Drive Volvo S80 and XC90

Volvo wants to take on the might of the Germans with these, the S80 saloon and the XC90 SUV. We drive them on home soil.

Volvo’s design philosophy goes like this: If it isn’t functional, it can’t be beautiful. In this sense, both the S80 and the XC90 are the automotive equivalents of Ingrid Bergman. Like the Swedish actress, these Volvos certainly aren’t the most beautiful cars around. But their inherent talent more than makes up for this.

The last time we drove these very same Volvos, it was in Sweden. The cooler temperatures, organised traffic and almost blemish-free roads of Volvo’s home country makes one wonder how the cars will handle the chaos that prevails in the warm tropics. We got a chance to find out on the drive from Delhi to Jaipur organised by Volvo. Both the S80 and the XC90 have their work cut out for them here. The S80 faces some serious competition in India. The formidable armories of the Mercedes-Benz E-class, the BMW 5-series and the Audi A6 are what it is up against. Can the friendly Swede beat cold, German precision?

Step inside the S80 and everything feels well-built, with all the switches working with a nice tactile feel. It doesn’t feel plush, but you notice that the seats are fantastically supportive and comfortable; maybe even more than those in the E-class. You also notice that the steering has a huge range of adjustment and that the dials are very clear. There is one button too many on the centre console, but the main dials for the audio and air conditioner are within easy reach.

The S80’s cabin is functional. Classy? Yes. Understated? A bit too much for its own good though. Beautiful? Not really.

The same goes for the XC90. There are too many buttons on the centre console and some are quite small, making them hard to use on the move. But, there are a lot of practical touches, like the 40:20:40 split/folding rear bench, and the supremely comfortable seats. All the seats except the driver’s fold flat, liberating a huge amount of interior space, and the split tailgate makes it easy to access the luggage area too. The S80 and the XC90 are each available with the same choice of three engines — a five-cylinder diesel, a six-cylinder petrol and a range-topping V8 petrol. The smaller petrol and the diesel are going to make up Volvo’s biggest sales in India, so we’re going to concentrate on them.

Start the D5 diesel engine in the S80 and a surprising bit of noise enters the cabin. More than in a Mercedes Benz E-class. The growl from the engine becomes more audible when you give it the beans, but is surprisingly silent when cruising. What impresses is the linear power delivery from the 2.4-litre diesel. It pulls strongly all the way up to its 5,000rpm redline. This is particularly good in traffic, because you know exactly how much pressure to apply on the nicely-sprung throttle to shoot into that open gap.

The petrol in-line six is not as good. It has to be revved hard to extract the best out of it. As a result, the engine is always buzzing in your ears. Once you are cruising however, this motor gets quieter. It is quite responsive, no doubt aided by the six-speed auto ‘box. The 6-speed auto works best with the D5 motor. The linear power delivery and the well-matched gear ratios work very well to make overtaking on our roads a very simple exercise.

Once you breeze past that lumbering truck and build speed, you find the Volvo is very very stable; even on the wrong side of 150kph. Body movements are very well controlled and the suspension simply pummels uneven surfaces into submission — silently.

Only the sharpest of bumps elicits a thud from the suspension. The ride isn’t as cosseting as that of a Merc E-class, but isn’t as firm as a BMW 5-series either. The S80 doesn’t get the Continuously Controlled Chassis Concept suspension as standard. The Four-C system gives you three suspension settings to play with — Comfort, Sport and Advanced and is available as an option, but the self-levelling suspension that is standard worked just fine on our drive.

The Delhi-Jaipur highway has a tall hedge running along the divider. It is from behind these that nonchalant villagers step out without as much as a thought of the diesel-powered missile heading towards them. That’s when you realise that the brakes are simply incredible. You can control stopping power right from the first millimeter of brake pedal travel. And if the worst does happen, you can rest assured that you are in one of the world’s safest cars. Volvo places all its engines transversely to improve the crash structure of the car. If you drive off without wearing your seatbelts, the car starts beeping. The beeping gets louder and more insistent till you plug the belt in. ABS, eight airbags, emergency brake assist, emergency brake light flashing, Dynamic Stability and Traction Control and whiplash protection system are standard for all S80s. The XC90 even gets Roll Stability Control, which can brake and accelerate individual wheels, so that it will understeer rather than become unstable and roll over. But, India doesn’t get some of the features that Volvos abroad get. The blind spot warning system (BLIS) and the Adaptive Cruise Control have been left out. The lane departure warning system has also omitted from the spec list, this for more obvious reasons; most roads here don’t have lane markings.

The diesel S80 costs Rs 40 lakh in Mumbai and the top-of-the-line V8 petrol comes in at Rs 46 lakh. It is slightly cheaper than a Merc E-class, but not by much. The XC90 is priced from Rs 47- 54 lakh, also substantially less than the competetion. Both the XC90 and the S80 come with a 24-month/unlimited mileage warranty, which we think is quite a good deal.

The base line is this. Both the Volvos don’t have the same street presence that a BMW or a Mercedes has. The overly-understated design sees to that. But if you like being different and don’t need to shout to let everyone know you have arrived, then the Volvo is for you.

Factfile
Volvo s80/XC90
Price Rs 40-46 lakh/ Rs 47-54 lakh*
Length 4851mm/4807mm
Width 1860mm/1909mm
Height 1490mm/1781mm
Wheelbase 2835mm/2857mm
Engine 5-cyls in-line, diesel, 2.4-litre
6-cyls in-line, petrol, 3.2-litre
8-cyls in vee, petrol, 4.4-litre
Installation Front, transverse,
front-wheel drive,
V8’s are all-wheel drive
Power 185bhp/238hbp/315bhp
Torque 40.8kgm/32.6kgm/44.8kgm
Gearbox 6-speed auto
Front suspension Independent, MacPherson struts, anti-roll bar
Rear suspension Independent, multi-link, anti-roll bar

First verdict
Practical and safe cars at a good price. Require a bit more panache though.