The safest of the safe and so much more!

Volvo is renowned for putting safety at the top of its priority list. These days, though, the Swedish company has learned how to make cars that are stylish, too. The XC60 SUV is one of them and as well as looking cool, its the safest car Volvo has ever made.

Every XC60 comes loaded with safety gear even the lowliest versions miss out on nothing. Theres loads of stuff to protect you in a crash, and more still to stop you having one in the first place. You dont go short on luxuries, either. Climate, cruise, a classy stereo and a generally well trimmed interior see to that, even on the SE. The seats are excellent, though leather doesnt come in until you move up to the SE Lux. The R-Design loses some of the practical stuff and replaces it with a whole lot of styling, inside and out. Its still a well specced car, but the extra image comes at the expense of rear park assist, power folding mirrors, rain-sensing wipers and even floor mats and a grocery bag holder. The R-Design Lux brings most of this back in, and then some, while retaining the sportier looks. And the Ocean Race edition blends elements of both, adding in a dollop of its own style for good measure.

The pinnacle of the XC60 range is the T6, a powerful but thirsty petrol engine thats reserved for the R-Design models. In the real world, though, either diesel will keep you happy. The D4 is brisk enough, and the D5 is actively quick. Heres something to try and get your head around, though. The D4 is actually two different engines. In two-wheel drive models, its a 2.0-litre unit, while in AWD versions its a 2.4. Confusing enough? Well, the D5 is the same 2.4 as the D4 AWD, in a different state of tune. Did you know that theres no word for logic in Swedish?