Volvo Introduces Polestar Engineered for Next S60

Excited to see this bad boy and see how the look is of this tuning feature pack. I wonder what the cost will be to have the superior Brembo brakes, suspension, etc. 🤔

So still less power than a C63 or M3 and this Volvo is wrong wheel drive.   Unless they make it rear drive, it doesn't matter how much power they put in the S60 or S90.

2 hours ago, smk4565 said:

So still less power than a C63 or M3 and this Volvo is wrong wheel drive.   Unless they make it rear drive, it doesn't matter how much power they put in the S60 or S90.

Ask yourself this, and really think it thru.

Why doesn't the C63 outsell the C300?

19 hours ago, smk4565 said:

So still less power than a C63 or M3 and this Volvo is wrong wheel drive.   Unless they make it rear drive, it doesn't matter how much power they put in the S60 or S90.

494 lb-ft of torque at what is likely a VERY low RPM which is still significantly more than either the C63 or M3.  No one is going to care which wheels are driving because they’ll be more worried about keeping them from spinning even with AWD. 

You really need to get over your horsepower fetish with all of this EV tech coming. Torque is the number to compare now.

18 hours ago, balthazar said:

Ask yourself this, and really think it thru.

Why doesn't the C63 outsell the C300?

Price.

1 hour ago, Drew Dowdell said:

494 lb-ft of torque at what is likely a VERY low RPM which is still significantly more than either the C63 or M3.  No one is going to care which wheels are driving because they’ll be more worried about keeping them from spinning even with AWD. 

You really need to get over your horsepower fetish with all of this EV tech coming. Torque is the number to compare now.

Absolutely it matters but when the car has a 60/40 weight split or whatever the S60 has and puts most of the torque to the front wheels then the torque is useless.  Different class of car but the M5 and E63 can send 100% of torque to the rear wheels.  A 494 lb-ft Volvo is about as useful as a 494 lb-ft Acura TLX or Lexus ES.

16 hours ago, smk4565 said:

Price.

Absolutely it matters but when the car has a 60/40 weight split or whatever the S60 has and puts most of the torque to the front wheels then the torque is useless.  Different class of car but the M5 and E63 can send 100% of torque to the rear wheels.  A 494 lb-ft Volvo is about as useful as a 494 lb-ft Acura TLX or Lexus ES.

What kind of seasoning do you want on your crow when the specs finally come out? The base FWD XTS has a 60/40 front/rear weight distribution.  There is no way an AWD 4 cylinder with electric motors and batteries in the back is going to be 60/40.

Further, you reveal your ignorance about Volvo’s powertrains. The electric motors are in the back and only drive the back wheels, so not all of that power is going to the front, it’s split front/back, but they operate independently. (The RX operates this way also).

 It’s about as close to symterical as you can get without Quattro.  Additionally, the system can favor the rear wheels for power delivery.

The Polstar 1 coupe with the concept version of this same power train has a 50/50 split and weight distribution.

In summary....

3 hours ago, smk4565 said:

Price.

Right- very good!
And if a C63 starts at $68K... how is another same class performance vehicle that is cheaper than that, not welcome in the market?

On 6/13/2018 at 7:00 PM, smk4565 said:

So still less power than a C63 or M3 and this Volvo is wrong wheel drive.   Unless they make it rear drive, it doesn't matter how much power they put in the S60 or S90.

So how would you justify the Polestar in comparison to the craptastic A to C class AMG versions. I think this kicks their ass.

On 6/14/2018 at 9:52 PM, balthazar said:

Right- very good!
And if a C63 starts at $68K... how is another same class performance vehicle that is cheaper than that, not welcome in the market?

Who says the Polestar will be cheaper?  These new Volvos are nice, but they are crazy expensive too.   An XC90 Excellence trim is $105,000, I mean that is ridiculous.  If you want to charge AMG or M money, you better bring it, and I don't think you can do enough to an S60 to compete with an AMG or M car.

7 hours ago, smk4565 said:

Who says the Polestar will be cheaper?  These new Volvos are nice, but they are crazy expensive too.   An XC90 Excellence trim is $105,000, I mean that is ridiculous.  If you want to charge AMG or M money, you better bring it, and I don't think you can do enough to an S60 to compete with an AMG or M car.

The Excellence trim is not competition for AMG, it's not trying to be. It's competition for Designo. 

An S60 Polestar is most likely aimed at M3, S4 but will be the only awd plug-in hybrid option in the bunch. That makes it very interesting to me. 

5 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

The Excellence trim is not competition for AMG, it's not trying to be. It's competition for Designo. 

An S60 Polestar is most likely aimed at M3, S4 but will be the only awd plug-in hybrid option in the bunch. That makes it very interesting to me. 

I know the Excelence is like their Maybach, it is a luxury trim, but still that is a lot of money for an XC90.  I have sat in the S90 sedan and thought, this is a nice car, I like the Swedish contemporary design of it, but then when you look at the price and it is E-class money, you think, ok, this is no E-class.   And there in lies the problem with the new Volvos.  

I think the XC40 looks good, all their new generation cars look good, the turbo charged, supercharged, plug-in combo is good.  I like what they are doing, but an XC60 for example starts $1,000 more than a GLC.   They want Mercedes-Benz money but don't have Mercedes-Benz level interiors, performance or badge cache, and that latter is the most important to most luxury buyers.  I mean who wants to spend $60k on a Volvo and then have to explain why they bought it instead of any 3 of the German cars.

13 minutes ago, smk4565 said:

I know the Excelence is like their Maybach, it is a luxury trim, but still that is a lot of money for an XC90.  I have sat in the S90 sedan and thought, this is a nice car, I like the Swedish contemporary design of it, but then when you look at the price and it is E-class money, you think, ok, this is no E-class.   And there in lies the problem with the new Volvos.  

No, it's as I said, it's their answer to Designo. Select a GLS550 and select Designo and all the options required to match what the XC90 Excellence has ($109k and a heated steering wheel is still optional on a GLS?) and you're up at $110k.  That seems exactly right to me.   Mercedes doesn't even offer you a Crystal gear selector knob, so clearly the Volvo is better. 

I'm not going to knock the E-class as it is clearly an excellent car. The S90 stands up well against it in interior comfort. It has some of the best contoured seats I've experienced. It isn't meant, in its current configuration, to be a sport sedan. It is clearly built for comfort.  It also is larger than the E-Class like the CT6 is.  So the fact that you cannot see value in that is unsurprising. 

13 minutes ago, smk4565 said:

I think the XC40 looks good, all their new generation cars look good, the turbo charged, supercharged, plug-in combo is good.  I like what they are doing, but an XC60 for example starts $1,000 more than a GLC.  

The GLC has less interior room than my Encore or even the XC40 much less the XC60.  You must be a shorter guy and pack light to always prefer these cramped German cars over their larger competition at the same price.  Because of the airy feel of the cabin, the XC60 even feels bigger than it is inside. 

15 minutes ago, smk4565 said:

They want Mercedes-Benz money but don't have Mercedes-Benz level interiors, performance or badge cache, and that latter is the most important to most luxury buyers.  I mean who wants to spend $60k on a Volvo and then have to explain why they bought it instead of any 3 of the German cars.

Cinderella, you've lost a shoe. Could you be any more of a brand whore? 

I don't need to explain my purchases to anyone... and if I did feel the need, the explanation is simple. I picked the better car.  As far as the other Germans... I'd pick an Enclave or Nautilus or GLE or XC60 or QX50 or Grand Cherokee Summit or XT5 over a Q5 every day of the week.... don't be putting that pile up on a pedestal... and I don't even like the XT5.

The newest X5 looks compelling, but BMW interiors are about as cheerful as a graveyard on a wet Sunday. 

The GLS is bigger than an XC90 though, you are talking Escalade money for a GMC Acadia size vehicle there.  And the Excellence trim I think is a 4 seater, if you want a luxury 4 seater I feel like there are better ways to spend $110,000.  And imagine if Cadillac priced the new XT6 over $100k, people would lose their minds. 

Like I said Volvo has some good stuff going on product and design wise and I like the hybrid and environmental stuff, that is all good.  I just think they charge too much for what you get.  For example, they want $155,000 for a Polestar 1 or  you could get a BMW 8-series for like $100k, or maybe $125k depending on how they price it, but look at the difference.