All I can say from driving a V40 and S60 is that they are such incredible comfortable cars to drive long distance. You're legs will never feel tired and you'll be as fresh at your destination as you were when you started. It's something you really appreciate when you don't have a Volvo anymore :p
On the strength of this, we went and bought one almost identical. It is every bit as good as you describe and we love it, so thank you Matt for a demonstrably accurate review! Not had a car with an electric handbrake before, and I understand that other vehicles’ operation is the other way round, i.e., pull to engage, push or release, but have not had any problems getting used to this, and certainly not a deal-breaker. Got it from a Volvo garage, with pampered history, full warranty and generally excellent customer service. Can’t recommend enough.
I love my xc60, a superb car for the country lanes I live up and excellent in snow. However its equally good on the motorway and I've driven for 7 hours with one stop for half an hour got back home and felt I could do the journey again. In terms of towing the d5 xc60 is superb, I've towed plant and flatbed trailers with mine on occasion loaded fully to the cars towing limit and have not had any reduction in performance. Mine is the auto box and the gearbox copes fine towing the trailer up very steep hills maintaining the revs corectly, there is no need to put the auto box into manual mode. The satnav is in my opinion poor compared to other cars but this is the only fault I can pick. Personally I will replace mine with another when the time comes.
Loved my XC60 such a great all round car as you have said and just so so comfortable with great interior design. Mine had the light leather interior which is worth getting as it lightens the interior … I think the design has stood the test of time and even the early ones still look good 👍
@@Moltenbramley I have to say mine was 11yrs old with 80k miles on the clock with no wear and tear on the leather seats at all so it probably comes down to how they’re cared for…
My daughter has one of these same model same colour, 2015, I have driven it many times and I love it, it feels smaller behind the wheel than it actually is, handles really well, so comfortable, power driver's seat, loads of space, and the sound of that 5-cylinder burble is great, some say it's noisy but it's a five cylinder growl that you are listening to ! my daughter loves that sporty sound, something you don't get from most diesel engines ! But the handbrake is a pain in the backside !
A fair assessment of this vehicle, i had a 15 plate for 4 years, not a bother during that time. Had an S60 and just bought a new V60, all great cars. 😊
I think you were spot-on with this review. I bought an XC60 on a 17 plate from a dealer. Mine was about 9 months old when I got it, with 15k miles. Since then, the mileage has gone up to 66k, but as you said, it still feels quite new to me. I went for the 2.0l 2wd model as it was a newer engine and I didn't need 4wd...I get mid 40's mpg continually, which I think is good. It's not a car that will ever set your pulse racing, but after a few months of commuting to the other end of the country, plus a touring trip through Germany and France, I'd say this is a car to trust. Cheers!
Good review Matt and these in the later face-lift guise are definitely worth considering - I had its V60 brother with the 5-cylinder diesel engine (but manual), and it was great.
As a V60 owner this looks pretty much identical on the inside, I personally like the 5 cylinder sound when accelerating. A huge step up from my previous V50 with pretty much non existing door pockets etc. The V50 was a good reliable car but not too practical, it looks like Volvo has made this generation slightly more practical. I might get an XC60 for the mrs in the future.
Have 2010 XC60 Drive manual with 180k on it. Things to watch for are front wishbones need to be replaced when the bushes wear out, depending on you road conditions this could be around 120-150K and about £200, Cam Belt is 108k miles or 10 years, water pump is 216k miles so don't get suckered in to changing it too soon. As far as I know it is on the original clutch and exhaust. There is kit available for the fuel tank wiring loom which can go depending on your usage and general muck rotting it, any where around 100-180K. The pipe to the turbo can split, this gives a warning about the MAF not working but you can tell by the turbo being audible when accelerating hard. Also had to replace a steering lock at 175K, this is a dealer only as keyed to the security system and costs £400. Otherwise normal electrical gremlins like dead sensors and failing microswitches such boot tailgate release which only works every 5th time. Volvos are the easiest cars to change a light bulb on as you pull two stakes and the whole unit comes out the car no tools required, why are all cars not made this way. As for handbrakes, were you never taught to leave the car in gear when parked or is that just an old person thing? Decent tyres, such as Michelin Crossclimate, are adequate on 2 wheel drive and better than summer or cheap tyres on a 4 wheel drive if you drive on wet grass or snow, I get 45mpg on my Drive model but you do need to do a long run 30+ miles at least once a month or the economy will die. Overall it has been better than expected as a stop gap car after my beloved V70 got rear ended hit by a Jag XF at a red light and pushed in to the another Jag X-type in front, Volvo drove away, Jag completely mashed front end and air bags deployed, spewing several different fluids on the road so Volvo are still the hard nuts of the road and all the safety stuff did its job.
Hi Matt, I’ve just bought a 2015 XC60 R-Design after having a 2016 Focus ST for 3 years. I’m loving it so far, really easy to drive, quite comfortable and well equipped. Great review 👍🏻
Im pleased you liked it, I bought a 2017 plate XC60 R Design in Saville grey in 2018. It has been bombproof. Always feel safe in it. The D5 in the XC60 also ended up in a lot of boats.
Top review Matt! Love your content. Somewhat surprised at the gearbox observations though. I had a automatic V40 of this generation for a short time and it had a nice smooth Aisin box which was a treat. Overall a really well put together car and amazing comfort levels. Volvos are well worth a look!
Evening Mat, Hope all is well. They are a very good motor, I love the comfort of them. As you say the engines are a bit ruff but I think overall they are on point for the money
Great Spot On review as always Matt. I had a 2009 XC60 D5 SE LUX AWD 6 speed manual few years ago which averaged a real world 33 MPG. While I absolutely loved the "SCANDI" interior with the super comfy seats, after about a year / 10K miles I eventually got tired of the Manual transmission as the 1st gear is so short it's not even worth using half of the time. Strangely I do miss that 5 cylinder off beat rumble of the D5 and I've never really found it too noisy. All in all it's a great all rounder.
I bought my xc60 just this month and I absolutely love it! I think they're really underrated. I agree about the handbrake though, mine's a manual and I've nearly forgotten to put it on a few times already!
One thing to note if you're looking to buy one of these, make sure you get the city safety serviced at some stage. It'll come up on the dash when it needs doing, get it done otherwise the system won't work. I elected not to do this as money was a bit tight at the time, and was involved in a sub 20mph accident and wrote the car off. Obviously being more aware of what was going on in front of me would have prevented the collision, but so would the city safety if I'd bothered to get it serviced! Great video as always Matt. I do hope you're looking forward to dropping 6 points to Forest next season. You reds.
Love Volvo. Use to own a new 2015 V40 2.0L Cross Country model and it was brilliant. Two years we had it and over 20,000 miles and had no issues at all. Comfortable and well built on the inside. The kids also loved it. Fantastic cars.
Another great video Matt, the XC60 is a great SUV I like the looks. Nice drive, practical, roomy, tech is good usually. The auto from memory was smooth. Rest of it as usual I agree with hit observations and comments. Spot on as usual buddy.
Just got a 2016 D5 R-Design AWD manual. I’m really impressed. Luxury, power, can’t be faulted. Only slight concern is fuel consumption. Getting 37 mpg, which isn’t great for a diesel, but its performance makes up for it. Thanks, this video helped in making our decision 👍
Matt, I’ve just got a 2018 new shape xc60 and it’s leaps and bonds better than the old one, and with a auto handbrake, yes, even on a manual one. Try one in eco mode well over 40 mpg in d4 fwd drive trim. Just brilliant.
We’ve had a 2015 D4 R design auto for nearly 7 yrs and 85k. As Matt says, it’s great for families, dynamically safe as well as structurally (I hope). Ours has taken two adults and two kids to Southern Spain three times with four bikes on the tow bar and it’ll go again to southern France this year with a Great Dane in the boot and a whopping roofbox bigger than the boot space on top. The sound system is great and the seats comfy (21hrs to Southern Spain the first time using the channel tunnel and no stop off). Hard wearing interior. The gearbox is awful in low gears, not bad once you get going. Ours handles quite well but is a over crashy on bumpy roads - the dealer explained that later models had a 20% reduction in spring stiffness so take a test drive. EGR valve replacement under warranty- lucky as the dealer cost was £1500!! The handbrake is not that bad - better than the foot on, hand operated off one on the old xc90 with a manual box = scary hill stops and starts. Performance and economy not bad. Usually see 41-43 mpg. Would buy again.
Have the same D4 and same year, completely agree re the gearbox, seamless once up to speed but jerky at low speeds. Also agree re the ride, it is a little firmer than perhaps I’d like but not a big deal and sounds like they addressed that as per your comments. Other than that we’re very happy with ours. Steering not as light as some modern cars but that’s probably a good thing. For most people the D4 makes the most sense, it’s ULEZ compliant, much more economical that the D5 and not that much down on power. And so comfy!!! 😃
Got that motor in the more powerful Polestar trim in an XC70, sadly at 2014 it's getting on a bit now. It's taken us with our rather large caravan, I know zzzzzz, all over Europe from southern Italy to southern Spain and never missed a beat. Love the car hate the thought of letting it go.
If you weren’t 4.5 hours away from me, I would have lend you my 2016 VOLVO XC90 D5 Inscription for a review. Would love to hear your thoughts on the new generation XC90. As usual, brilliant content Matt, I honestly enjoy all your videos, very informative, short and to the point 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼. Would love to become an Auto trader like yourself tbh
Great show! I just purchased a 2009 XC60 T6 and absolutely love it. Dead quiet (especially over the D5) and heaps of torque and power. A bit thirsty in town but overall decent fuel economy even when towing. Ps, might be a plus not having a sunroof- they are known to develop leaks. Thankfully ours doesn’t have one. Keep up the great work mate!
Great review, Matt! 👍 I enjoy watching all your inputs here as it's one of the best channels for its job. I would consider buying the XC60 after seeing your impressions about it. Please, would you also do a review for the XC70 AWD if you have a chance? I'll wait for it. Thanks! 🤗
I have always liked Volvos, even when they were square, or should that be oblong? Anyway, my dads owned a 2003 D5 XC70 from new, it’s been faultlessly reliable and he still has it today. Late last year I replaced my 2010 Discovery 4, for a 2014 D5 XC70 (130k), as I was looking for something more economical, cheaper to road tax and run. I have to say I find it great and pleased I made the switch, even if there are things the Discovery did better. The worrying thing is the cost of running it, it’s already had 3 bills of around £800 from a Volvo specialist and it’s now with Volvo for £2,000 of work, so we’ll and truly eclipsing the cost of running a Discovery!! I would still love to see Matt review one.
@@dmcg6074 central locking and electric window problems, broken rear springs, broken bonnet release, broken air conditioning and broken radar for the city safe and the radar cruise. It was the a/c and radar it’s spent the last two days at Volvo. The a/c turned out to be a safety feature that stopped it from working as the fan for the engine had broken, so that was £700 and a replacement radar and programming was £1,300. I’d feel slightly better if this resolved all of the problems, but sadly not, the a/c now works but the compressor whines. They did tell me this and that a new one fitted would be £1,100, but suggested I live with it. Driving home I couldn’t believe how different the car sounded until I turned the a/c off! So I might need to find a cheaper compressor from somewhere.
When you mentioned Juke and Qashqai driver I was like - oh my word! That was what happened to me when I had my 53 plate V70 D5. A Juke, Infront of me entered the roundabout with nothing coming from the right, so i followed after with at least a cars spaced between us, then suddenly bang and I saw nothing! Car was full of smoke from the airbags. Turns out the Juke had stalled her engine...
You need to use the full quotes. The full phrase is “a jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one.” 👍 I have an S60 and I love it but would look to get the XC60 at some point.
I had a 2016 XC60 D4 SE Lux Winter pack manual, bloody long name!! For the 3 years I owned it I would give it a score of 80% The electronic handbrake was OK but a bit silly compared to others I have owned since If your tall the centre console is quite hard against the outer part of your left knee. IIRC there was no real clutch rest? The boot was pretty small compared to the 56 plate Mazda 6 Estate I had before. I found it a good looking car mostly comfortable but slightly dull to drive and anyone behind me was very compromised for room.
Just purchased one of these about 3 weeks ago pretty much identical except mine is a manual and I am already annoyed with the handbrake lol. But so far so good its the perfect all round car for me and it tows my caravan like its not even there! But I'm glad these cars get your seal of approval 👍
Great videos as always!! I wondered if you might do a review on one of these, we have one and that review is absolutely spot on!! We’ve had a number of X3’s and an X5 and these are just so much better! Even the kids jumped in and said “wow this is actually comfy” (compared to our X5) great cars! Keep up the great videos 😉
Absolutely unbreakable, I have a D5 R Design lux with the factory polestar remap, it’s in the rare Rebel Blue with the 20” wheels and gangsta glass, and it has been faultless for the 5 years we have had it. Regular servicing at Volvo so FSH and nothing has gone wrong. Now the Volvo durability bit…. It’s s currently on 153k and climbing. I need to get something with lower miles as the wife goes all over the place in it. But we can’t think of anything to replace it with. So the bad ass smurf rolls on!
I had a 2010 XC60 D5 AWD. It was fantastic. Had it for 5 years. For the first 4 years everything worked perfectly, and then in the last year of ownership the battery died, the front windscreen started to leak and the steering lock mechanism jammed (at the entrance to an army base of all places). The front windscreen leaking is a common fault, apparently for that production run the sealant wasn't good enough and many of them had to be resealed. The battery dying could happen to any car really. The steering lock mechanism was a strange one, it had to be replaced fully. I sold it and got some money from it, so was happy. Could fit my two big golden retrievers in the boot and with a roof box on the top, it was fantastic cruising around the countryside. Although, drive it carefully or it's far too enough to hit sub-30 mpg figures. I wasn't happy with the geartronic gearbox either, but my next car ended up being a Q7 and that is smooth as butter.
Brilliant review! These first gen XC60s arr from the same era as my old V70 with the very similar interior. I agree they look great especially the later ones but I went for the newer model because i wanted the newer car with the big touch screen lol. Some of those last gen ones are around the same money as I paid for my newer one but those ones had absolutely every option on them. Volvos are great that there is a reason there are so many on the road.
Good review BTW. Bought our 2012 from a trader. The first month an airbag sensor service light cost us £350. Then the windshield started leaking badly (common on Volvo's). The screen was badly scratched, didn't realise till a few weeks after buying it. So I decided on replacing the seal and screen. £350. It's the D5 model so it goes like stink. We still like it. It's a bit of a grumbling engine. Not very sophisticated at low revs but driving it's a very pleasant place to be. I also own a C30. I bought it as it's not German. 👌
Only buy Volvo if your priorities are 1) Safety 2) Most comfortable seats 3) Luxury 4) Style and classy look And great reliability compared to other European cars. If you just want to save on gas, buy a Japanese car.
No where near as bad as you'd think having recently bought brakes all round for my V60 and came in cheaper than euro car parts, plus loads of Volvo specialists around.
I have the 2.4 D5 C70 Mk2 Volvo and I can confirm that those D5 engines with their japan automatic 5 or 6 speed gearboxes are the strongest ones, mine is achieving 300K Km and everything was and still breaks but not the engine or gearbox. What a machine ! :D
Great, as Volvo V50 driver, this would be on my list as my next car, without a doubt. Proportions are spot on, as is practicality. They also do indeed look good, and with the D5 lump, they are a good balance between performance and economy. The Drive E variant I would steer clear of though, as they are gutless. That is unless you really want to save money on road tax. But it's a big trade off to save a few quid each year. You WILL end up disappointed that you hadn't opted for a D5, or T6, if you can find a T6 that is.
I had a 2016 XC60 SE Lux D5 215 AWD for two years. It was just brilliant. It was finished in Flamenco Red with cream/black interior, factory tints and black/polished Leda alloys and it really was a classy looking car. It was a manual and yes the handbrake was stupid - I always parked in reverse just in case lol. Great review fella.
Thats a really nice stylish family SUV and I really like the interior too and 50mpg for the eco version is pretty darn good. what a serious all rounder this car is.
Like most cars its all down to the owner(s) maintaining a vehicle to make a vehicle "reliable" i have a Volvo xc60 2012 with 262k on the clock. (Miles) and its amazing. Runs smooth no smoke no issues nice auto gearbox and stacks of servicing. Done every year and was doing 25k a year. Treat a car well and it will look after you.
Another comprehensive review of another excellent car. You certainly have some tidy stock coming through! I really like the XC60, but can't pull myself away from the big estate cars with 6 cylinder diesel engines. They offer the same practicality, with better economy and running costs and are just better things to drive.
Spot on with your review. I've had a 2012 D5 lux for just over 12 months and it's been faultless despite its 100k miles before me. Same criticisms re the auto box the geartronic isn't the bees knees and can be an annoying with it's committee meetings to decide a shift especially from cold. I've had a couple of 3 series autos of similar vintage (8&6 speed ZF) and they were sublime by comparison. D5 is good for about 30mpg mixed use but you don't buy the 2.4d for economy!! It's an old design with a modern frock and still pulls like a train. The only reason Volvo shelved it was it had no chance of ever reaching Euro 6 standard and by that time 200bhp + was easily within the realms of 4 cylinder oil burners.
Test drove the T6 XC60 R Design. Very nice car with a bit of performance. But went with the D4 in the end as fuel consumption was important to my wife as it was for her.
My wife had one of these, and whilst it was the most comfortable car we’d ever had, I found so frustrating to drive. You are right the steering is numb and whoever signed off on that handbrake needs their head examining. It doesn’t auto release either when in drive. We had a D4 and it was outrageously noisy by todays standards. The stop start used to kick in prematurely. The gearbox wasn’t the best and used to over rev and feel like it’s clutch was slipping when accelerating heavily up slip roads etc… the leather wouldn’t wear well and looked worn after 20k miles as did the alcantara. It wasn’t particularly good on fuel either. Having said that it held its value really well and we got a fantastic part ex however I think that was mainly due to Covid and the price of used cars going through the roof.
Great video Matt. I have become the owner of one of these and have followed your advice to the letter. Very pleased and like you I reckon have got myself a great car.
“It’s in the Goldilocks zone for size”. Absolutely on the money with that comment, and the exact reason why we have one. It’s just about big enough for a family and our golden retriever is comfortable in the boot with a divider fitted. Twinned with a roof box it is perfect for family vacations without being too big (like the XC90) for normal day to day driving.
Good video just ‘found’ you. I’m on my 3rd Volvo and 2nd D5. All were bullet proof and hit 250k no problem and sold for strong money. Current one is an XC70 with 200k and it is the smoothest, toughest car I have owned and better than 2 Landcruisers we’ve had. Class tow car. Your right about the gearbox but servicing definitely helps and I’d recommend that be done every 80k. Also regular DPF cleaner improves the torque and hence the gear changes. Super channel! Also can go like stink for a car at 2400kg.
I always like this, just a nice size, and you know as a Volvo, it will be solid and reliable, that has a cracking interior , lovely motor, inoffensive size, love them
well done for mentioning the hand break! i have the same black R-design XC60 (except D4 is inside) but this hand break makes me crazy!! after 1 year i am still pushing it on the oposite way..
Absolutely spot on review Matt. I was fortunate to find a late 2009 XC60 D5 Auto awd 15 months ago with only 42,000 miles at an independent Volvo specialist. It had been owned by a lady who worked abroad - possibly in the military, because it had been serviced annually almost to the exact anniversary minute, at a London main Volvo dealership. My only comment on your assessment is that I do find the ride a little unyielding over our potholed roads. You rather passed over the engine noise produced by the D5 which you so resolutely (and rightly) condemned in your review of the older generation XC90 some time ago. It really does growl under acceleration, especially from low revs, and it surprises me that Volvo did not make more of an effort to suppress this by more effective sound deadening. I have a Jaguar X-Type 2.2 D which, from the outside, has an unmistakable diesel clatter yet is whisper quiet within under all circumstances. That wretched electronic handbrake still fights back even after 17000 miles of daily use...it is just crazy . If you can actually find the blasted thing, buried away at some distance under the dashboard, you then have to eliminate your entire lifelong experience of applying hand brakes by pushing DOWN for ON and UP for OFF. Whatever chemical enhancement was filtering through the addled brain of its designer should be the subject of international prohibition. The only other utterly confusing offerering on this model is the operation of the SatNav which defies belief in its complication. I suspect the hand of the handbrake merchant may have been unleashed here again ? Thank goodness I never discarded my old portable Garmin from years ago ! About 37 to 39 mpg is about the best I can achieve with 40 to 41 mpg on a motorway run. The car is beautifully made and finished and the Xenon headlights are wonderful - unlike the uprated halogens on the Jaguar which emit all the illumination of a glow worm with a migraine. Thanks once again for your first class and well researched review. Keep them coming.
The handbrake is Volvo copying the Mercedes action of its manual pull lever to put it on. And like old fashioned handbrakes. Think of it that way and you'll do it subconsciously 😊
I had the SE Lux Nav from new on a 16 plate. D4. It was really good until you hit a bend or roundabout. It wallowed. Not sporty or quick at all. Great for pottering and family work. The infotainment system is very slow. 39 mpg. A very good family car. We had our car for 3 1/2 years and 50 k miles
We've had one for about 8-years now. I still love the look of it, and its been mostly trouble-free except the transmission slips in 1st gear - apparently a $6k fix, we've just ignored it, we've replaced the back hatch hydraulic arms twice, and the fuel gauge is intermitted, but really expensive to fix because it requires the fuel tank to be removed - again, we just ignore it.
Interesting review and think your suggestion of keeping a couple of "K" back to fund the required maintainance issues makes a lot of sense and should bring peace of mind,
I’ve had 3 new ones over 10 years. Looked at so many vehicles that rivalled this car. I always D5 SE LUX which had all the toys. Expensive as a company car though. In 10 years over 3 cars I never had an issue
Although I generally think these are reliable, I can also remember an ex co-worker having this car, which he ended up trading for a Q5 because the head gasket failed, not sure how common it is though.
Currently running a 2018 V90 R-design and absolutely love it, looked at the usual German brands but volvo was the better value for money with some standard spec being £3k options on the German brands.... 2 things I hate though, 4 cylinder only across the entire range even the XC90 and up until the 2022 range and as mentioned the gearboxes are the slowest I've ever had in a car....
Good review Matt. Had our D5 for about 6 years now, and it's been a great family car. Agree with everything you said. But you missed one thing... like all volvos, the standard stereo is great! The German cars all annoy me with their rubbish standard stereos.
Nice car however we took your advice and went for a 2015 Honda CR-V with the 2.0L petrol engine and auto gearbox. It’s a great car and the MPG isn’t too bad either!
If I recall correctly, the last few years of the mk1 XC60 could be ordered with the new 4-pot diesel and 8 speed auto from the newer “chinese” Volvos, but only in FWD form. AWD buyers still got the old engine and the dim-witted six speed. There’s some trivia that might come in handy if you’re car shopping. Personally, I own the last model year of Passat that uses the original 6 speed DSG designed when Helmut Kohl was in office.
I loved my XC60 aside from 2 annoying issues that Volvo could never get to the bottom of, which is why I had to let it go and traded for a V70 which is i admit, a far superior car. 1. In freezing weather the auto selector lever would stick and could only be released by inserting a teaspoon or similar implement into the cavity - even the AA man had to do this when he was called out under 'home start' insurance. 2. Scarily from time to time, the car would lose power when accelerating to join motorways, that was the straw that broke the camel's back for me. I hope mine was a 'rogue' vehicle and others don't have the same issues, it was a pity really because I loved driving it. Top vid Matt as always. Ron Watson
One thing that I didn't enjoy about my 2015 D4 R-Design was the front seat headrests. Everyone goes on about how comfy Volvo seats are, but my wife and I always found the headrests forced our heads too far forwards, and they aren't adjustable. I couldn't even get comfy for a snooze when I was a passenger. Oh, also the R-Design suspension is far too stiff on the XC60. A family SUV isn't a sports car and shouldn't crash over bad roads like one. We had the car for 3 years and replaced with a CRV which we find far more comfy. On the positive side, the fancy Active High Beam headlights with shadow mask were a really great option. Also, the Adaptive Cruise Control was a must-have - it made driving in traffic effortless.
I’m on my second XC60 now - I loved the first one (65 plate) D4 - specced up SE Lux it wanted for nothing. My current 69 plate is nice enough but just doesn’t feel the same..feels less well built - although no faults so far
If youve got them matt....lift up the bonnet and take the same picture/short video of Xc60, ford mondeo and an LR evoque...then let us play spot the difference. Good old Ford. Edit: ps i have one as a faithful family servant, but volvo still riding on their “safety” image when all isnt as it was when it was its own company. Even just last year a recall issued for seatbelt buckle failure. Its ok and agree with the auto gear box issues, but the D5 2.4 has so many bolt ons for euro standards its a nightmare for reliability now. Injectors, wiring and rough running are all a big problem,
