Hard to review a car that’s already been replaced. Yes, you read correctly. The Volvo S60 Polestar which launched in South Africa towards the end of 2015 and quickly sold every one of the 28 units, is making way for a new 4-cylinder version that’s supposedly better in almost every way. So if Volvo doesn’t think its formula for this S60 Polestar is right, who are we to argue otherwise?
A salient point but one that we’ll only be able to fully explore upon driving the new car. For now volvo S60 Polestar is a conundrum of a sporty four door sedan with notions of safety and predictability seeping through
A race-bred Volvo is a motoring eccentricity; either because many are too young to remember the infamous 850 Wagon in British Touring Cars or because coverage of current World Touring Series is so non-existent here that Volvo’s Polestar motorsport division appears defunct. It’s certainly not, at the time of writing Thed Björk finished 4th around the Slovakiaring in his S60 Polestar.
So when the old Polestar S60 arrived on our driveway we envisioned leaping over saw-toothed kerbs, sparks flying upon landing and jostling for position on our daily commute. I mean with that Cyan paintjob, who’s not going to let you in?
Before Volvo’s 2.0-litre E-Drive Engine fingers every model, this 2015 Volvo S60 Polestar is among the last surviving 3.0-litre straight six turbo charged engines. The 2.0-litre might have more kilowatts but this offers up more torque.
Some of Volvo’s performance claims are a little optimistic, we didn’t quite manage the 0-100km/h time but weren’t far off it. If you’re looking for the most controlled form of acceleration, you’d find it difficult to top this; that broad engine and all-wheel drive system displaying zero bad habits and around the ‘burbs, well we never came close to pushing it hard enough to worry its resolved drivetrain.
Flick the gearlever into Sport and the shifts happen with a little jolt delivered to the small of your back and the exhaust note ripens to a deep burble sans the theatrics of cracks and pops which would seem tacky on a six-cylinder, a Volvo no less. At steady rpm it might be among the best beat for an extended journey.
There are instances when you wish it would snarl, get a bit jagged and try rebel back against the flicker of an ESC light but on the converse when you’ve got your family strapped in and still want to travel swiftly without scorching your senses, the Polestar just gets on with business in a clinical fashion, built on Volvo’s familiar safety and grip buffer.
Seats are brilliant but they weren’t chosen for their lightness; bulky units with electronic adjustment but a fair amount of sporty padding to hold you in. Still, if you’ve sat in Volvo’s XC90 you’ll quickly realise how far the interior has fallen back. The cluttered numeric pad, small screen, fiddly ergonomics stuck to one direction and big airvents are stale items next to modern ones like lane departure warning and active cruise control.
Apart from some ally pedals, step plates, Alcantara wheel, its clearly an old car slapped with a shiny new powertrain to give Polestar its first footing across several new markets.
And a set of 20-inch alloy wheels that you can rest assured were chosen primarily for weight, different bumpers and boot spoiler that could be maybe an inch fatter. Two chrome pipes emblazoned Polestar sit at each end of the bumper.
Pricing is a moot point because all models have moved on to new owners but at R735 000 Polestar’s six cylinder configuration puts it close to BMW 340i but this packs a more advanced Haldex drivetrain. The new S60 Polestar sedan (sadly no estate version) will know which areas to improve but we’re sure that uniqueness will remain.
