Dyer & Dyer Volvo

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Driving Impressions

The all-new 2008 Volvo XC70 demonstrates both the appeal and the value of so-called crossover vehicles, which the original XC helped popularize starting in 1996. This third-generation XC70 is the best yet, but its basic character hasn't changed much, and its appeal can be distilled into one thought. There may be no better compromise between what people want in a true, truck-based sport-utility vehicle and what they need for daily transportation.

The XC70 offers moderate off-pavement capability and superb gravel road handling. Yet it's also smooth, quiet and comfortable on the highway, and more maneuverable than nearly any truck you can buy. It provides good passenger-cargo flexibility and more cargo volume than some mid-sized SUVs, but its exterior dimensions are relatively compact, and it's easy to park. It can tow a camper, a fishing boat or a couple of snowmobiles, but it gets decent real world gas mileage.

The 2008 XC70 is the first with a six-cylinder engine, rather than Volvo's familiar five-cylinders. Its 3.2-liter inline 6 was first used in the 2007 S80 sedan, and it generates 235 horsepower at 6200 rpm, with 236 pound-feet of torque at 3200 rpm. That's an upgrade of 27 horsepower, compared to the most powerful engine in the 2007 XC70, and the new engine uses the latest in control and materials technology, including emissions-reducing variable valve timing. It's matched to a standard six-speed automatic transmission, with one more gear than the previous model, to improve both response and fuel economy. This transverse (or sideways) mounted engine is also very compact, which helps explain why the 2008 XC70 is nearly a foot shorter than the previous model, yet offers more interior space.

Volvo's new six reminds us why we like inline six-cylinder engines, or straight sixes as they're known. The just seem to power-up faster than more common V6s, spinning more freely and smoothly as they go. In a vehicle of the XC70's heft (4092 pounds), Volvo's 3.2 doesn't qualify as a screamer, but it delivers acceleration-producing torque in smooth, linear fashion and breathes well at high rpm, which means it doesn't gasp or get rough if you run it near the redline. From a stop or for passing at higher speeds, the XC70 accelerates better than adequately, and the eager quality of its engine might make you actually want to shift the six-speed automatic manually as you go about your business.

No need to do so, however. Volvo's Geartronic transmission is probably its best automatic so far. It seems to shift in all the right places, and whether it's up a gear or down, those shifts are smooth, tight and relatively quick. The Geartronic manual feature can be enjoyable nonetheless, should the driver choose to get more involved. There are no paddle shifters behind the steering wheel, as many cars now feature (that's where Volvo put controls for its navigation system), but there's a manual slot for the shift lever left of the normal gear-selection path. The up-down gear change action has a smooth, quality feel, and the transmission won't insult the driver by shifting up on its own if the revs get to high.

The XC70 doesn't get tiresome around town or on the open road, as some conventional sport-utilities can. It rides comfortably and quite smoothly, and despite some fairly substantial suspension travel, it's not mushy. There's none of the stiffness or racket you'll find in some truck-based SUVs, either. The XC70 leans a bit in corners when driven aggressively, and pitches some between hard acceleration and hard braking.

The brakes are superior to most. They stop the vehicle right now, with Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD) to instantaneously transfer the most stopping power to the tires with the best grip. And Volvo has nearly eliminated the spongy feel that characterized its brake-pedal action for years. Braking distances are very, very lo

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