All-new Volvo XC60 T8 plug-in hybrid unveiled, gets 2.0L turbo with 407 hp!



Launched on one of the grandest stages of the automotive industry is a brand new Swedish car deserving of all that grandiose, the second generation Volvo XC60.

It’s been nine years since the original XC60 came about, and today the model accounts for 30 percent of total Volvos sold globally. Just so you know, the exact figure is tens of units shy of the millionth mark, so the succeeding model has really big shoes to fill.

Volvo is offering a range of petrol and diesel Drive-E engines, but the ones that we will most likely get are the petrol T5, T6 and if we’re lucky, the T8 plug-in hybrid. The four-cylinder T5 is the entry level option, turbocharged to produce 254 horsepower. The T6 is twincharged (turbocharged and supercharged), making 320 hp and 400 Nm of torque.

The top of the line T8 is also a 2.0-litre four-cylinder, but gets supercharged, turbocharged and an electric motor to generate a combined output of 407 hp and upwards of 600 Nm of torque. This trim is so quick that it would sprint from 0 to 100km/h in 5.3 seconds!

At first glance, the XC60 bears great resemblance to the hugely popular flagship XC90, if not by and large a shrunken version of it. Up front is the brand’s signature “Thor’s hammer” LED DRLs, whereas illumination is all LED. The side profile and rear end also receive the same signature treatment.

The cabin is a fine display of Swedish craftsmanship, a trait trickled down from the ostensibly extravagant interior of the XC90. All seats are draped in premium Nappa leather, the kind to come from cows living high up the Swedish mountains, free from mosquitoes and other parasitical beings. It also gets Bowers and Wilkins sound system, with each tweeter strategically positioned to the highest level of audiophiliac precision.

All those indulgences aside, the XC60 continues to embody the brand’s ethos of making the safest cars in the world. It comes with all the standard safety features such as Blind Spot Indication System with Steer Assist, City Safety system, Oncoming Lane Mitigation and so on. The optional Pilot Assist system is an advanced semi-autonomous driver assistance system which steers, brakes and accelerates by itself on well marked roads at speeds up to 130 km/h.

Production of the all-new Volvo XC60 is set to begin by mid-April 2017 at the company’s production facility in Torslanda, Sweden. It will be coming to Malaysia either late this year or sometime next year, with the initial batch being CBU units before the Shah Alam plant takes over local assembly duties.


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