J
James Gifford
We picked up two 2005 Volvos last weekend -
XC90 V8, Ruby metallic, taupe interior, Touring, Convenience and climate
packages with the BiXe headlights.
S60R, Titanium gray metallic, bone interior, automatic, graphite R
wheels, climate package.
Notes on the XC90: sweet. Everything I could have expected. Not thrilled
with the mileage, which has settled at about 11.5 around town. Got 17+ on
a short highway trip. Part of the problem is that it's very resistant off
the line - you can't feather the throttle and get anywhere, you have to
go over a hump and goose it to move forward with any sprightliness. It
feels a LOT like cars I've had with a "winter" mode that started in
second gear to prevent wheelspin. Having to either creep up to speed or
goose it to accelerate normally really hammers the mileage. I'm going to
have it looked at to make sure there's not a tranny control problems.
Notes on the S60R: WHOOOOOO-HOOOOOO! What a rocket! Yee-haa! Mileage in
my wife's hands is very good: 18-22. I've depressed that a bit on my
drives.
The chassis settings are much more distinct and individually
useful than the equivalents on my E500 (which were mushy, not so mushy
and shake your kidneys loose). I like all three settings on different
roads and with different 'tudes in place. Worst aspect: the damned thing
has the turning radius of a Mack truck. You can't pull U turns from the
turn lane even on wide dual-lane roads; even a very wide residential
street requires a three-pointer; don't even think about swinging into a
supermarket parking slot without advance planning. I think it must be the
AWD interfering, but it's also something I'm taking back for a check. For
a smallish, very sporty, middlin' high performance car, the turning
radius is AWFUL. Even my Odyssey, no nimblefoot, could turn tighter...
and the XC90 can spin in its own length, almost.
Lovely cars, though. Just lovely. Very glad to be back in the Volvo camp.
XC90 V8, Ruby metallic, taupe interior, Touring, Convenience and climate
packages with the BiXe headlights.
S60R, Titanium gray metallic, bone interior, automatic, graphite R
wheels, climate package.
Notes on the XC90: sweet. Everything I could have expected. Not thrilled
with the mileage, which has settled at about 11.5 around town. Got 17+ on
a short highway trip. Part of the problem is that it's very resistant off
the line - you can't feather the throttle and get anywhere, you have to
go over a hump and goose it to move forward with any sprightliness. It
feels a LOT like cars I've had with a "winter" mode that started in
second gear to prevent wheelspin. Having to either creep up to speed or
goose it to accelerate normally really hammers the mileage. I'm going to
have it looked at to make sure there's not a tranny control problems.
Notes on the S60R: WHOOOOOO-HOOOOOO! What a rocket! Yee-haa! Mileage in
my wife's hands is very good: 18-22. I've depressed that a bit on my
drives.
The chassis settings are much more distinct and individuallyuseful than the equivalents on my E500 (which were mushy, not so mushy
and shake your kidneys loose). I like all three settings on different
roads and with different 'tudes in place. Worst aspect: the damned thing
has the turning radius of a Mack truck. You can't pull U turns from the
turn lane even on wide dual-lane roads; even a very wide residential
street requires a three-pointer; don't even think about swinging into a
supermarket parking slot without advance planning. I think it must be the
AWD interfering, but it's also something I'm taking back for a check. For
a smallish, very sporty, middlin' high performance car, the turning
radius is AWFUL. Even my Odyssey, no nimblefoot, could turn tighter...
and the XC90 can spin in its own length, almost.
Lovely cars, though. Just lovely. Very glad to be back in the Volvo camp.