2018 Volvo XC60 Preview
CARS.COM
Competes with: Acura RDX, Audi Q5, BMW X3, Lexus NX
Looks like: A miniaturized, more athletic XC90
Drivetrain: 250-horsepower, turbocharged four-cylinder (T5); 312-hp, turbocharged and supercharged four-cylinder (T6); 400-hp plug-in hybrid with four-cylinder engine and electric motor (T8)
Hits dealerships: Fall 2017
The 2018 Volvo XC60 made its first showing in Geneva, but for those of us on North American shores, our first look will come at the 2017 New York International Auto Show.
More 2017 New York Auto Show Coverage
The redesigned XC60 adds new styling, technology and a few exciting safety updates that advance Volvo’s safety technology further along on the road towards autonomous driving.
Exterior
The XC60 adopts the styling found on the 90 series vehicles, and it works well even in this scaled-down form. The long, sculpted hood sits behind a vertical grille, flanked by new headlight clusters that feature Volvo’s signature “Thor’s Hammer” LED daytime running lights. Instead of a rounded back, the rear is more angled, which better matches the updates up front.
These changes make the XC60 look more athletic and should make it stand out more on the road compared to the previous model, which had fairly anonymous styling.
Interior
The large touchscreen interface first seen in the XC90 and S90 makes it way to the XC60 with redesigned screens and updated graphics. There are also updates to the Volvo On Call mobile app, which offers features like sending navigation directions to the vehicle from a calendar or helping to locate the XC60 after it’s been parked.
A new CleanZone four-zone climate system debuts, as well. Volvo says it removes pollutants and particles from the outside environment to keep the air fresh on the inside.
Under the Hood
The new XC60 will have three available powertrain options, each based on a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that’s also true of the rest of the Volvo lineup. The T5 and T6 trim levels return with the same engines, but they get a small boost in power for 2018 to match the output found in the XC90. The turbocharged engine in the T5 makes 250 hp, while the turbocharged and supercharged T6 makes 316 hp.
New for 2018 on the XC60 is a T8 plug-in hybrid powertrain, which combines the T6’s engine with an electric motor for a total output of 400 hp. Volvo says that the T8 will run from zero-to-62 mph in 5.3 seconds.
No estimates are available yet for fuel economy.
Safety
A new safety system called Steering Assist has been added for 2018. Steering Assist is used by several of the XC60’s safety systems — including the City Safety system, which helps to avoid collisions with vehicles, pedestrians and other large objects. The blind spot warning system also uses Steering Assist to prevent a lane change that will result in a collision, and the new Oncoming Lane Mitigation systems uses it to help prevent head-on collisions.
Also available is Volvo’s Pilot Assist, a semi-autonomous driver assistance system that will handle the steering, acceleration and braking at speeds of up to 80 mph.
No details yet on pricing, but we do know that the 2018 XC60 will arrive at dealerships this fall.
