“These are high-energy crashes, where a quarter of severe injuries and deaths occur,” says Jan Ivarsson, deputy director of safety, “but a 10 – 15km/h speed reduction, if you calculate the energy scrub, makes a big difference on the fate of the passengers.”
And before you ask, no we didn’t experience it in operation.
Not all of it is standard, though, with blind-spot information system including steering assist, cross-traffic alert and rear-collision mitigation costing another £500.
Of the three basic trim packages: Momentum, R-Design and Inscription, the mid-ranking R-Design is likely to be the most popular, but the base model equipment isn’t bad, with cruise control, height-adjustable front seats, DAB radio, LED lamps, park assist, 17-inch wheels, the 12.3-inch driver display and that centre touchscreen. One must-have option is the £700 360-degree parking camera if only for the beautiful graphics.
Volvo recently announced that it wouldn’t launch any more new diesel models, although this was slyly calculated timing since it applies not to this car, which will sell strongly in Europe where diesel sales are important, but to the forthcoming S60 saloon which will sell strongly in North American and far eastern markets where diesel isn’t a big factor. So the UK will initially get two turbodiesels, four-cylinder engines (148bhp D3 and 187bhp D4) and one four-pot petrol (246bhp T5), with a T4 petrol and the T6 plug-in hybrid that will be launched by late this year/early next. Transmissions include the six-speed manual and eight-speed torque-converter automatic. By far the majority of UK sales will be of diesel engines with the 148bhp/236lb ft D3 most popular. The only diesel available to drive, however, was the 187bhp/295lb ft D4 which at not much more than £1,000 extra, with significantly more performance and approximately the same economy and CO2 emissions, makes a good case for itself.
Volvo’s turbodiesel has tended towards the raucous, so it's nice to report that in this big estate it’s more refined than the other SPA cars. It's respectably quick with strong low-down torque so it feels relaxed at speed. The eight-speed auto isn't a great gearbox, though, or at least the shifting strategy isn't and strangely there’s no steering-wheel paddles to allow you to select a higher gear and ride the torque curve rather than let the ‘box change down. For a big 1.7-tonne shooting break, the economy isn’t bad, however, we got 46.3mpg on brisk Spanish A roads.