Wanna ride shotgun with GRM?
Welcome to this week’s test vehicle, a 2024 Volvo V60 Recharge Polestar Engineered.
If you want a genuine wagon from Volvo (as in, not one of the lifted "Cross Country" models), this plug-in hybrid model is your only option.
Photograph Cour…
*huff* *huff* *huff* *huff* *huff* *huff*
This one checks a lot of boxes for me:
Fast(ish) ✔
Wagon ✔
Plug-in hybrid ✔
Decent EV range ✔
Looks cool ✔
WAGON ✔✔✔
Shame it doesn't come in "Swedish Racing Green" like the previous Polestar models.
Man, that's a good looking car. There's something about the whole plug in hybrid concept that bugs me though. I'm good with a pure EV and I love me some old fashioned internal combustion engine but combining them in any form just seems like the worst of both worlds.
If the available power is a trade-off of the plug in hybridness, then I’m okay with that. It has power. Everywhere: combined 455 horsepower with 523 lb.-ft. of torque, all backed by a quick-shifting, eight-speed automatic.
It looks great. It’s the right size. Good visibility in all directions. It’s quiet and comfortable.
More to come in a few.
Duke said:*huff* *huff* *huff* *huff* *huff* *huff*
That’s the good kind of huffing, right?
In reply to Colin Wood :
. 
David S. Wallens said:Duke said:*huff* *huff* *huff* *huff* *huff* *huff*
That’s the good kind of huffing, right?
*pant* YES *pant*
That price tag, yikes. Looks like the mild-hybrid V60 can be had for about $20K less.
I love wagons, but man, I can't imagine that many customers will purchase one of these over the huge spectrum of SUV choices on the market right now.
David S. Wallens said:In reply to Colin Wood :
.
Absolute bummer that you can only have it in those colors. I get it, though, I'm in the minority that wants a shouty color like yellow or bright blue.
Nothing a wrap can't fix, though.
In reply to Colin Wood :
I’m thinking a minty green could look cool.
In reply to nderwater :
I'm here to tell you that I am one of the few people who would buy this over an SUV–though I will acknowledge that the MSRP is out of reach for me (for now at least).
If I could afford it, I'd be going to the dealership today.
Oh, yes, totally would get this over an SUV. My parents are on their second BMW wagon, and my dad has no interest in a BMW SUV.
nderwater said:That price tag, yikes. Looks like the mild-hybrid V60 can be had for about $20K less.
I love wagons, but man, I can't imagine that many customers will purchase one of these over the huge spectrum of SUV choices on the market right now.
The B6 mildbrid makes a nice driver. I got one as a loaner and the fill-in ooomph from the electric motor is not world-changing, but gives throttle response a certain immediacy that makes it nice in traffic or on twisty roads.
David S. Wallens said:If the available power is a trade-off of the plug in hybridness, then I’m okay with that. It has power. Everywhere: combined 455 horsepower with 523 lb.-ft. of torque, all backed by a quick-shifting, eight-speed automatic.
It looks great. It’s the right size. Good visibility in all directions. It’s quiet and comfortable.
More to come in a few.
Yes, those are great performance specs but you could achieve the HP with a pure gas motor and not haul around the batteries and electric motor or the same torque with a pure EV and have a better electric range and no gas engine, or transmission maintenance.
I do know that it's not quite that simple and I recognize that my aversion to hybrids isn't entirely logical.
Check it out: color-coordinated brake calipers and valve caps. (It’s the little things, right?)
And seat belts!
Some Volvoness that you get.
Instead of a key, you get a knob thingie that you turn clockwise to both and start the engine. Crystal shifter is also very Volvo.
Personally, I’d love some knobs for HVAC. 
And the center console is a bit shallow.
A deal-breaker? No.
Glad this one says "Volvo" on the car. Volvo means "I roll" if memory serves. "Polestar" sounds like a cross between "Porn Star" and Pole Dancer", neither of which I especially like for an automobile. That being said, this is a good looking wagon with very nice power 
APEowner said:Man, that's a good looking car. There's something about the whole plug in hybrid concept that bugs me though. I'm good with a pure EV and I love me some old fashioned internal combustion engine but combining them in any form just seems like the worst of both worlds.
Enh, it works for me. I've got a 3 mile non-bikeable commute, it would be awesome to drive to work on electric and then use the same car for road trips. You get the benefit of a light battery too, which is a major issue with BEV's. I've heard a lot of bellyaching about "two motors, twice the complexity", but really the EV motor is very simple and its the battery pack that's the expensive/complicated part. This gets around that with a small battery pack. With a PHEV, you basically have 1.5 motors for a car that works as 2 cars.
The way this is implemented is also pretty slick, IIRC, there's an electric motor on the rear axle so there's no transfer case or propshaft to wear out, and since its on the rear, the torquey motor gets the traction.
nderwater said:That price tag, yikes. Looks like the mild-hybrid V60 can be had for about $20K less.
I love wagons, but man, I can't imagine that many customers will purchase one of these over the huge spectrum of SUV choices on the market right now.
Yeah, price is too high for me, despite how cool it is.
Also, does it bug anyone else that the calipers are on the front of the rotors? I don't know why that irks me, but for some reason, I see rotors front as a "cheap car" thing.
rothwem said:Also, does it bug anyone else that the calipers are on the front of the rotors? I don't know why that irks me, but for some reason, I see rotors front as a "cheap car" thing.
There's no [compelling] engineering advantage to putting the calipers at any particular spot around the rotor. The placement can be made entirely for packaging and clearance reasons.
So, no, I don't correlate caliper placement with design quality.
In reply to David S. Wallens :
I normally would agree with you on the climate control knobs but in my experience with Volvos they do such a good job with climate control that I adjust it maybe twice a year. I like it set at 70 in the summer and 72 in the winter. Are you having to mess with this one or is your knob preference based on general principles?
In reply to APEowner :
Black car + Florida sun means I’ve looked for the knob a time or two. Still, not a main issue. The car’s that enjoyable that it’s like my one complaint.
And an “around town” shot, kinda, as during lunch I used it to drop off some film for processing.
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