The world may have gone mad for SUVs, but traditional estates still have their place. For a start, their boots are bigger and they ride and handle better than SUVs.
With this in mind, Volvo has just revealed its latest version of the V60 estate, first introduced to take on the BMW 3 Series Tourer, the Mercedes C Class estate and the Audi A4 Avant.
This is a better-looking car than before, with more drama about the frontal styling and loads of scoops and character lines to exaggerate its width and length and to catch the light in interesting ways.
Based on Volvo’s Scalable Product Architecture platform (SPA), the front overhang has been dramatically shortened, giving it a purposeful look, and the rear overhang has been lengthened to provide another 99 litres of loadspace.
The roofline swoops more than before, giving it a more streamlined and modern look.
At the car’s unveiling in Stockholm, Hakan Samuelsson, president and CEO of Volvo Cars, said: “The family estate driver is an important customer for our business and has been for generations. The new V60 honours that tradition, but also takes it much further.”
Petrol versions will be powered by T5 and T6 engines, diesels by the familiar D3 and D4 motors and there will be hybrid T6 and T8 Twin Engine models.
The new V60, which starts at £31,080, will extend the company’s Care by Volvo system, in which for a fixed two-year contract you can rent the vehicle and pay only for fuel. As well as covering maintenance and insurance it offers various concierge services, including having the car washed or refuelled while you are otherwise engaged and even having shopping or deliveries loaded into the boot using a time-coded electronic key.
In looks and technology the new V60 continues from where the last version left off.
As Robin Page, Volvo’s Senior Vice President for Design said: “We wanted to give the styling more drama, and I think we’ve achieved that.”
