Recently, the Volvo XC60 overtook the iconic Volvo 240 as the company’s most popular product of all time. With 2.7 million units produced since the first XC60 left the production line in 2008, the XC60 has been a massive success for the Swedish car company and is still its most popular product both in Australia and globally.

Now in its eighth year for the second-generation model, the XC60 has just received an update to keep it fresh in the hugely popular and highly competitive mid-size SUV segment. Is the updated XC60 still one of the best luxury mid-size SUVs? Let’s find out.

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Price and equipment:

2026 Volvo XC60 pricing (plus on-road costs):

  • Plus B5: $74,990
  • Ultra Dark B5: $81,990
  • Plus T8 PHEV: $92,990
  • Ultra Dark T8 PHEV: $101,990

XC60 Plus standard features:

  • 19-inch alloy wheels with a spare-saver spare
  • Dusk-sensing automatic all-LED lighting
  • LED front and rear daytime running lights
  • Rain-sensing automatic wipers
  • Keyless entry with push button start
  • Hands-free electric tailgate
  • Aluminium roof rails
  • Heated and auto-folding mirrors
  • Leather steering wheel
  • Orrefors crystal gear selector
  • Synthetic ‘Nordico’ leather upholstery
  • Electric front seat adjustment with memory
  • Four-zone automatic climate control
  • 12.3-inch digital driver’s display
  • 11.2-inch touchscreen with live services
  • Inbuilt Google services including, Google Assistant Google Maps and Google Play Store access
  • Head-up display
  • Apple CarPlay
  • DAB+ digital radio
  • 10-speaker sound system
  • Wireless phone charger
  • 4x USB-C ports
  • Head-up display
  • Auto-dimming mirrors
  • 10A home charging cable (T8 PHEV)

XC60 Plus safety features:

  • 7x airbags
  • Autonomous emergency braking (AEB)
  • Adaptive cruise control with adaptive lane guidance
  • Lane keeping assistance
  • Blind-spot monitoring with cross-traffic alert (with braking)
  • Driver attention monitoring
  • Traffic sign recognition
  • Matrix adaptive high beam
  • Front and rear parking sensors
  • 360-degree camera
  • Tyre pressure monitoring
  • Alarm
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XC60 Ultra Dark adds:

  • 20-inch alloy wheels
  • Dark exterior highlights such as the grille, window frame and roof rails
  • 600W 14-speaker Harman Kardon sound system
  • Nappa leather upholstery
  • Heated steering wheel
  • Ventilated and heated front seats
  • Panoramic sunroof
  • Extra electric front seat adjustment
  • Tailored dashboard upholstery

XC60 colour range (all no cost extra):

  • Onyx Black
  • Forest Lake
  • Mulberry
  • Bright Dusk
  • Denim Blue
  • Vapour Grey
  • Aurora Silver
  • Crystal White

Interior, practicality and bootspace:

As we’ve come to expect from modern Volvo products, the interior of the XC60 is lovely, with a classy Nordic vibe throughout. The quality is excellent – even the lower plastics are soft to touch – and it feels tight as well with a solid thud when the doors close. The switchgear is high quality, especially the cool Orrefors gear selector, and the wood-like trim is nice to touch. Plus, there’s plenty of storage to put life’s trinkets.

The updated XC60 range uses a new 11.2-inch touchscreen running a new Android Automotive software that features Google in-built, so that the sat-nav uses Google Maps and the voice control is actually the Google Assistant. It does feature Apple CarPlay as well for Apple users, but if you already use Google Maps on your smartphone, all your destination searches then feature in the car.

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The new screen looks tacked on compared to the smaller former 9.0-inch unit in the pre-updated XC60, but it is much quicker to use and brighter as well. The new layout isn’t massively different, but it is easier to use. The 600W Harman Kardon sound system in the Ultra Dark – optional on the Plus – is rich in aural quality too.

The rear seat isn’t as roomy as you’d expect for a Volvo, with only moderate legroom for six-footers, though headroom is excellent. Rear seat amenities include two separate zones of climate control, air vents, door and map pockets, a central armrest and charging outputs.

The XC60’s boot is perhaps not as large as you’d expect for a Volvo either at 483 litres with the rear seats up, but it’s very well finished and there are plenty of clever features such as side storage, remote releases for the rear seat folding, a 12V socket, hooks to hang bags off and a ski pass to the rear seat – plus, buttons to raise or lower the rear suspension height in models with air suspension.

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Folding the rear seats unlocks 1543 litres of space and unlike many rivals, they actually fold flat. A space-saver spare wheel lies underneath the boot floor of the B5, but not the T8.

Performance and fuel economy:

There are two available drivetrains in the Volvo XC60 range: a 183kW/350Nm 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol in the B5 or that engine teamed with an electric motor for 340kW/709Nm outputs and a 19kWh battery for a claimed 89km electric range in the T8 plug-in hybrid. Both use an eight-speed torque converter automatic transmission and all-wheel drive is standard equipment. The B5 sprints to 100km/h in a respectable 6.9 seconds and the T8 reduces that to 4.8 seconds – both are limited to 180km/h at the top end.

We tested only the B5 and came across with the ‘entry’ engine in the XC60 range. It’s refined, sounds good and provides more than enough performance for the segment. The eight-speed automatic transmission is generally seamless too. Volvo claims combined fuel consumption of 7.6L/100km and CO2 emissions of 173g/km – we beat that in our testing that included a lot of highway running at 7.2L/100km. The XC60 runs on minimum 95RON premium unleaded fuel and features a large 71 litre fuel tank.

On the road:

On the road, the Volvo XC60 impresses with its refinement, comfortable ride quality and generally luxurious feel from behind the wheel. It doesn’t go down the sporty route, unlike a BMW X3, and we think it’s all the better for it. The XC60 still corners well and its chassis is well tuned as well, but it’s not interested in maximum cornering speeds. Instead, it majors on comfort – and we think it’s better suited in this regard to its target market than rivals.

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The steering is light but well weighted, and the ride quality is quite comfortable with great body control. Also impressive are Volvo’s active safety features, especially the adaptive lane guidance as that the company dubs ‘Pilot Assist’ when in operating in tandem with the adaptive cruise control. It provides reliable and subtle lane corrections when activated, and is quite well tuned.

Service and warranty:

Volvo covers the XC60 with a five-year/unlimited km warranty with five years of roadside assistance that can be extended to eight years in total with dealer servicing.

The XC60’s service intervals are once-yearly/every 15,000km and a five-year service plan costs an expensive $3870 ($774 per year).

Verdict: Should I buy a Volvo XC60?

There are rivals to the Volvo XC60 that are sportier and more fun to drive, more modern-feeling and practical throughout, less expensive to service and with a wider range of powerplants. The new infotainment system looks tacked onto the dashboard as well, and the recently update could have gone further in keeping the XC60 fresh against newer and fresher-feeling rivals.

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But we think that the Volvo XC60 is still one of the best premium mid-size SUVs to buy thanks to its lovely interior, good value for money, punchy drivetrains and updated in-car tech. It’s also very comfortable, its cabin is Nordic luxurious and its active safety features are intuitive to use, as you’d expect for a safety-focused company such as Volvo. Put simply, it’s still one of the better options in the segment and you’d be crazy not to consider it.

XC60 rivals:

Volvo XC60 specifications:

  • Model: Volvo XC60 Ultra B5
  • Price: From $81,990 plus on-road costs
  • Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
  • Peak power: 183kW (@ 5400 – 5700rpm)
  • Peak torque: 350Nm (@ 1800 – 4800rpm)
  • Transmission: Eight-speed torque converter automatic, all-wheel drive 
  • 0-100km/h: 6.9 seconds (claimed)
  • Top speed: 180km/h (electronically limited) 
  • Fuel consumption (claimed/as tested): 7.6L/100km, 7.2L/100km 
  • Claimed CO2 emissions: 173g/km
  • Fuel type/tank size: 95RON premium unleaded, 71 litres
  • Dimensions (length/width/height/wheelbase): 4708/1999/1658/2865mm
  • Bootspace: 483 litres (seats up), 1543 litres (seats down)
  • Tare weight: 1835kg
  • Braked towing capacity: 2400kg
  • Warranty: 5-year/unlimited km
  • Roadside assistance: Five years (extendable to eight years through dealer servicing)
  • Service intervals: Annual/15,000km
  • Five-year service cost: $3870 ($774 per year)
  • On sale: Now