Volvo V60 review

This Volvo V60 review could quite easily begin with some whimsical, antiques dealer-inspired introduction based loosely around that fella whose name begins with ‘L’ and ends in ‘ovejoy’. Yet that would be an awfully hackneyed way to introduce an estate car as sharp and shapely as the V60.

And like that 1990s TV show, the V60 had quietly faded away. But thanks to a resurgence of estate-car interest it, along with the also-retired Volvo V90, is back.

Volvo currently ploughs a furrow of contemporary chic, and shed its fuddy-duddy safety-first image a long time ago – but that doesn’t mean safety has been rinsed from its DNA entirely. The V60 is fitted with many of the anti-crash devices we’ve seen in larger Volvos so it keeps you swaddled securely in a ball of high-tech cotton wool.

It offers you generous interior space and a large estate boot (there's also a saloon version, the Volvo S60, which we've reviewed separately). As their respective names suggest, it's not as long as its Volvo V90 stablemate.

Choosing an engine is relatively straightforward. There's a 2.0-litre petrol engine with mild hybrid tech, and a pair of plug-in hybrids (PHEVs). All three come with an automatic gearbox.

Inside, the model competes for classiness with the main premium estate rivals, the Audi A4 Avant, the BMW 3 Series Touring and the Mercedes C-Class Estate. It has a more Scandi-chic interior, so it offers something quite different.

All things considered, though, is the Volvo V60 as good as the German trio? Well, we've driven it, and over the next few pages of this review we'll rate it for performance and handling, running costs, interior quality – and, of course, practicality.

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The Volvo V60 is available exclusively with 2.0-litre, four-cylinder petrol engines. Let’s begin with the lowest-powered option, the 194bhp B4, which is a mild hybrid. It's 0-62mph time of 7.6sec is energetic, flexible and ideally suited to motorway speeds, especially in a car designed to be filled with people and luggage. 

The remaining two options are both plug-in hybrid (PHEV) models with four-wheel drive. The cheaper of the pair is badged is T6, and has a petrol engine driving the front wheels and an electric motor driving the rears. Despite those two combining for a total of 350bhp, it doesn’t feel as rapid as you might expect – partly because the eight-speed automatic gearbox you get in all V60s takes time to react – but its official 0-62mph time of 5.4sec is quicker than the BMW 3-Series Touring in 330e form.

There’s an even quicker version – the T8 – with a more powerful 306bhp petrol engine for a combined output of 449bhp. That drops the 0-62mph time to 4.6sec, but it’s not really worth the extra cash.

Both PHEVs can get to motorway speeds on battery power alone, and Volvo says they have an electric-only range of around 54 miles (we'd expect 35 to 40 miles in real-world driving). That's further than the BMW 330e Touring (37 miles) and the Skoda Octavia Estate iV (41 miles).

No V60 is as agile as the 3 Series Touring, and the heavy batteries in the plug-in hybrid versions make them even less eager to tuck in to corners or change direction. Still, if you want an estate car that steers predictably, grips well and feels safe and secure on motorways and A-roads, the V60 is fine.

In terms of comfort, the Audi A4 Avant – one of the most supple models in this class if you pick the right spec – is better, but the V60 isn't far behind. It delivers good long-distance comfort on motorways, but around town it doesn’t isolate you from potholes and ridges quite as well. The heavier PHEVs are less settled at speed, but are by no means boneshakers.

Nothing in this price range can match the A4 Avant’s near-silent progress. The V60’s engines are a touch noisier, there’s a bit more rumble from its tyres at 70mph, and you hear more squally wind noise from its door mirrors. It's no noisier than the Mercedes C-Class Estate though, and neither is irritatingly loud.

The Volvo V60 has a superb driving position. You sit perfectly in line with the steering wheel and pedals, with a comfortable armrest on the door and another between the front seats. The Audi A4 Avant and Mercedes C-Class Estate are less impressive, because they have offset pedals and a bulge in the footwell.

The driver's seat is supportive and has lumbar adjustment, and the steering wheel has a great range of height and reach adjustment. Even entry-level Plus trim comes with an electrically adjustable driver’s seat with memory and an extendable seat base for better under-thigh support.

Every V60 has a 12.3in screen that replaces traditional analogue dials with digital instruments. The Volvo digital instruments are not quite as configurable as Audi’s Virtual Cockpit, but they still deliver plenty of useful information – including media, telephone and navigation data – right in front of the driver.

Likewise, the V60's infotainment touchscreen has small icons and is less easy to use when you're driving than the iDrive dial in the BMW 3-Series Touring. BMW's software is more responsive and better laid out than Volvo's, but you soon get used to the V60's menus and the screen is very clear.

The sat-nav system uses Google for its maps, and provides a detailed display with real-time traffic information. A DAB radio, wireless phone-charging, Bluetooth and Apple CarPlay (wired) come as standard. The system runs an Android operating system, but Android Auto smartphone mirroring is not available. Instead, you have to download the apps you want to use straight to the car.

It's an easy car to see out of. The V60's windscreen pillars aren't too wide and there are no substantial blind-spots. The rear windows provide better vision than the A4 Avant's more sculpted rear end does, and you get power-folding rear headrests that drop at the touch of a button to give you a clearer view backwards.

Front and rear parking sensors and a rear-view camera are standard on all models (a 360-degree camera system is standard on Ultimate trim). It’s easy to see at night because high-intensity LED headlights are fitted to every version, with matrix LED headlights standard on Ultimate trim.

Volvo is making quite a name for itself when it comes to great interiors and the V60 is no exception. The materials and build quality are very near to the benchmark A4’s and better than the C-Class’s. You can also option softer Nappa leather upholstery and wood trim finishers that really lift the ambience.

The Volvo V60 has a generous amount of front head and leg room, but that's reduced significantly if you opt for the range-topping Ultimate trim, because it comes with a standard-fit panoramic roof. More positively, the interior is good and wide, so you can get your elbows out without irking your passenger.

Rear space is a strength. Again, head room is fine (panoramic roof aside) and the rear leg room is much better than in the Audi A4 Avant and Mercedes C-Class Estate. There are roomier estate cars of course, but only if you're prepared to lose the premium badge and buy the Skoda Superb Estate or spend more on the bigger Volvo V90.

Storage space is generally good, with plenty of cubbies, compartments and a decent glovebox, although the doors bins are a little small. The V60's boot has an electrically operated tailgate that opens to reveal 519 litres of space with the rear seats up. That’s plenty for buggies or a couple of large suitcases, and we managed to squeeze in eight carry-on cases.

Impressively, the boot space is the same for the plug-in hybrid (PHEV) versions, which is rare – often the battery pack lives under the boot floor and raises it up. Again, bigger estates are available if you need more space (the obvious one being the Superb).

There’s more space under the floor if you don’t order a spare wheel, and you can drop the rear seats to make more space for longer items. They split 60/40 rather than in the 40/20/40 arrangement you get in the A4 Avant and BMW 3 Series Touring. The seats fold flat to the floor, with no step up in the long boot space.

If you tend to keep a beady eye on costs, the Volvo V60 is worthy of your attention. Like for like, it’s generally no pricier to buy in cash than its main premium brand rivals, but you could save money and still get practicality if you buy the Skoda Superb Estate or the VW Passat Estate. There’s also the VW Arteon Shooting Brake.

The V60 is predicted to hold on to a solid chunk of its value when it comes to reselling in three years. There's little to split it on depreciation with the Audi A4 Avant and Mercedes C-Class Estate but the BMW 3 Series Touring is a bit better.

The engines generally match the efficiency of the 3 Series Touring, and the A4 Avant's engines are only fractionally better in terms of CO2 output and fuel consumption. The differences are small, though. If you're a company car buyer, it's definitely worth looking at the V60 T6 or more powerful T8. As petrol plug-in hybrids (PHEV) they significantly cut your benefit-in-kind (BIK) tax relative to the petrol-powered version.

Bear in mind that the BIK for plug-ins is calculated in part from the car's CO2 emissions, but also its electric range, and cars with a range of 40 miles or more can drop into a lower tax band. The V60 T6 has a whopping 57.2-mile official electric range (the Skoda Octavia Estate manages 41 miles), so it's a significantly cheaper prospect than the 330e Touring (37 miles), which sits in a band above.  The T8 PHEV covers a couple of miles less on a charge, according to official figures, but the difference in BIK rates is marginal.

We recommend sticking to the V60's entry-level Plus trim for the best value. It has more than enough gubbins to keep gadget lovers entertained, including a 9.0in touchscreen with sat-nav, a 10-speaker stereo, LED headlights, and parking sensors front and rear. You also get an electric tailgate, four-zone climate control, heated front windscreen and steering wheel, heated front seats, cruise control, 19in alloy wheel and keyless entry.

Ultimate adds adaptive cruise control, privacy glass and a Harman Kardon sound system upgrade, as well as a panoramic roof, a 360-degree camera and adaptive LED headlights. It's worth noting that the T6 is only available in Plus trim, and the T8 is Ultimate-only.

The plug-in hybrid models come with a Type 2 charging cable (to plug into public chargers) and have a maximum charging rate of 3.7kW. At that rate, the battery is charged from empty in about five hours.

The V60 achieved the full five-star rating from Euro NCAP in 2018, but the tests have become more stringent since then. It's as good at protecting adults and children in a crash as the 3 Series Touring, while the A4 Avant has a noticeably worse adult occupancy rating than both. The standard safety kit for the V60 includes automatic emergency braking (AEB) that will detect cars, pedestrians, cyclists and large animals, traffic-sign recognition, oncoming lane mitigation (to help avoid a head-on collision) and lane-keeping assistance.

Rather disappointingly, Pilot Assist (adaptive cruise control that also includes steering control) only comes as standard on range-topping Ultimate models.

As a manufacturer, Volvo finished in a respectable 9th place (out of 31) in the 2024 What Car? Reliability Survey, and the V60 placed 14th out of 24 in our list of the most reliable executive cars. The V60 comes with a three-year, 60,000-mile manufacturer’s warranty and breakdown cover.

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