Volvo cars aren't exactly known for their performance and excitement. They are rather popular for their safety and reliability in the Indian market. However, the Swedish automaker plans to change this with the introduction of the S60 Polestar. Polestar is the performance division of Volvo, similar to what AMG is to Mercedes and 'M' is to BMW. The S60 Polestar has been launched at Rs 52.5 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi) and is the first ever Volvo Polestar in the country. 30 S60 Pole star models have been allotted to India from a total of 1500 cars that also includes the V60 Polestar.
What can a Volvo performance sedan do, you ask? Well, let's start from the heart of the matter. The S60 Polestar is powered by a turbocharged and supercharged 2.0-litre petrol engine which produces 367PS of power and a massive 467Nm of torque. These figures are 61PS and 67Nm more than the standard T6. Another major change is that the Polestar S60 gets an all-wheel drive system mated to an 8-speed auto gearbox with paddle shifters, whereas the S60 is a front-wheel drive sedan. The result, a 1.2-seconds faster 0-100kmph time of 4.7 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 250kmph.
When compared to its rivals in India like the Mercedes-AMG C43 and the Audi S5, the Volvo S60 Polestar is faster than the Audi and only a tenth of a second behind the Merc. Apart from the extra ponies under the hood, Polestar has also given the S60 a body kit, bigger disc brakes, 20-inch alloy wheels, 80 per cent stiffer chassis, stiffer suspension setup and a Polestar steering wheel.
Volvo is renowned for the safety and reliability of its cars worldwide and the Polestar division, despite adding its Touring Car racing DNA, does not take away the Volvo heritage. You still get airbags all around, ABS, lane keeping aid and the party trick - an automatic braking system which detects an impending collision and applies brakes. This system works up till 50kmph. Also, since it is a Volvo, you are also dipped in luxuries with features like an automatic climate control, sunroof, 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system and electrically adjustable/heated front seats with memory and lumbar support, not to mention the opulence of leather.
The Indian car market is opening up to big performance cars and a fair amount of people has started showing interest in performance and driver-focused versions. The Volvo S60 Polestar, though, has the smallest displacement engine among its competition in India, but makes the most amount of power (on par with the AMG C43) as it has been turbo and supercharged. We have driven the Volvo S60 Polestar and will be coming out with a review shortly, so stay tuned.
Source: Zigwheels.com
