I was invited to the media launch of the Volvo S60 a while ago. The car launches in SA in Feb 2011. I got to drive the 3 engine derivatives, the Petrol, Diesel known as the D5 and Turbo Petrol known as the T6. All three cars gave me a completely different driving experience and for those who know me, know that I drive my car hard and demand performance, agility and challenge the car as often as possible. All 3 derivatives survived me through the mountains of George in the Western Cape as I thrashed them through the Outeniqua Pass and I most enjoyed the diesel powered Volvo S60 D5. It gave me the best driving experience of the lot surprisingly. It was the most fun that I have had in a diesel powered vehicle ever and even though in a straight line 1km sprint, the turbo powered T6 engine out-performs it, I still found myself opting to drive the diesel as much as I could.

Features in the new Volvo S60 include the standard stuff for its class, ABS, loads of airbags, multi-functional steering wheel, leather seats, Aux-In audio player, etc. There are not many “wow” features that can be added as extra, but I would recommend the Sat-Nav and the iPod prep.

Here are a few sneak pics that I took while on the launch: