New Volvo S60 R-Design Edition

Volvo’s new S60 saloon offers a fresh look for the brand, as well as plenty of cool tech…

Tired of looking at the BMW 3 Series, Mercedes C Class and Audi A4? Well forget about them and feast your eyes on the gorgeous Volvo S60 R-Design Edition, a beautiful and luxurious saloon that isn’t made in Germany for a change. It’s posh, it’s fast and it’s Swedish. The S60 is Volvo’s ongoing line of luxury saloons and have been around since the year 2000. You may have seen them on the road without even realising thanks to previously bland and ordinary design, however, that’s all changed now!

The Volvo S60 will be making its debut in the UK on May 11th but only the R-Design Edition will be available. The standard version will be made available sometime in April. 

A fresh, cool look

Unlike previous S60’s, this one is a bit more daring in its design. Gorgeous updated LED lights are a far cry from the previous plastic blobs found on previous models. They’re sharp, streamlined and sophisticated and perhaps most importantly, instantly recognisable and unique. Also on the rear of this S60 R-Design Edition you’ll find two exhaust tips rather than one, which will also be featured on the standard edition as well.

On the front end, you’ll see more LED lights which run straight through the middle of the headlight unit and the lights themselves are sharper, thinner and just less round and blobby when compared to the previous model.

The interior, while still more “plasticky” than the interiors found in BMWs and Mercedes, is another huge improvement for the S60. Metal handles and trim, contrasting stitching and leather seats – it has the foundations for a great luxury interior but it’s unfortunately somewhat let down by the gloss black plastic found surrounding the centre console and vents. Other than that, Volvo seems to be doing a good job at re-establishing itself as a luxury manufacturer.

The R-Design Edition is packed with features and tech

With the R-Design Edition, customers will be treated to an array of extras. Starting on the outside, the suspension will be sports suspension, making it lower (and stiffer) than normal, the 19” wheels will be diamond cut and have a contrasting black finish. The car will be powered by a 250hp T5 turbo petrol engine with eight-speed automatic transmission and front-wheel drive and is said to be able to do 0-62mph in 6.5 seconds, which is quicker than the base model 2019 BMW 3 Series.

On the inside is where the fun really is. You’ll find heated front seats, a heated steering wheel, digital gauge cluster, driver’s heads up display, 14 Harman Kardon speakers and of course the vertical nine-inch touchscreen console with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay built-in. There’s also a rear camera and front and rear parking sensors.   

Furthermore, the car also comes with Pilot Assist which is basically autopilot for motorways, meaning the car will accelerate, decelerate and stay in lane for you. As commonly found in new Volvo’s, the S60 will also have blind spot detection on the wing mirrors.

Price

When the S60 R-Design Edition starts popping up in showrooms on 11 May, it will be priced at £37,920 which isn’t bad at all for all the tech you’re getting. Wait for the base models to be released and you’ll likely be able to get your hands on a brand new S60 saloon for a lot less than £37,920.

The only drawbacks of this car are that it’s FWD, there’s no diesel option and the handling isn’t quite as refined as some other luxury saloons. Still, this Polestar-engineered machine is now capable of giving the other big brands a run for their money and it’s become a real competitor for the mid-sized saloon market.