The forgotten Volvo
If you type "l-u-x-u-r-y s-e-d-a-n" into your car zealot database and Volvo's S80 doesn't appear anywhere near the top of your list, hey, don't feel bad.
When the original S80 was launched in 1999, it may have been considered revolutionary by initiating the current Volvo design language, in fact, its looks startled. Here was a Volvo that didn't look like the box it came in.
Yet, beyond it's comfortable, well thought out interior and easy-going ride, the large Volvo sedan rarely raised a hair on the back of any driving enthusiast's neck.
Inevitably, fresher metal from German and Japanese premium brands, packing more power with more cylinders, dropped the six-cylinder-only Volvo sedan off many luxury sedan buyers' lists.
The S80 really is all-new
Not that you could tell by looking at the exterior pics, but eight model years later, the Ford-owned Swedish brand's oldest product is being replaced with an all-new S80 for 2007.
You should never judge a book, yada, yada... Because the big news is what's underneath the new S80's all-too-familiar clothes.
With Audi's A6 squarely in its sights, all-wheel-drive--which was slowly integrated as an option in the last S80--is now standard across the '07 lineup. Even the $54,995 entry-level S80 3.2 that comes with Volvo's new 235 horsepower, 236 pound-feet of torque 3.2-litre straight-six engine has power to all four of its wheels. My S80 test car came with what no Volvo sedan (production, anyway) has ever had: a V8. The 4.4L mill adds $10,000 to the asking price, was first found in Volvo's XC90 luxury SUV, and is healthy in its 311 h.p., 325 lb.-ft. of torque ratings.
Scandinavian interior design
Open the new S80 V8's doors, slide yourself into its roomier cockpit, and further evidence that it's not 1999 all over again bears fruit.
Striking watch-face dials with information display screens within and floating needles highlight the S80 V8's simplified, sweeping dash design. The center console is a reiteration of the floating design first seen in the S40, but with a more intuitive design of the controls. And build quality is way up, as well. Without doubt this is the best screwed-together Volvo interior yet.
Overall, Volvo has created an interior environment that illustrates luxury in a calm, quiet fashion. Furthering the new S80 V8's whispering luxury theme is the eight cylinder's personality.
If you type "l-u-x-u-r-y s-e-d-a-n" into your car zealot database and Volvo's S80 doesn't appear anywhere near the top of your list, hey, don't feel bad.
When the original S80 was launched in 1999, it may have been considered revolutionary by initiating the current Volvo design language, in fact, its looks startled. Here was a Volvo that didn't look like the box it came in.
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| The S80 has come a long way since its introduction in 1999. |
Yet, beyond it's comfortable, well thought out interior and easy-going ride, the large Volvo sedan rarely raised a hair on the back of any driving enthusiast's neck.
Inevitably, fresher metal from German and Japanese premium brands, packing more power with more cylinders, dropped the six-cylinder-only Volvo sedan off many luxury sedan buyers' lists.
The S80 really is all-new
Not that you could tell by looking at the exterior pics, but eight model years later, the Ford-owned Swedish brand's oldest product is being replaced with an all-new S80 for 2007.
You should never judge a book, yada, yada... Because the big news is what's underneath the new S80's all-too-familiar clothes.
With Audi's A6 squarely in its sights, all-wheel-drive--which was slowly integrated as an option in the last S80--is now standard across the '07 lineup. Even the $54,995 entry-level S80 3.2 that comes with Volvo's new 235 horsepower, 236 pound-feet of torque 3.2-litre straight-six engine has power to all four of its wheels. My S80 test car came with what no Volvo sedan (production, anyway) has ever had: a V8. The 4.4L mill adds $10,000 to the asking price, was first found in Volvo's XC90 luxury SUV, and is healthy in its 311 h.p., 325 lb.-ft. of torque ratings.
Scandinavian interior design
Open the new S80 V8's doors, slide yourself into its roomier cockpit, and further evidence that it's not 1999 all over again bears fruit.
Striking watch-face dials with information display screens within and floating needles highlight the S80 V8's simplified, sweeping dash design. The center console is a reiteration of the floating design first seen in the S40, but with a more intuitive design of the controls. And build quality is way up, as well. Without doubt this is the best screwed-together Volvo interior yet.
Overall, Volvo has created an interior environment that illustrates luxury in a calm, quiet fashion. Furthering the new S80 V8's whispering luxury theme is the eight cylinder's personality.
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| The great interior design enhances the Volvo experience. |