Motor Trend, November 2002

First seen at the Paris Motor Show in September, the new Volvo S60 R rolled into Miami for a first look by North American audiences this past weekend. The high-performance sedan is a limited-production model, inspired by the technology and performance of Volvo's Performance Concept Car.

Atop the S60 R list of technological breakthroughs is the most advanced active performance chassis employing Four-C Technology (Continuously Controlled Chassis Concept). Four-C differs from other chassis concepts in its ability to process enormous amounts of information from sensors throughout the chassis. The sensors send signals to the Four-C's microprocessor, which computes the motions of the car, adjusting the stiffness of the shock absorbers so that the car is always parallel to the road surface. The shock absorbers are updated with new information 500 times per second. This is made possible by a totally new technology developed jointly with Ohlins Racing AB and Monroe.

The driver has three chassis-setting options available through three control buttons in the middle of the instrument panel -- Comfort, Sport and Advanced Sport. In the Sport setting, which is also the default setting, the chassis is optimized for ordinary driving on winding roads and at high speeds. Pressing the Comfort button increases the softness of the chassis and insulates the body from irregularities in the road.


When the driver presses the Advanced Sport button, the Volvo S60 R is transformed into a pure sports sedan. The chassis is optimized for maximum road holding in all situations, including the racetrack.

The S60 R's electronically controlled all-wheel-drive (AWD) system works in concert with the Four-C suspension to optimize road holding and stability. With its extremely short engagement and disengagement time, the AWD system reacts immediately to throttle position and torque.

Under the hood lurks the most powerful engine in the Volvo range. The five-cylinder 2.5-liter inline turbocharged engine puts out 300 horsepower at 5200 rpm and 295 ft-lbs of torque at 1950 rpm. Top speed for the S60 is electronically limited to 155 mph and it accelerates from 0 to 60 mph 5.7 seconds with a manual gearbox.

The new six-speed manual gearbox was developed to handle the high torque delivered by the engine. Gearshift travel is short, making for fast, positive changes. Also available is a five-speed Geartronic automatic transmission, which offers the best of both worlds: the gearbox takes care of all gear changes automatically; or the driver can change gears manually, but without a clutch. It also has a "Sport" mode selector in which the automatic transmission changes gears at a higher engine speed and downshifts faster.

The styling of the new cars represents a subtle change in Volvo's tradition when it comes to performance-car design. The S60 R features an aggressively styled front end. The grille has a frame in satin silver, the chin spoiler has been extended and the lower air intake is larger to provide increased airflow and more efficient cooling. At the back, the Volvo S60 R has a thin trunk-mounted spoiler.

Inside, the sport seats have increased side support. They are available in three colors: Dark Blue, Gold Beige and Aniline leather, all with unique stitching. According to Volvo, "The leather carries a strong visual link with Scandinavian furniture design." No mention has been made of a special Ikea edition.

Scheduled to start production in early 2003, the 2004 Volvo S60 R will be built in Ghent, Belgium. Volumes will be limited to 7000 total units. A wagon version -- the V70 R -- will be built at the Torslanda plant in Sweden. Prices have not been announced.

 

Just fore reference purposes, our engine (CLS), at 5200 rpm makes 230 HP.

Also, in theory, this car is a direct competitor to the TLS.

 

Thats is a HOT car! Loving it

BTW: Add 6-8PSI to the 3.2L and youll be in excess of 320HP (just for reference purposes )

 

for you 2-dr fans (which I assume you all are otherwise you wouldn't be here) there is a rumour of this thing coming out in a coupe version in the not too distant future (as reported by one of the top 4 mags although I can't remember exactly which one), which could make it a direct competitor to the CL-S (if it is still around ). Up side is that we coupe lovers would have another option to consider ... down side is that it will probably go the way of the extremely overpriced and undervalued C70 which never even made it to a second generation/facelift from the original issue in '98. To see how this faired, compare Kelly Blue Book to the (then) competition - the 1st gen Merc CLK and the next to last year E36 M3 - and notice how little value the C70 retains today compared to the other two. Will say that Volvo coupes have come a long way from the boxie 242GT's of the late 70's, which evolved to the equally boxie GT Turbo of the early 80's, when the Volvo 2dr did another of its disappearing acts.

 

It's ugly. I think everyone just looks at it and says "It is much better than the old busted Volvos", and then deem it a gorgeous car. I think it is disgusting! It screams mom car, and look at that ass! I would purschase a TL-S or S4 over that mom car anyday.

 

Shit, I'd pimp that volvo!!! I think its looks great...

 

Sure but there is a 0.7 liter advantage. Anyway, I was merely comparing reality. We dont have a force fed engine, the Volvo does. What I was pointing to is that the numbers dont look so impressive till you see where they appear on the rpm band. THe torque is 100% there below 2000 rpm! That is going to feel like the car is much faster than it really is, especially combined with the AWD which will not let 1 HP go wasted (in spins). This is going to feel faster than an M3 down low and mid rpm.

 

I dont think it's ugly but I dont think it looks nearly as sporty and exciting as its hardware suggest.

 

The S60R is gorgeous.....I love it, can't wait to drive it. I'm either getting an M3, S60R, CTS-V next year (when my lease is up). The S4 doesn't really excite me.

A TL-S over this?.......now thats funny

 

Will the rear seats fit two adults comfortably in this sedan? It sure doesnt look like it to me from that picture.

 

Beltfed, fuck that I would get this (the s60) instead...The s60R would really be unique esp. here on the island plus it would be a total sleeper since these are limited production and u won't see one almost everywhere....the interior for the s60R is quite different from the regular s60, w/the s60r having a very very sweet interior (IMO)

Plus, volvo aftermarket isn't 2 bad so i'm pretty sure u can increase boost if u really realy wanted to

 

btw, any1 know what psi the turbos are running? I've been researching this car for over 3-4 months now and still haven't found mention of it?


p.s. the s60r is like a gentleman's wrx

 

Beautiful!!!!!

 

Nice !

 

I generally haven't been a fan of Volvo's in the past, but I like this one. Those gauges are pretty cool looking. If only they'd get rid of those stupid headlight wipers, it would clean up the front a little better.

 

That car is dope and the gauges inside are just gorgeous. I would pimp this car in a second, with a 5.7 0-60 and AWD, plus the ability to up boost if one so desires, coupled to a 6 speed manual is pretty damn good. The S4 is great and all, but this car is more of a sedan and is bigger than the s4.

 

So what's that going to cost? $60,000+??

 

Thats a Volvo i'd pimp.

 

it looks good (and not just by volvo stardards) - but damn those taillights are HUGEEEEE and everything right of the steering wheel LOOKS cheap to me

but it'll be wayy to expensive like that coupe they have now

 

No way, the S60R is rumored to base around $45k (give or take).

Go sit in a loaded S60 T5, the interior is "not" cheap.....its very nice for a $37k car. The S60R will be even nicer, don't forget its not a Bentley.

unsure.......I agree, the S60R would be great to have on LI (would be a nice change from the usual shit you see around).

Just wait until IPD chips an S60R, its going to be a monster and no torque steer to boot.

I'm looking forward to hearing reviews on the car, hope they are positive.

 

:whackit:

Volvos are kewl.

 

I like this car. I used to own the special edition 850 T5-R with some mods and that car used to be very fast when u pump up the boost. It will become a totaly different animal.

 

Well stated beltfed....this car has potential to hoot....and ur rite, IMO, it has some of the nicest seats in the industry under $50K...i was reading an a european article somewhere abt the engineers spending a very long time engineering the seats and that the seats would wear in a diff. way from conventional leather seats....if i had the money, i would be on the waiting list for it 3 months ago

good luck beltfed