Volvo S60 saloon (2010-2018) - Interior & comfort

The S60 is a very comfortable car, with cushioned suspension that makes light work of ironing out the majority of large bumps and potholes you’ll encounter. It can be a bit fidgety when driven on rough roads, but never to the point of upsetting passengers. The interior is well insulated so road, wind and tyre noise is kept to a minimum, although the engines can get a bit loud under hard acceleration. The seats are so big and comfortable that they feel like armchairs and offer plenty of support and adjustment, so the S60 is definitely one of the most relaxing cars to drive. It even came second in our 2016 Driver Power customer satisfaction survey for seat comfort, out of 150 models.

Volvo S60 dashboard

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Like all contemporary Volvos, the S60 has a distinctive dashboard design, featuring a ‘floating’ centre console that gives the cabin a more open and airy feel compared to some rivals. You also get some pleasingly simple and straightforward controls for the ventilation and infotainment systems.

Equipment

All S60s come with climate control, alloy wheels, daytime running lights, a leather steering wheel, cruise control, hill-start assist, DAB digital radio and Bluetooth phone connectivity as standard.

Business Edition cars also get an upgraded stereo and sat nav, while the SE includes improved upholstery, larger 17-inch alloys, power-folding mirrors, automatic windscreen wipers and headlights, plus an auto-dimming rear-view mirror. We’d recommend the Business Edition for company-car users and the SE for private buyers.

For 2017, Volvo introduced the Business Edition Lux, after reporting that the standard Business Edition trim accounted for almost a third of all S60 sales. The Lux pack adds a reversing camera, 17-inch alloy wheels, leather upholstery, gloss-black trim inserts and a digital information display.

SE Lux throws in bright xenon headlights, electric rear headrests, an electric driver's seat adjustment, keyless entry and leather upholstery. It’s at this point that the price begins to creep up a bit too much and you leave yourself open to heavy depreciation when the time comes to sell on.

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The R-Design has an even better sound system, an R-Design bodykit, R-Design-branded interior touches, 18-inch alloys, sports seats and lowered suspension for a sportier drive. The range-topping R-Design Lux adds a memory function to the power-operated driver’s seat, as well as a headlight cleaning system, a rear central armrest and a rear lip spoiler.

Options

Volvo offers a series of option packs for the S60, bundling features together for better value. The Winter Pack adds things like heated front seats, a heated windscreen and a headlight cleaning system, while the Driver Support Pack adds a raft of safety kit, including collision warning, autonomous emergency braking, pedestrian/cyclist detection, adaptive cruise control, queue assistance (which can pretty much drive for you in slow stop-start traffic but requires an automatic gearbox), lane-keeping assistance, blind-spot warning, cross-traffic warning and road-sign detection.