Motorhub MiniMag Review Series - Issue 6
Bringing you up to speed
Volvo V60 D6 hybrid Review
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Volvo are trying to show us their eco-mentalist side
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Words: Bob Flavin Photos: Courtesy of Volvo
When you think of hybrid technology there are many names that spring to mind, the big one among them is Toyota. They have been making hybrids for a very long time and in fairness they have been proven bulletproof over the years. They are however, petrol powered. There isn’t many car makers that are making diesel hybrid powered cars, I can still remember Peugeot putting out the world’s first only a couple of years ago. Now Volvo are making their version and it seems a very different prospect from the normal car.
Volvo are keen to be seen as an exclusive brand and in fact the higher grade models have a more luxurious feel than the competition. The standard diesel unit that Volvo put in is the five-cylinder model which makes a very nice burble most of the time but that’s not why we are here. The real action should be coming from the batteries and electric engine that populate the boot space.
This V60 is a plug-in hybrid and that means you can charge it up from the mains and give yourself around 40kms without touching the diesel engine. In reality you’ll actually get more because the car will cut in the engine when it needs it thus saving the batteries.
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They have been making hybrids for a very long time and in fairness they have been proven bulletproof over the years
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It’s all very conventional, very luxury, very safe and very Volvo
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it’s not just for the eco-mentalist
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I do find the transition between running in stealth mode electric and diesel a little jarring because it’s so quiet in EV and so loud in diesel. When it all comes together you’ll get 272hp and around seven seconds to 100kph thanks to the 472lb of torque. It’s just all a little rough and Volvo should crack on with getting the newer four-cylinder engines into the V60.
while listening to podcasts. This Volvo V60 feels a little old fashioned in the way it works, I kind of like old fashioned as we tend to like the newest way being the best way. Sometimes things are nice just the way they are. So it goes with the Volvo V60, there’s new ways feeding into the existing technologies and soon there’ll be a new, lighter and more eco-friendly version along.
Looking around the inside you’ll struggle to see any of the shouty eco touches from the competition, there’s no big blue logo or made read-out that tells you how many trees you’ve planted since purchase. It’s all very conventional, very luxury, So the steering is too heavy around the town, the boot-space is hugely compromised very safe and very Volvo. All of which adds up to a very nice feeling when sitting by the battery and you’ll need a football field to turn around in but still I like the V60 on the motorway, the whole car feels relaxed and I’d be happy to cross a continent D6 plug-in hybrid as it is, it’s not just for the eco-mentalist. It’s something different on
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