Recharge - V60 T8 vs XC60 T6 (pros and cons)

[MartinEden]

Hi,

I'm preparing to order a new car and I'm thinking to order a 60-series Recharge.
However, I am still not decided between the V60 and XC60.
Pricewise a V60 T8 would be slightly cheaper than a XC60 T6 with similar options.
However, I know that there are some advantages for the XC60 such as the Google-based Infotainment, Panoramic roof, air suspensions.
Btw, my dealer told me that the V60 should get a facelift in Q1 2022 and maybe it will also get the Google Infotainment. Anyone else could confirm this?

On an yearly basis I'm doing 80% of the car miles in a city/urban environment (~30/day) and the rest during the 1-2 longer holiday drives plus some additional medium trips during the week-end. Thus the Recharge model. I can also charge at home in the garage.

On the cons side, I always had estate cars and the few times I rented SUVs (X3, X-Trail) I felt a certain unease driving them mainly because of their size. I suppose that in time you get used with this and is no longer an issue.
My previous car was a V60 T6 and I enjoyed this car a lot.
I am still to try the XC60. I wanted to try the new model with the improved battery pack and electric engine but it seems it will be a while until it will hit the showrooms (at least over here in Luxembourg).

Are there any other aspects/criteria I should consider for my decision?

Thank you.

[Charnwood]

I think the main one is the around 5 miles extra range on the WLTP figures electric only for the V60 and the 18g CO2 vs 25g CO2. This probably only equates to 2 miles real world extra mileage so may not be that much in real life.

However depends what the govt in Luxembourg do, you may find it benefical if for example they change the tax bracket for PHEVs and set the cut off at 50 miles. V60 would be above and XC60 below. But that is a maybe.

I highly suspect in the UK they'll do something like mandate PHEVs of over x miles electic only range and politicans like large round numbers so could choose 50 as the limit.

Other differences (mainly of the dimensions on volvo site)

- XC60 has around 2cm extra head room.
- V60 is slightly longer - 6cm
- V60 has around 7 cm less leg room in the back row
- V60 is slightly narrower in the cabin

So minor things, depends if it's you or if you're taking children/adults and how often etc.

[MartinEden]

Yes, the range is an advantage for V60 also but most of the times the XC60 EV range will be more than enough for my commute.
Tax-wise I do not know what the gvmt will decide in 2022. The current trend is to completely remove subsidies for PHEV cars (at the end of 2021) in favor of higher subsidies for BEVs.

[griffin447]

Originally Posted by MartinEden

Yes, the range is an advantage for V60 also but most of the times the XC60 EV range will be more than enough for my commute.
Tax-wise I do not know what the gvmt will decide in 2022. The current trend is to completely remove subsidies for PHEV cars (at the end of 2021) in favor of higher subsidies for BEVs.

Whatever the electric range says on the Volvo website take about a third off. If it’s cold weather take off another third. Real world usage is very different to the glitzy marketing materials. Personally I like the XC60 ride height but it just depends if you prefer a high driving position or not. Everything else is pretty much the same. The Google system has a few problems at the moment due to it being a new release but should be fixed by the time you get yours 😊

[Polestar Pete]

Have a good look at the finances and running costs and weigh them against how long you'll have the vehicle.

Hybrids are still more expensive than the petrol/diesel equivalents so you need to work out what the best cost of ownership is (if that's important to you).

Bear in mind that as soon as you run out of electricity, the MPG will nose-dive.

But then again, no one buys Volvos for their fuel economy...

And moving to an SUV shouldn't be an issue - you get a lot more view of the road ahead from being a few inches higher.

[MartinEden]

Thanks.
I did the TCO calculations and clearly with my yearly mileage (~15K miles) a PHEV is not the cheapest option.
But I will gladly pay some extra for the daily acoustic comfort while driving on the electric engine. Plus I fell less guilty when doing the 5 miles to/from school ride instead of public transport. Although I know this is greatly debatable since PHEV cars pollute in other ways.

[Automatic Only]

Originally Posted by Polestar Pete

Have a good look at the finances and running costs and weigh them against how long you'll have the vehicle.

Hybrids are still more expensive than the petrol/diesel equivalents so you need to work out what the best cost of ownership is (if that's important to you).

Bear in mind that as soon as you run out of electricity, the MPG will nose-dive.

But then again, no one buys Volvos for their fuel economy...

And moving to an SUV shouldn't be an issue - you get a lot more view of the road ahead from being a few inches higher.

I have actually been pleasantly surprised with the mpg of the engine on mine - have managed over 40mpg on a long run even with a flat battery and I generally cruise at around 75mph on the motorway so not as if it was driving really slow. For a 2 tonne SUV with this level of performance that seems pretty good to me. I do use premium fuel though, which I think does make quite a difference.

[MartinEden]

With my previous V60 T6 from 2020, I averaged 29.4mpg during the long holiday route across Europe this summer. This on empty batteries, at highway speed, with 2 adults, 2 teenagers, a Golden, a rooftop cargo, and AC on. I was only missing a trailer .
I'm not that worry about the consumption since most of my miles will be on electricity anyways. My choice for a PHEV is (almost) certain.
What I'm still not decided upon is the size of the car and for this I would like to have some feed-back from Volvo owners having driven both the XC60 and a V60 and their impression of both.
Also the 4 of us are rather short (<5'8) so we had plenty of space even in the V60.
Thanks!

[MartinEden]

Originally Posted by Polestar Pete

Have a good look at the finances and running costs and weigh them against how long you'll have the vehicle.

Hybrids are still more expensive than the petrol/diesel equivalents so you need to work out what the best cost of ownership is (if that's important to you).

Bear in mind that as soon as you run out of electricity, the MPG will nose-dive.

But then again, no one buys Volvos for their fuel economy...

And moving to an SUV shouldn't be an issue - you get a lot more view of the road ahead from being a few inches higher.

Finally I ended up ordering another V60 with a B4 petrol engine. Indeed the price difference between the Recharge mode and the mild-hybrid was too important.