"
6. Cavernous boot with hard plastic flooring; on one trip we carried 4 cabin baggage strollers+2 large suitcases + 3 smaller backpacks
7. Beneath the boot floor is space for accessories such as tow rope, tools etc
8.And below that is the space saver spare and associated tools. Large nets for carry on's plus a restraining net to hold overflowing luggage in place when you open the rear door
9. Sun roof fully open. Lights up the cabin
10. The cockpit. The steering can be set for your taste and weighs up with speed.
11. The central console. In my humble opinion it has too many buttons and not ergonomically placed. But this is just my view. Useful hill descent in the 5 o'clock position. Aircon is strong and fully adequate for Delhi's summers.
12. Typical display view. Three modes to suit your mood….
13. Another mood, another display.
14. Multi-menu options. This is the main menu on the 'business' side. There are others for entertainment.
15. Each menu bar opens up a plethora of options. From 'My Car' to 'Settings'
16. And then within 'Settings' another drop down menu. In my view it has way too many options and it takes a while to figure them out. A trifle bothersome to me. Can be a lot of fun for others.
17. Excellent ORVM view. Left side ORVM tilts down when reversing. Unfortunately tilts too much to be effective.
18. Driver side door/window controls. Central lock automatically activates at speeds above (I think) 15 kmph. What strikes about the Volvo is the quality of materials used on the inside and the fit and finish.
19. The regular seat controls. The button on the far left is for lumbar support.
20. Front part of the B pillar. Note the black tube carrying cables in a protected sheath. Good engineering practice. No loose cabling in this car.
21. Photos were taken by my daughter. Here the photographer is unknowingly caught in a reflection
22. 14,000 down
23. For her first birthday the lady was treated to a car wash and wax at 3M. I like the car's wedge shaped sinewy looks
All these features make the XC60 a fairly complex car with a lot of electronic control systems. From whatever little I have seen of Volvo dealers' engineering depth I wonder if they could handle a complex repair. But this may just be my lack of experience showing up. Thus far through year one the car's quality of manufacture has ensured a hassle and niggle free experience. I look forward to it staying the same way in year two too.
Thank you for reading. Next update will be when she completes 20,000 kms and goes for her second service.
Narayan