Volvo S60 review

The S60’s driving position is tough to fault, largely thanks to the comfortable and supportive seat that adjusts electrically and has adjustable lumbar support as standard.

You sit slightly farther from the road than in some rivals, such as the BMW 3 Series and Alfa Romeo Giulia, but the pedals line up neatly with the seat and there’s plenty of steering wheel adjustment.

Our only minor complaint is that there are no physical controls for the air-conditioning; to tweak the interior temperature on the move you have to use either the fiddly touchscreen or the car’s voice control feature.

Your view out of the front and diagonally at junctions is very good by the standards of the class. Over-the-shoulder visibility is worse than in some rivals, including the 3 Series and Giulia, but you do get plenty of parking aids to help mitigate this, including front and rear sensors and, on range-topping R-Design Edition trim, a reversing camera.

To help you see where you’re going at night, all S60’s come with full LED headlights that point in the direction you’re turning the steering wheel, to give you a better view through corners.

As in other modern Volvos, the dashboard of the S60 is dominated by a 9.0in tablet-style touchscreen that has allowed the designers to slash the number of buttons and create a minimalist ambience.

Not that the absence of buttons is all good news. While the idea of a screen that lets you swipe, pinch and scroll – like you do with an iPad – is good in theory, in reality it means you really have to concentrate on simple tasks like changing the radio station or tapping an address into the sat nav. Matters aren't helped by the fact that some of the icons are small and the screen doesn’t always react that quickly to prods.

Still, at least the screen is crystal clear and there are plenty of features, including standard sat nav and a DAB radio. Go for range-topping R-Design Edition trim and you’ll also get Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone mirroring.

Like all modern Volvos, the S60 has a really classy interior. There are lots of soft-touch plastics and expensive-feeling materials everywhere you look and touch, and even the buttons and switches feel reassuringly weighty and solid.

True, the Audi A4 has an even plusher interior, but the S60 edges the 3 Series.