Base price: $47,350
As tested: $56,025
4.4-liter, 311-horsepower V8
17 city / 25 highway
More info: www.volvocars.us
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To keep pace in the ultra-competitive mid-size luxury car segment, Volvo has just introduced its all-new S80. Other car companies go for knock-your-socks-off designs, but that's not what Volvo was after. The Euro carmaker was trying to capture "Scandinavian luxury," which translates into stealthy sex appeal. It may not cause a commotion among valet parkers, but it's so much sleeker than the boxy old Volvo 240s, it's hard to believe the same company produced both cars. Our favorite aspects are the compact and sophisticated front grill, turn signals integrated into the side mirrors and a more prominent "power bulge" in the hood, which both looks good and helps absorb an impact during an accident if you hit someone.
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Hop inside the new S80, and you'll think Volvo should win the Nobel Prize for Understated Elegance. Everything is so cleanly and smartly laid out that sitting in the car produces an overall calming effect. In addition to the usual high-end suspects (heated and cooled leather seats, wood trim, push-button ignition), a few details really impress. The human silhouette used to change airflow is ingeniously simple, and automatic reclining rear headrests are great visibility enhancers. The Blind Spot Information System (BLIS), which illuminates when a car is positioned where you can't see it, helps eliminate one of driving's most nagging worries.
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The S80 comes in two performance packages -- a 3.2-liter, front-wheel-drive, 235-horse inline 6 and a 4.4-liter, 311-horse AWD V8. We took the latter on a late-winter jaunt from Chicago to Milwaukee to see the Francis Bacon exhibit at the Milwaukee Art Museum (a great show in a fabulous building). Because of the car's overall understated vibe, we were shocked at its growling engine note and impressive power (0 to 60 in six seconds). Grip and handling were also outstanding on the snowy, icy route. As always, Volvo has upped the safety ante, and the S80 is available with some cool new lifesavers, including radar-enhanced cruise control and a key that lets you know if someone is in your car from more than 300 feet away.
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The S80's safe, elegant sex appeal will attract a class act.
-- by John D. Thomas |
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