All-new American made 2019 Volvo S60 adds Swedish flavour into a German game

( Model | Gallery )

Here to take on the Germans at their own game of compact executive sedans and after weeks of teasing, the all-new 2019 Volvo S60 is finally launched in Malaysia.

Only one variant is available at launch - the T8 R-Design priced at RM 295,888 on-the-road without insurance. For those keen on buying one, better grab it quickly as this USA-made model (limited units) is already priced as a locally-assembled one, which is estimated to arrive in Q2 of 2020.

The T8 plug-in hybrid powertrain is a familiar unit found in the XC90, S90, and the XC60 thus the power figures are identical, which are 407 PS and 640Nm of torque. Power from the combustion engine goes through an 8-speed automatic transmission to the wheels.

Being a T8 model, it is all-wheel drive (AWD) with the electric motors powering the rear wheels while the combustion engine handles the front. All these translate into a 0-100km/h time of 4.4 seconds.

The Volvo S60 is underpinned by the Scalable Product Architecture (SPA) platform, bringing it in line with all the recent Volvo models.

Standard equipment on the S60 T8 include:

• LED headlights with LED DRLs
• 19-inch wheels wrapped with 235/40 tyres
• R-Design grille
• Glossy black side mirrors
• Digital Intrument Cluster with 12.3-inch display
• Head-up Display (HUD)
• R-Design pedals, gear lever
• Sensus Connect with 9-inch touchscreen
• Apple CarPlay, Android Auto
• Dual-zone automatic air-conditioning
• Clean zone interior air quality system
• City Safety - Collision Avoidance & Mitigation with object detection
• Front & Rear Collision Warning & Mitigation Support
• Driver Alert Control (DAC)
• Lane Keeping Aid (LKA)
• Run-off Road Mitigation with Road Edge Detection
• Oncoming Lane Mitigation
• Blind Spot Information System (BLIS) with Steer Assist
• Cross Traffic Alert (CTA)

Volvo cars are well-renowned for their safety and the all-new Volvo S60 is no different, the safety technology from the flagship 90 Series cars has trickled down to the S60 and makes it one of the safest, if not safest sedan on the road.

It gets the full safety suite of Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS) such as City Safety with Autobrake, Run-off Road Mitigation, Oncoming Lane Mitigation, and other steering assistance systems with Cross Traffic Alert.

Touted as a driver's car by Volvo, it'll be interesting to see how it stacks up against the BMW 3 Series.