Volvo S80 D5 SE Lux Start/Stop Geartronic 4dr Car Review - January 2012

A smooth drive on motorways, with great acceleration pace and little noise from the engine. Like all Volvo’s in the S80 range, the Volvo D5 SE Lux grips and handles well, but the ride is a little jerky at low speeds, and steering is said by many to be vague.

With adjustable seats and steering, and a very well laid out gearbox, driving the Volvo S80 D5 SE Lux is a relatively comfortable experience. However, the Volvos’ windscreen pillars are very thick making forward visibility tricky, and the high-up seating position makes you feel a little odd.

With a six speed automatic diesel engine, the D5 SE Lux performs well in terms of speed. The 2400cc, 20 valve, 5-cylinder engine can accelerate to a total top speed of 140 mph. Although this is a lot lower than the T6 AWD Executive, it is still a lot higher than the other S80s in the range. With a decent 212 bhp at 4200 rpm and a torque figure of 324 lb-ft at 1500-3000 rpm, the saloon can go from 0-62mph in 8.4 seconds.

The Volvo S80 D5 SE Lux looks as luxurious as its name suggests. Its long 4851mm length gives it a sleek, streamlined appearance, while the curved headlights look stylish.

Inside the S80 is less striking, however, even with its lavish trimmings. One downer is that the cabin is somewhat dated stylistically. The four-door could do with a little more boot space too, but it can still sit four people comfortably, though there is room for five. Nevertheless there is plenty of bag room, and the leather upholstery is sophisticated enough.

When it comes to features however, Volvo always outdoes all others. The Volvo S80 D5 SE Lux may look dated, but the equipment is up to date: blue-tooth, mp3 connectivity, sat-nav and a CD system are standardised features, as is power-steering, alloy wheels and DSTC stability control, cruise control, electric front windows, electric door mirrors, central locking and climate control and rear-parking sensors.

Not only does it have rear-parking sensors, cruise and stability control features, but the Volvo S80 D5 SE Lux has anti-whiplash head restraints and driver, passenger and front airbags (that’s six airbags in total). Given all this, it’s hardly surprising that the saloon has 5 star NCAP rating for occupants, 4 star for children and 2 star rating for pedestrians, claiming an overall 5 star Euro NCAP.

Furthermore, with a 3 year warranty or 60,000 miles, and a service interval every 18,000 miles, maintenance costs are kept low too.

Economically, the Volvo S80 SE Lux provides great value for money. With CO2 emissions of 159g/km, the SE Lux model is in tax band G, making it significantly greener and therefore cheaper to run than the T6 AWD Executive.

When considering how eco-friendly it is, as well as all its safety and practical features, the depreciation costs for this Volvo are much less than the T6 version too, though the saloon is still outdone by the newer, classier Volvo’s that keep coming out.

For a well-built, reliable, practical car that is relatively speedy then, £35,070 is not a bad price. However, it would be worth looking for a used model, as you could get one with decent mileage for around £16,000 which is under half the price. All in all though, the luxury saloon is pretty good value for money.