S70 or S60?

My sister is looking for a car and I'm partial to the 850/S70 in
a standard trim since her current car has a ~170hp V6 in it.

But is the 60 series much better or not?

 

It depends on what you expect.
If you expect a car that "drives" better then the S60 is better
If you expect a big rear back room, take the S70...... (to be honest: if
the backseat is a matter I would go for a S80)
If space in the back is a matter, consider a V70.

For me a S60 2.4T oulb be the first choice. The 170hp is not bad, but a
little bit sluggish, a N/A engine....

Jürgen

 

These are good comments. Keep in mind even though the S60 is the
successor to the S70, they are COMPLETELY different cars with a
completely different design philosophy. I personally am very
disappointed in the S60 and would recommend the S70 to you. But my
disappointment falls more in the comments of Juergen Schrader. In
general, the S60 "feels" and behaves more like a coupe. I cannot
stress enough that if you need any functionality out of the back seat,
pass on the S60. The tires they matched with this car are also a poor
choice - you'll want to change these quickly. In general, I feel the
newer Volvos are more on the "fluff" and less on real substance - more
of the Japanese car approach. I have the 2.4 (N/A) with 5 speed
manual (168 hp) - at times I would like more power of the turbo, but
it is actually quite adequate when matched with the manual
transmission. I have had an automatic as a loaner and it was
definitely more sluggish.