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2021 Volvo XC60 Review | Swedish design; no assembly required

The 2021 Volvo XC60 may not be the first car to spring to mind when considering European luxury crossovers, but despite lacking the cachet of tier-one manufacturers, it is a solid, safety-first offering with attractive styling and excellent interior design, rising above the mainstream market and rivaling some of the continent’s best. The XC60Â’s cabin is uniquely Swedish: clean, modern and at its tastefully adorned best when done up in earth tones and natural wood trim. You won't confuse it for something from Germany or Japan. Its seats are among the most comfortable and supportive of any luxury car under $100,000, and its Sensus infotainment system is capable and flexible. No Volvo is perfect. Wheel size upgrades tend to disproportionately impact ride comfort, and Sensus can be slow to boot up and respond to inputs. Its powertrains are also lacking in refinement, with even the 400-horsepower plug-in hybrid model (Formerly the T8; now dubbed “Recharge”) lacks polish despite its robust performance. But the XC60 is nonetheless impressive, and thanks to its diverse array of powertrain options and versatile tech suite, this luxury crossover offers something for everybody. WhatÂ’s new for 2021? For 2021, the XC60 is largely carry-over. Models with the T8 powertrain are now referred to as “Recharge,” which is VolvoÂ’s new universal name for its plug-in hybrids. Keyless entry is now standard, along with illuminated door handles. WhatÂ’s the interior and in-car technology like? VolvoÂ’s attractive and refined shape is mirrored in its stylish, welcoming interiors. With premium materials and beautiful design from top to bottom, itÂ’s difficult to find anything negative to say about the XC60Â’s interior. Open-pore wood and real metal are both available depending on trim, and Recharge Inscription models even get an Orrefors crystal gear selector. VolvoÂ’s Sensus infotainment suite is compatible with both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, and also offers robust integration with phones via Bluetooth, including speech-to-text, allowing it to read and compose text messages without outside assistance. Sensus lacks polish in some areas, offering slow boot-up times and menus that can be difficult to navigate on the road. Still, several of our editors appreciate its touchscreen layout and find it less overwhelming than admittedly quicker and flashier systems like Mercedes' MBUX and BMW's iDrive.

How Norway became a world leader in EV sales, and where it goes from here

OSLO, Norway — A silent revolution has transformed driving in Norway. Eerily quiet vehicles are ubiquitous on the fjord-side roads and mountain passes of this wealthy European nation of 5.3 million. Some 30 percent of all new cars sport plug-in cables rather than gasoline tanks, compared with 2 percent across Europe overall and 1-2 percent in the U.S. As countries around the world — including China, the world's biggest auto market — try to encourage more people to buy electric cars to fight climate change, Norway's success has one key driver: the government. It offered big subsidies and perks that it is now due to phase out, but only so long as electric cars remain attractive to buy compared with traditional ones. "It should always be cheaper to have a zero emissions car than a regular car," says Climate and Environment Minister Ola Elvestuen, who helped push through a commitment to have only zero-emissions cars sold in Norway by 2025. The plan supports Norway's CO2 reduction targets under the 2015 Paris climate accord. To help sales, the Norwegian government waived hefty vehicle import duties and registration and sales taxes for buyers of electric cars. Owners don't have to pay road tolls, and get free use of ferries and bus lanes in congested city centers. These perks are being phased out in 2021, though any road tolls and fees would be limited to half of what gasoline car owners must pay. Gradually, subsidies for electric cars will be replaced by higher taxes on traditional cars. Registration tax on new cars is paid on a sliding scale with a premium for the amount of emissions produced. Elvestuen pledges that the incentives for electric vehicles will be adjusted in such a way that it does not scupper the 2025 target. "What is important is that our aim is not just to give incentives," he says. "It is that we are taxing emissions from regular cars." Using taxes to encourage consumers to shift to cleaner energy can be tricky for a government — protests have erupted in France over a fuel tax that hurt the livelihood of poorer families, especially in rural areas where driving is often the only means of transportation. In the U.S, some would like to see the tax credit on EVs and hybrids eliminated while others would extend it. In this sense, Norway is an outlier. The country is very wealthy after exporting for decades the kind of fossil fuels the world is trying to wean itself off of. Incomes are higher than the rest of Europe, as are prices.

Volvo adds 48V hybrid system to a bunch of 2022 models

In 2019, Volvo announced an updated powertrain fitted with a 48-volt mild hybrid system. The integrated starter-generator and regenerative brake-by-wire refilling a small battery could increase fuel economy by up to 15% in real-world driving. There are three layouts, dubbed B4, B5, and B6 that the Swedish automaker's already been rolling out globally. Next year two of them, the B5 and B6, come to the U.S. for the first time under the 2022 Volvo S60, S90, V90 XC, and XC60. The EPA's fuel economy site shows all of those models making small fuel economy gains, too. The B4 and B5 powertrains contain both gas and diesel mild-hybrids, the B6 is gas-only. All of the gas options (Volvo doesn't offer diesels here) will start with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder, the B5 adding a turbocharger, the B6 adding a turbocharger and a supercharger.  Per the EPA, the front-wheel drive 2021 Volvo S60 returns 23 miles per gallon in the city, 34 on the highway, and 27 combined. The new 2022 Volvo S60 B5 betters that with 26 city, 35 highway, and 30 combined. The 2022 S60 B5 AWD bests the 2021 model with the both versions of the non-hybrid 2.0-liter engine by one to three miles per gallon in nearly every category. The only model that does better, for obvious reasons, is the 2021 S60 AWD PHEV, which has been renamed S60 T8 AWD Recharge. The 2022 Volvo XC60 comes in AWD B5 spec with the turbocharged 2.0-liter, and AWD B6 spec with the turbo- and supercharged 2.0-liter. Gains are smaller here, the EPA showing a one-mpg increase in the city when comparing the 2021 XC60 to the 2022 B5 model. With the B6 powertrain, the 2022 XC60 improves by one mpg in the city and combined compared to the 2021 model. The EPA site doesn't show a front-drive XC60 for next year, and the XC60 AWD PHEV is already referred to as the XC60 T8 AWD Recharge. It's possible horsepower ratings will change slightly for the mild-hybrid rigs next year, but not enough to change the driving experience. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.