Much more to this Volvo hybrid than its comfy seats

Volvo XC60 drive by Steve Rogers

A car company director asked 30 motoring journalists would they buy an electric car tomorrow? Only four put their hands up. Mind stayed down.

The problem is not the cars, the majority of which are innovative and good to drive. The biggest barrier as we move rapidly towards electrification is range anxiety, the fear of not being able to keep the batteries topped up on a long journey.

And the fear is real so much so that the car industry is lobbying the Government to more than double its target of 350,000 charging points by E day in 2030.

Ironically now might be the best time to run an electric car because there are still not that many queues at charging points.

But for the time being my choice is hybrid, part engine, part electric motor, or you can take a step further with a plug-in hybrid which provides more miles on electric only power, just like this XC60 Recharge.

XC60 has a two-litre engine and an electric motor that can be charged in a couple of hours to give up to 48 miles on electric only driving. For some that is more miles than they cover in an average day. The big drawback with a plug-in is the extra cost and if we take XC60 as an example the gap between petrol and plug-in hybrid is all but £8,000.

Volvo is now well established as a premium brand so you are paying big bucks, in the case of XC60, its best seller, anything from £48,000 to £68,000 but it is an impressive car.

My wife is a good sounding board with test cars, she is very picky and rarely impressed but the Volvo charmed her. There were a few things. The glass gear change selector immediately caught her eye, the dashboard layout with its stylish mix of quality coverings and metal surrounds and inserts, but the highest praise was reserved for the seats.

I am with here all the way on this and have been saying for years that Volvo seats are the best shaped and most comfortable of any car I have driven.

So this is looking good, then I select reverse and notice the rear camera definition isn’t up to scratch, all a bit foggy. Very un-Volvo like, yet switch to the 360 degree surround setting and it is pin sharp. Strange.

No worries, we are off and are then surprised at the overly noisy heating fan even on the lowest setting. Hope this is as far down hill as we are going.

The next bit is not meant to be negative but every time I drive a Volvo I dread using the  touchscreen, the car’s brain centre. Volvo has upgraded the technology to a system powered by Android with Google mapping and access to Google apps. All the car’s functions are stored in a series of swipe files and in many ways the system is brilliant and can be mastered, it just takes a lot of patience. How can a grown man be intimidated by some highfalutin car tech?

Fortunately a super efficient voice control system will deal with everyday functions like selecting a radio station, heating settings, finding a navigation destination or searching the web. Software updates come in over the air. Cool, or what?

Everything in the cabin might be high tech but the classy Scandinavian design finishes are easy on the eye and create a relaxed atmosphere. Volvo is good at doing that.

With the help of the electric motor XC60 is quick, a good deal quicker than the Audi Q5 reviewed here a few weeks ago, with a huge surge of power when overtaking, but nowhere near as fun to drive as its German rival.

The suspension set up is fairly neutral, airing on the side of comfort, but even though it does not possess German handling credentials it will not let you down when pushed through twists and turns.

Official economy figures seem far fetched but are based on many miles of electric driving. Once the batteries are drained you should be able to achieve high thirties to 40mpg on petrol only power, a reasonable return given XC60s size and performance.

As you would expect from the safety conscious Swedes the car is equipped with every driving aid known to man, the latest addition is the excellent cross traffic braking which can avoid a collision when reversing.

The Volvo and the Audi came close together and although I loved the tearaway nature of the Q5 I am going with the more economical, yet very swift XC60.

Fast facts

XC60 Recharge T6 AWD Plus

£60,550 (range starts £47,460)

2-litre petrol+electric motor; 350bhp

0-62mph 5.7secs; 112mph

256mpg combined

30g/km. 1st tax £10

Boot: 468 litres

Insurance group 40