Volvo XC60: All Of The Tech

Earlier this week someone asked me to describe what I love most about our dearest Volvo XC60 long-termer. It was hard to revert, not for the lack of finding one thing, but for the mere fact of where does one start? Let’s start with the tech .

Once you step into the XC60, you’ll notice that the interior borrows heavily from that of the XC90, a strategy which I can’t complain about. The center console is dominated by the 9-inch Sensus touchscreen, a portrait-orientation panel from which multimedia, navigation, car settings, and the standard-fit Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are controlled; for this 2018 model year I’m driving, Volvo has redesigned the UI to avoid digging through menus and make features more immediately available. It’s bracketed by a ribbon of metal that spans the width of the cabin and, in Inscription trim, a single, sinuous wave of “Linear Lime” wood.

Volvo’s cabin design is, frankly, top notch. Clean and minimalistic, it’s a uniquely Swedish take on luxury: less austere and overtly masculine than its German counterparts tend toward. A 330W audio system is standard, though my car had been fitted with the optional Bowers & Wilkins upgrade, offering a sweet-sounding 1,100 watts.

Android Auto in the Volvo XC60

Other options include the Convenience package which throws in Pilot Assist semi-autonomous driving and power-folding rear seats, the Advanced package with a head-up display and 360-degree camera, and the Inscription-exclusive Luxury Seat package, with heating, and ventilation for the front seats, heating for the back, and upgraded Nappa leather all round.

Even if you eschew the electrification, it’s hard not to be impressed by the 2018 XC60’s tech. Undercutting its German rivals when comparatively spec’d, it’s another example of Volvo trusting its own identity: it feels like an unashamedly Scandinavian SUV, a Swedish interpretation of family luxury that doesn’t bother to ape the Audi, Mercedes, and BMW alternatives.

Stay tuned for more on our Vovlo XC60 Long Termer ride. Header image by Tshego Mmahlatji

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Papi Mabele

Papi Mabele has a marketing background, he is a digital marketing expert with extensive experience in launching and building global brands such as Sony Mobile, Acer, BMW, Jamie's Italian Restaurants, Channel O and Radisson Blu in the emerging markets. Papi is also an avid tech writer, enthusiast and all round tech junkie. As a freelance writer and analyst he has been numerously published in Popular Mechanics (SA), GQ South Africa, Premier Magazine, Driven Magazine, Bloem News, Courant, The Weekly, Enthooze Magazine and PiE magazine amongst others.