[rmk]

Why dont they design better interiors?? The interiors look so plain... The vertical center console (rumored to be inspired from the waterfalls ) is a nice touch. But the interior color theme, lack of wood finish, etc etc, doesnt reflect any luxury for this price tag...

The seats look awesome...!!

[GTO]

Originally Posted by amitwlele

You mentioned the Comfort and Sport mode. What does the Advanced mode do?

Completely stiffens up the suspension, and reduces travel too. Perfect for the track. However, on our typically Indian roads, the "Sport" mode is actually superior as it might handle mid-corner bumps better (more travel), and lead to a liveable ride as well.

Originally Posted by swiftdiesel

I read in some European journal that the development of this 6 cylinder engine was outsourced to Yamaha. This was important because, Yamaha managed to make a compact 6 cylinder that could be transversely mounted, like in the S60. The engine is so compact that it looks like a 4 pot at first glance. It's Yamaha pedigree could be the reason for its free-revving (redlining) ability.

Interesting, thanks for sharing!

Originally Posted by vinya_jag

"I love the stance of the car, even with just 215 width tyres. An S60 T6 AWD with 235 mm tyres will look fabulous:"
This pic is a nice shot.

Thanks! I was particularly keen on this angle.

Originally Posted by Sahil

I'm surprised you didn't use you favorite word for this cars design 'quirky'

I only find the nose treatment too heavy. Except for that, and especially the side & rear profiles, I quite like the design. But the stunner of this segment remains the A4. I caught one the other day at worli; black with black wheels and black tints. Looked S-I-C-K!

Get a good brand ambassador

Great suggestion. This can singularly change the tide for Volvo. Nothing like a popular public figure to gain recognition with the masses.

Originally Posted by akshay1234

Personally I think its about time we start cribbing for better roads, rather than cars for our crappy roads.

I would disagree with that, Akshay. It's all about adaptability. Sure, in an ideal world, I'll ask for better roads. But which one is more realistic in terms of car ownership? Better roads in India, or a car than can handle the existing roads better?

Originally Posted by kevintomin

Surprised to see no paddle shifter. Or am I missing it.

Nope, no paddle shifters.

Originally Posted by Axe77

On a related note, how did this manage homologation without a spare? IIRC, the BMW also had a painful process getting through without a spare despite the run-flats.

Good question. Perhaps this variant was able to bypass the homologation requirements as it breaches the $40,000 barrier? Or it could be the puncture repair kit that did the trick with ARAI.

Originally Posted by fiat_tarun

I got to drive this very car through a friend and i was blown away with the power. I had a stupid smile on my face for 3 days i think and bragged like crazy ! It was the first time i was driving such a powerful car and the acceleration was AMAZING..!

I know just the feeling.

Compared to the other cars i have driven, to me even the headlights (which you have not spoken very highly of) were wow, although now when i think back.. hmm.. ya maybe the high beam was too high !

Did you try them out only in the city? Our drive was predominantly on the highway, and some poorly lit parts too. The headlamps left me disappointed.

[dot]

Originally Posted by fiat_tarun

I got to drive this very car through a friend and i was blown away with the power. I had a stupid smile on my face for 3 days i think and bragged like crazy ! It was the first time i was driving such a powerful car and the acceleration was AMAZING..!

Hey, why dont you write a bit more about the 15-20 minutes of the nirvana time.

[fiat_tarun]

Originally Posted by GTO

Did you try them out only in the city? Our drive was predominantly on the highway, and some poorly lit parts too. The headlamps left me disappointed.

Yes, the drive was just around the city.

Originally Posted by dot

Hey, why dont you write a bit more about the 15-20 minutes of the nirvana time.

Well, got a call in the middle of the night from a friend with one question, "Want to drive a 300bhp AWD car". All i heard was 300bhp and i was out of my door with my car keys in hand asking him where do i come

Got into the drivers seat and just got familiar with everything. Its quite hard to do that as there are buttons, buttons & buttons everywhere ! The seats do feel good, but my drive was too short to comment more on this.

I was on the Aundh to Pimple Saudagar / Dange Chowk road in Pune which is a nice road and in the middle of the night it was quite empty as well.. Anyways, slot the lever into D, started moving and then floored the pedal. You do feel the downshift and then the insane acceleration starts. The upshifts are very smooth and in no time you are at 120+. Being new to the car, naturally one is cautious, but i somehow felt quite comfortable in the car. Braking is awesome and the car loses speed as impressively as it accelerates.

Like GTO has mentioned, you do not feel the turbo lag at all, and the car pulls like a bull whenever you command it to. The steering felt good, but since my drive was on a straight road, i can't comment much on this.

The safety gadgetry is all fancy, although in my short drive i could only see the BLIS in action, with the orange light indicating something is in my blind spot (explained in GTO's review).

Interiors are quite plain in design and don't look 'rich' enough. The music system sounded quite good and connected through mass storage to an android phone.

What surprised me at the end was the price. With such a stonker of an engine and all that gadgetry inside, the car is very competitively priced considering its a CBU. So minus the 120% duty and this should be around 20L..?

[Sutripta]

Originally Posted by swiftdiesel

I read in some European journal that the development of this 6 cylinder engine was outsourced to Yamaha.

Maybe, but are you sure? Yamaha designed a V6 for Ford (Volvo's owner) but I can't recollect an I6.

Originally Posted by GTO

I believe so. Volvo kept on talking about the uniqueness of this setup, and how it offers better handling. Should it, Sutripta? Is it a contributor to the dynamics?

Must get hold of the press kit for this car. Esp. what is called the 'engineers talk'.

Transverse I6, + drive to all wheels, will make for interesting engineering/ packaging.

If one has the ability to control the power (+ve and -ve, enough to have 100% slip in either direction) for each wheel, one should be able to steer the car without touching the steering wheel! Think of the dynamic control you now have.

the desi cars seem to be on high heels!

Now make up your mind whether you find high heels sexy or not!

Regards
Sutripta

[SkyWalker]

Originally Posted by GTO

Other Points:

• There is no easy way to say this : It’s probably because of the stability, or the heavier steering, but I enjoyed driving this car more than the legendary Mitsubishi EVO X (Link to review).

that just about sums it up. Thanks GTO for another fantastic review.

[mallumowgli]

Originally Posted by GTO

Confession : I actually wasn't even going to review this car. Was just tagging along to offer additional comments. However, after going up and down the 12 km ghat section several times, I decided to fold my sleeves up, put my head down, and start typing . I don't remember the last time I enjoyed a drive so much.

The last time GTO seemed so thrilled was when reviewing the TJet - It's like you can see the grin on GTO's face when reading the review

But was the grip due to the balance of the chassis or in-spite of - like, you bring in all those additional balancing acts like AWD, wider tyres etc to improve grip that is not available with the chassis

Originally Posted by GTO

Valid point, Zappo.

Well this may actually be a safety feature - recirculation mode means less oxygen, makes the driver drowsy

[Xehaust]

Excellent review (GTO) & excellent pictures (Stratos) as well.

Have to experience this for myself. From the review, it sounds too good to be true for our Indian market
Specially the part wherein it was more fun than the Evo! Another interesting part was the mention by SwiftDiesel about the engine being developed by Yamaha.
Downsides being the extremely low FE.

All in all, i think its one heck of a car & delivers a perfect "Sports Sedan" with a bit of luxury thrown in. For the price though, its sheer value for what it offers. A Skoda Superb equivalent in its own segment.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by fiat_tarun

Like GTO has mentioned, you do not feel the turbo lag at all, and the car pulls like a bull whenever you command it to.

The high rpm engine note is still ringing in my ears . And no, neither the 330i or the EVO X had quite the same effect.

What surprised me at the end was the price. With such a stonker of an engine and all that gadgetry inside, the car is very competitively priced considering its a CBU.

Blame it on the inflated prices of the premium segment. Just look at the Audi A4 3.2's 52 lakh OTR price! Or the EVO's 62 lakh rupees??!!

Originally Posted by mallumowgli

The last time GTO seemed so thrilled was when reviewing the TJet - It's like you can see the grin on GTO's face when reading the review

And the exact same road too....The T-Jet was one of the most special cars I've reviewed (and enjoyed). Proven that you can have 100% fun without spending a bomb.

But was the grip due to the balance of the chassis or in-spite of - like, you bring in all those additional balancing acts like AWD, wider tyres etc to improve grip that is not available with the chassis

Seems to be a combination of all. Remember, it's the same platform as the Mondeo, that ain't too bad in FWD format either.

Originally Posted by Xehaust

All in all, i think its one heck of a car & delivers a perfect "Sports Sedan" with a bit of luxury thrown in. For the price though, its sheer value for what it offers. A Skoda Superb equivalent in its own segment.

Except the cramped rear seat. That is the single deal-breaker. I can ignore the badge, and get a spare wheel myself. But the space at the back is very limited.

[Xehaust]

Agreed. But then again, someone who will buy this car will do so for the sheer love of driving. Here, the backseat would probably be the least of his/her concerns. And yes, the comparison to the Superb was purely for the value rather than that gargantuan back seat it offers at that value price

[PPS]

Fantastic Review GTO. I never imagined that a Volvo would be so exciting to drive & the review was a pleasant surprise. The Orange shade helps grab attention, something which Volvo desperately needs! I wonder if they have a showroom in Mumbai, have never been able to spot it.
What was the max speed you managed to touch on the highway? I know you did cross 200kmph.
Also, i feel this car would look better at night.

kilometermagazine.com

[Raosaheb Desai]

Superb review GTO
T6 would be a great buy after a year or so as Volvo always offers generous discount on slow moving products (eg S80 V8)
that time you can bargain for spare wheel also

[GTO]

Thanks for the 5 star rating, guys. I'm happy that you found this review helpful.

Originally Posted by Xehaust

Agreed. But then again, someone who will buy this car will do so for the sheer love of driving. Here, the backseat would probably be the least of his/her concerns.

Agreed to an extent. But I will counter that by saying, nearly all cars in the Indian household are "multi-purpose" vehicles (drop off kids, airport runs, drive to work, drive to the movies, out of town etc.).

Originally Posted by PPS

I never imagined that a Volvo would be so exciting to drive & the review was a pleasant surprise.

I didn't expect the car to be as exciting either!

I wonder if they have a showroom in Mumbai, have never been able to spot it.

Here's the sole Mumbai dealer:

Mumbai:
Shreenath Motors Pvt. Ltd.
Plot No.23A, Shah Industrial Estate
Off. Veera Desai Road
Anderi West, Mumbai -400053
Managing Director: Mr. Shailesh Kachalia
Contact Person: Zealia Quinny (Sales Consultant)
Mobile: +91-9870655997
Tel: +91-22-61777750
Email: volvosales@shreenathvolvocars.in

Also, i feel this car would look better at night.

Stunning picture, thanks for sharing.

Originally Posted by Raosaheb Desai

T6 would be a great buy after a year or so as Volvo always offers generous discount on slow moving products (eg S80 V8)

True that.

[@tombum]

That's one superb detailed review of one Mind blowing Car. Great stuff! I am amazed at the number of features this car has.

[abhay_D]

Greatly enjoyed reading the review as usual, GTO! For a while, I closed my eyes and felt myself to be in the Driver's seat experiencing the sheer power and acceleration of this machine

The car looks quite nice as well. Most of the Volvos which I came across during my stint in the UK were the older cars - very boxy and square and all of them estates. Typically you would see them with a couple of bicycles and a dog in the back. Very handy for those hiking and cycling trips with the family. Saw some new Volvos (S40 mainly ) as well then but very few of them you would see in the UK as compared to the German cars. Possibly due to the reason that Volvo brand had a staid and sober (rather than an understated ) image. Their ads generally spoke about the safety aspects of the cars. One tagline which I clearly remember was about it being the safest car in the world. It is good to see a Volvo coming up with a car with such a fantastic driving capability. It would be interesting to see how they will position this car in India.