2018 Volvo XC60 T8 boosted to 314kW with Polestar pack

Volvo’s new XC60 SUV will soon become one of the most powerful Volvo road cars ever, thanks to a Polestar-developed enhancement package that lifts output of its 2.0-litre petrol-electric hybrid powertrain to a hefty 314kW.

That level of power matches the Polestar-optimised XC90 T8, however in the smaller and lighter XC60 it should easily outpace its bigger brother in a straight line. That said, Volvo is yet to confirm how much quicker the Polestar-packing XC60 T8 is compared to the non-Polestar model’s 5.3-second 0-100km/h sprint time.

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Right now, the non-hybrid S60 Polestar is the fastest car in Volvo’s stable, with a 4.9 0-100km/h stat.

Powered by a 235kW 2.0-litre turbocharged and supercharged petrol inline four, the regular XC60’s T8 powertrain is assisted by an electric motor that boosts total system output to 303kW and 640Nm. Polestar, Volvo’s wholly-owned high performance arm , massages the petrol-electric powerplant further to produce that 314kW output.

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It’s worth mentioning that 314kW is 44kW more than the XC60 T8’s closest rival, the twin-turbo V6-engined Mercedes-AMG GLC43, not to mention the 294kW Porsche Macan Turbo.

Polestar also waves its wand over the XC60 T8’s eight-speed automatic to tighten up shift times and rejig shift points to better utilise the engine’s extra muscle, while it’ll also hang onto gears longer if it detects aggressive driving.

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However, environmental credentials are stellar. With a claimed average consumption of 2.1L/100km on the combined cycle and a pure-electric range of 45km thanks to a plug-in charging capability, the Polestar-optimised XC60 T8 will sip rather than slurp fuel.

The Volvo XC60 range is due to arrive locally in the fourth quarter of 2017. Aussie Polestar availability has yet to be confirmed, however given Polestar-optimised powertrain packages are already available in the mechanically-similar XC90 T8, we’d expect the XC60’s 314kW engine config to also come our way.

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