2008 Volvo XC70 Interior Review at Automotive.com

2008 Volvo XC70 Review: Interior

Below is a full, detailed review and road test of the 2008 Volvo XC70 written by either the experts at New Car Test Drive or by one of Automotive.com's very own. A full evaluation of the driving experience, price, equipment, and specs are here in a structured, easy-to-navigate format from journalists ... more

• Latest Reviews
• Future & Concepts
• Discuss Online

QUICK PRICE QUOTE

DEALER LOCATOR

User Rating

3.5

Rating:

Value Rating

N/A

LEARN WHY

IntelliChoice Value Rating

The chart above shows the purchase price versus ownership cost for each car from a specific vehicle class. The cars with better than average ownership cost/purchase price correlations are the best values, and these best value cars are represented by the dots below the curve. (i.e. the cars that have a lower ownership cost compared to its purchase price.) Those cars, which are worse than average or poor values, appear above the curve.

One way to view the graph is to draw a vertical line through any purchase price. You may see several dots that fall on this line - each of which is a car with a similar purchase price. However, notice the difference in ownership costs of each car represented by the vertical position of the dot. Two cars with the same purchase price can have thousands of dollars difference in ownership costs. This is what separates "good value" cars from "poor value" cars.

What is a good car value?

A "good car value" is one whose cost to own and operate is less than expected. The lower the cost to own and operate a car compared to what is expected, the better the value of that car.

But how do we know a car's "expected cost"?

For each car in the class, IntelliChoice plots the car's purchase price against the total five-year cost to own and operate it as determined by IntelliChoice research. Each dot on the above chart represents a specific car. Generally, we find that as the purchase price of the car increases, the cost to own and operate that car increases. This is why the dots on the graph tend to rise upward and to the right. This phenomenon also makes intuitive sense - as the purchase price rises, financing costs tend to rise, as do insurance, depreciation, taxes, and most other car ownership costs.

This is an important concept. It's normal for car ownership costs to rise as purchase price rises. Therefore, we can't just establish one "average" ownership cost number for each class, since cars in the class have different purchase prices. (This is why the "Relative" shown on each chart is different for cars in the same car class.)

Using statistical techniques, IntelliChoice "connects the dots" to form a curve that defines, for this car class, the relationship between the car's purchase price and car's ownership costs. This curve is our "expected cost" curve. The curve defines, for any car in the class, the five-year ownership cost that we would expect to see at each possible purchase price. If every car in the class were an average value, then all the dots would fall exactly on the curve. However, it's rare that any dot is exactly on the curve. Some dots are a little higher or lower, and some are a lot higher or lower. The dots that are a little lower are better than average car values, while the dots that are a lot lower are excellent car values (A dot that is a lot lower than the curve has ownership costs much lower than expected for a car of its purchase price). Conversely, a dot a little higher than the curve is a poorer than average car value, while a dot that is much higher than the curve is a poor car value.

Value is a relative term, not an absolute term. It is performing better than the logical expectation.

So is a Mercedes-Benz E320 expensive to own and operate? Certainly in an absolute sense. Most other cars cost less. But, when its cost to own and operate is plotted against cars with comparable invoice prices, the E320 costs less. So the E320 is not expensive to own and operate - it is a good car value. The Mercedes does not have low ownership costs, but it has low ownership costs for its invoice price.

Change Submodel

CHANGE VEHICLE

2008 Volvo XC70 Review

All-new for 2008.

Interior

The XC70 interior borrows heavily from Volvo's line-topping S80 sedan, taking both design themes and components such as gauges, switches and console. We'd call it one of the company's best yet. Volvo interiors have usually been straightforward in function, but they've sometimes been almost cloddish in appearance, with at least a few quirks. Not so in this all-new XC70. It's understated, but elegant and nicely polished. Materials and overall finish are high grade.

The optional leather upholstery is smooth and stretched tautly over the front seats, and the seats themselves are excellent. It's hard to find a better mix of comfort and support for typical driving. Ventilated cool seats are optional. Visibility outward is good, forward and aft. The rear-most side windows are imbedded with their own electrical grid for defrosting.

With the 2008 XC70, Volvo has also refined its WHIPS whiplash limiting seat design. During a rear-end impact, the seatbacks moves rearward to reduce acceleration forces on the occupant's back and neck, while the headrest pushes forward and upward slightly to meet the neck and head as they are thrust backward.

Review Sections

• Introduction

• Lineup

• Walkaround

• Interior

• Driving Impressions

• Summary & Specs

Get Your Free Quote on a Volvo XC70

The XC70 driver sits before a fat, leather-wrapped steering wheel, looking at big, crisp gauges with bright-white backlighting and number gradients that are easy for the brain to absorb. The standard trim is etched aluminum, but the optional walnut and walnut root are gorgeous. The overall effect is very Scandinavian, yet the coolest element may be the thin-panel center stack. It's no more than two inches thick, with open space behind it. Most controls are placed here, with audio above climate and a display at the top, arranged in a neat, symmetrical pattern. The primary knobs are big and raised substantially from the surface, and the airflow controls are fashioned in an icon shaped like a seated person shaped icon, so there's absolutely no confusion about directing air toward the face, feet or windshield.

It's all quite clean and pleasing. Most significantly, measured by function and simplicity of operation, the XC70's various controls are better than most other luxury brands, and particularly German brands, which still insist on layering more menus in their interfaces (while still adding more buttons). This alone might be enough reason for some to choose Volvo.

The navigation system is new, and promising. The screen pops up vertically from the center of the dash, though it's canted forward at what seems a strange angle. The driver surfs through menus and makes choices with buttons on the back of the steering wheel spokes, almost where you'd expect paddle shifters for an automatic transmission. Our initial reaction is that it's better than other systems. The menus are no more difficult to learn, and they're managed without taking hands from the steering wheel and fishing for the controls. Passengers can control the system with a remote.

In-cabin storage is decent. The center console and glovebox hold quite a bit of stuff. The pockets behind the front seatbacks are handy and the cupholders work well.

The XC70's rear seat is not the roomiest, given the apparent size of the vehicle it's in. We wouldn't recommend it to six-footers for a cross-country trip. There's enough room that someone 5-feet, 9 inches won't get claustrophobic or cramped riding in the back of the XC70 across town, however. And we think it would be fine for families until the kids are well into their teens. With the stereo upgrade, there are redundant audio controls and headphone jacks for rear passengers. The rear DVD system puts a screen in the back of both front headrests, which we prefer to those that drop from the headliner.

The cargo area is another of the XC70's strengths. The back seat folds easily, 40/20/40, so the center section can work like a pass-through for skis or hockey sticks. With a maximum cargo capacity of 72.1 cubic feet, the XC70 compares favorably with the larger, heavier Mercedes M-Class (72.4 cubic feet), BMW X5 (61.8) and the Hummer H3 (55.7).

The cargo floor is perfectly flat with all the seats folded down, providing a smooth, friendly area for cargo as well as dogs or even people: One or two people could sleep comfortably back there. We tested this. It's a useful feature for camping or for stopping for a nap on long road trips, a potentially important feature not found on many vehicles.

The fold-flat front-passenger seat is another valuable feature that should not be underestimated. The design seems to do nothing to diminish the seat's comfort, yet its back can fold forward to a level on the same plan as the folded rear seat and cargo floor. This allows the XC70 to carry long narrow items such as fly rods or two-by-fours securely inside. Under the load floor is a lockable, shallow storage area, no more than six inches deep.

The cargo floor itself features aluminium rails with movable anchorage points for securing loads. The anchors can be tucked down into the rails when not used, to keep the floor perfectly smooth, and there are more anchorage points in the side panels. There are also a host of load-related accessories, such as hooks, nets and space dividers. Or favorite is simply a drawer, or rather a sliding floor that locks into the rails and pulls out beyond the bumper for easier loading. It will easily support 50 pounds. One slight disadvantage with the XC70 compared to the typical SUV is a slightly lower ceiling, so the SUV will accomodate taller items in an upright position. On the other hand, the XC70 has a lower liftover height than most and it's easier to load, particularly with the sliding floor. next page