2025 Volvo S60 Recharge Review, Release Date, and Price. The existing generation Volvo S60 has been on the marketplace for 5 years now, with only a slight mid-cycle freshen in 2014. That’s a long time for a sedan with deluxe opposition desires to sit still on the market. Yet, after spending a week in the 2025 S60 Recharge, I’m still struck by just how well its one-of-a-kind blend of traditional style, sophisticated comfort, and refined high-end rings true.
3 TRIMS FOR THE 2025 VOLVO S60
You can pick in between 2 variations of the 2025 Volvo S60. The automaker calls the base design the S60 B5 and outfits it with a turbocharged four-cylinder engine, mild-hybrid technology, and front-wheel drive (FWD) or four-wheel drive (AWD). The S60 Recharge T8 has a plug-in hybrid drivetrain and conventional AWD. You’ll spend about $10,000 to update from the base S60 T5 FWD to the most budget-friendly S60 Recharge T8 AWD version.
Each S60 version is readily available in Core, Plus, or Ultimate trim. The S60 T5 Core begins in the reduced $40,000 s while the S60 Recharge T8 Ultimate has a base price in the high $50,000 s, not consisting of the destination charge to deliver the vehicle from the Ridgeville, South Carolina, setting up plant to your local dealer.
For this review, Volvo offered me with a one-week loan of an S60 Recharge Ultimate in upstate New york city. It came with simply two choices. The Climate package added warmed rear seats, a heated guiding wheel, and cleaners for the fronts lights. It additionally had the Bowers & Wilkins high-end audio system. The examination auto’s supplier’s suggested retail price was $62,445, consisting of the $1,095 location fee.
Relying on where you live, the S60 Recharge could be eligible for state or regional discounts and incentives. Nevertheless, the S60 Recharge is not eligible for any kind of government rewards.
SOLID, BUT UNEVEN POWER
Having that numerous disparate powertrain systems creates a periodically irregular driving experience in the S60.
Driven in Pure setting, the auto attempts to make use of only the electric motor, which powers the rear wheels. By doing this, the S60 has sufficient inspiration to move with web traffic without issue, however you’ll struggle on hillsides and at greater rates. In this mode, the S60 needs to travel 41 miles exclusively on electricity, and I managed precisely that, crossing 41 miles before the fee indicator suggested zero.
Read: 2024 Volvo S60 Price, Release Date, and Specs
Without a battery charge, the S60 becomes a positive hybrid vehicle, with a great mix of power from the rear electrical motor and front gas engine. This, though, can cause some weird characteristics. Foot-to-the-floor shenanigans will result in unequal power application as the electrical motor comes on strong and afterwards runs out of steam prior to the eight-speed transmission drops enough gears to bring the gas engine into play.
After time behind the wheel, you’ll discover just how to drive the S60 to optimize its different power sources. And despite being a quick vehicle with skilled handling, the vehicle is finest driven in a more kicked back fashion. It’s smooth and comfy on the highway; also over busted asphalt, it’s rather certified.
Adventure high quality on the 19-inch wheels is neither plush nor punishing, and while the tires supply lots of hold, as soon as the car identifies even the slightest loss of traction, it right away cuts power. Volvo, bear in mind, is a brand concentrated on safety, not driving excitement.
It’s likewise concentrated on frugality. The S60 is EPA-rated for approximately 74 MPGe, or 31 mpg in combined driving. My testing in Hybrid mode, beginning with a partly billed battery, netted me 39.9 mpg. Yet this car can provide significant efficiency if your driving includes much shorter journeys with battery butting in between.
And, even if you don’t have access to a higher-speed 240-volt Level 2 battery charger and make use of a straightforward wall surface outlet instead, the S60 goes from vacant to full overnight. On a 240-volt L2 electrical outlet, it takes simply five hours.
THE 2025 VOLVO S60 RECHARGE IS EYE CATCHING, NOT HEAD TURNING
The look of modern-day Volvos is frequently compared to Scandinavian furnishings style, and it’s a difficult parallel to avoid. Excellent Scandinavian furnishings has a basic, familiar look, which’s a wonderful way to explain the S60.
Beginning with the Thor’s hammer headlights in advance and sweeping back gradually to the tall taillights at the back, the S60 does not look fresh by any means, nor does it look dated. It just looks excellent. It’s a car that will certainly make compliments, also in the downplayed color of Rumbling Gray.
The inside is more striking and unforgettable without being as shouty as the luxuriant, LED-festooned interiors in several BMWs and Mercedes-Benzes. The emphasize right here is the examination cars and truck’s beautiful charcoal upholstery, a woollen mix that is wonderful to appreciate and even far better to really feel. While natural leather is still the default for deluxe seating, Volvo has regularly revealed there’s space for even more adventurous products.
Related: Everything We Know about 2024 Volvo S60
That grey weave pairs perfectly with the driftwood inlays on the dashboard, highlighted by a subtle move of intense steel that bisects the control panel. The remainder of the interior is mostly vinyl or plastic. Still, the materials are appealing throughout, consisting of the carpeting that runs up the facility transmission passage, a room generally covered in affordable, weak plastics by a lot of manufacturers.
Controls at this moment recognize on the Volvo, but likewise high-end. The Orrefors Sweden crystal shifter is by far the most extravagant little bit of the interior, yet it has an exceptional feel, as does the big, beefy quantity knob that is an absolute pleasure to rotate.
Left thumb controls on the steering wheel manage cruise control obligations, including making it possible for Volvo’s Pilot Assist system. Media controls get on the right, along with a button for toggling in between the 3 gauge cluster views (map, trip computer, or void). You can additionally activate the incorporated Google Aide for your voice commands utilizing the steering wheel or by simply stating, “Hey, Google.”
COMFORT AND SUPPORT BUT A SLIGHT LACK OF HEADROOM
Rear-seat accommodations in the S60 are reasonable if a little bit cramped. I needed to elude a little to enter under the sloping roofline. When in, I discovered my head rather strongly grown right into the headliner. I’m about 6 feet high, so I figure anyone under regarding 5 foot, 10 inches should fit uncreative. The legroom isn’t charitable either, yet it is greater than appropriate for many adults.
Theoretically, you can fit three across in the back for a total amount of 5 occupants, but your travelers will be much more comfy if you only placed two back there. That will likewise let them enjoy the broad armrest with pop-out cupholders. The rear seats are heated up, air-conditioning vents lie on the roof columns, and there’s a pair of USB-C ports for passengers to use for charging smart devices.
The car’s front seating isn’t specifically spacious, either. You rest low in the S60, the transmission passage coming high up previous your hip, however the seats are so snug and comfy you won’t mind. The scenic sunroof assists make the car really feel even more open and ventilated.
Even with natural leather upholstery, front-seat air flow for hotter days is inaccessible. But the S60 is ready for wintertime, thanks to effective front-seat warmers. You’ll turn them down soon, also on the chilliest days. The heated steering wheel, likewise, is generously warm.
LIMITED CARGO SPACE, BUT GOOD USABILITY
The S60 Recharge’s 11.6-cubic-feet trunk is little. Still, it is deep and ought to swallow a family’s worth of baggage for a weekend away or a huge trip to the marketplace. There’s absolutely nothing particularly creative taking place in the trunk, other than two plastic hooks for keeping your perishables upright. The rear seats fold down at the touch of a button to increase cargo quantity as needed.
Likewise, you will not find anything ingenious relating to storage room in the cabin. The front and rear door pockets are slender, and there’s hardly room for a smartphone under the center armrest. Wood-paneled covers hide the cupholders and the little storage tray on the center console, making certain a tidy, minimalist look when unused.
ANDROID AUTOMOTIVE: STUCK IN THE GOOGLEVERSE
Volvo was among the first major makers to bring Google into the dashboard with Android Automotive. Ever since, little has actually changed, which’s unsatisfactory. The huge applications are below, such as Google Maps and Spotify, however popular choices such as Pandora and Apple Music are still missing out on.
The enhancement of wired Apple CarPlay connectivity assists fill the gap, yet Android customers who want to stream media from their phones are still stuck utilizing Bluetooth audio.
The most restrictive part is how fixed the entire infotainment experience is. There’s really little space for customization or personalization, trademarks of the Android experience on smart phones. You have no control over what’s shown on the head-up screen, for example, and just 3 feasible views on the electronic gauge cluster.
Thankfully, Google Maps has to do with the most effective navigation experience on the planet, and having it baked right into the cars and truck has lots of benefits. That’s specifically true if you’re a Google individual and sign in to your account, a process that takes just a couple of secs from an Android Phone– longer if you have to enter your password on the vehicle’s 9.0-inch portrait-oriented touchscreen.
When checked in, all your current locations and upcoming consultations remain in the automobile, indicating it’ll most likely know where you want to go before you do. Google Assistant is also powerful, able to recognize everything from certain address access by voice to even more nuanced commands, such as “I’m hungry.”
Volvo’s optional 15-speaker, 1,410-watt Bowers & Wilkins sound system is exceptional. It gets on the bright and crisp side, so it’s not ideal for those who prefer a thick layer of bass dominating their tracks, however this system has lots of power for any type of soundtrack you intend to toss at it.
VOLVO S60’S PILOT ASSIST IS RELIABLE YET PREDICTABLE
Every Volvo S60 has a comprehensive list of active safety features. They consist of:
- Ahead collision warning
- Pedestrian, bicyclist, and pet detection
- Automatic emergency braking
- Lane-departure warning
- Lane-keeping help
- Blind-spot tracking
- Rear cross-traffic alert
On top of that, Volvo’s Pilot Assist system with adaptive cruise ship control and lane-centering assist is offered. Buyers should step up to the Plus or Ultimate trim to get it.
Pilot Help functioned well everywhere I tested it, whether on highways or rural roads, always identifying traffic early and managing rates efficiently uncreative. The lane-centering assist furthermore maintained the automobile grown in the middle of the lane, detecting even busted sidewalk markings without issue. It never seemed daunted by late-day or early morning glare.
What’s here functions well. It’s regrettable, nonetheless, there’s no choice for hands-off driving on the highway. This is a feature that’s ending up being significantly usual in the competition.
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A SMALL ENGINE WITH ELECTRIC ASSISTANCE
The Recharge version of Volvo’s S60 provides a collection of power augmentation systems to make one of the most out of a 2.0-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine.
In addition to turbocharging, the plug-in hybrid system adds lots of power. That system, which drives the rear wheels with an electric motor, pairs with an 18.8-kWh battery pack. Consequently, the S60 Recharge powertrain uses 455 horse power and 523 pound-feet of torque, enough for a Volvo-claimed acceleration go to 60 miles per hour in 4.3 secs.
THE 2025 VOLVO S60 RECHARGE IS WORTH A LOOK
Though it hasn’t radically progressed, the Volvo S60 Recharge remains to please throughout. I’ve driven lots of Volvos with woven-cloth interiors, yet I never fail to appreciate the material, and my travelers never ever fall short to match it.
The S60 Recharge is an effective, comfortable, luxurious sedan that might not supply the appealing drive of a BMW 3 Collection or the entry-level poshness of a Mercedes-Benz C-Class, but its understated refinement will ring true with many buyers who appreciate Scandinavian perceptiveness.
