Skip advert
Advertisement

2019 Volvo XC60 review - engine, transmission and technical details

It’s a premium mid-sized SUV, so unsurprisingly popular, but is Volvo’s XC60 actually any good?

Evo rating
RRP
from £43,845
  • Solid, comfortable, safe and sophisticated, executed with a Swedish flair that now defines modern Volvos
  • Only really advisable as a cruiser; it just gets worse the sportier you spec it

Engine, transmission and technical details

As briefly mentioned above, all XC60 models utilise essentially the same 2-litre four-cylinder engine, in petrol and diesel forms. Both share a 1969cc displacement, and depending on their outputs feature a pretty wide spectrum of forced induction methods. Petrol engines are either single-turbocharged or turbo and supercharged, and produce 247bhp and 306bhp in B5 (petrol) and T6 forms. The T6 engine is also used in the T8 Twin-Engine plug-in hybrid variant, with a combined (not equivalent, mind) output of 394bhp, or 399bhp in T8 Polestar Engineered form. Both plug-in hybrid variants use the petrol engine to drive the front axle, with the rear driven exclusively by the 86bhp electric motor on the rear axle.

Advertisement - Article continues below

Diesel variants are somewhat more simple, with the sole D4 model producing 187bhp from a twin-turbocharged version of the diesel engine variant. It’s the mild-hybrid versions that add a new complication to the range, as B4 and B5 (diesel) variants combine a twin-turbocharged diesel with a mild-hybrid system that produce 195bhp and 235bhp respectively.

All engine variants in the XC60 include an eight-speed automatic transmission, operated by either a normal lever, or in some cases, a dubious crystal selector. All-wheel-drive models (bar the T8) utilise a front-wheel-drive-biased system, only sending power to the rear wheels when required.

Skip advert
Advertisement
Skip advert
Advertisement

Most Popular

Thought you couldn't improve on the Alpine A110? Ravage had other ideas and we've driven the result – car pictures of the week
Ravage A110 Group 4
Features

Thought you couldn't improve on the Alpine A110? Ravage had other ideas and we've driven the result – car pictures of the week

In the latest issue of evo, we drive Ravage’s stunning A110 Group 4 in the French Alps – these are our favourite shots
21 Feb 2026
2026 VED car tax: what you'll be paying
2026 car tax
Advice

2026 VED car tax: what you'll be paying

The latest car tax changes explained, including new pricing for EVs and hybrids and increased prices for higher-emission vehicles
19 Feb 2026
Richard Porter on what it's really like to work with Clarkson, Hammond and May
Jeremy Clarkson Richard Hammond James May
Opinion

Richard Porter on what it's really like to work with Clarkson, Hammond and May

Here’s what Porter’s going to miss about working with Clarkson, Hammond and May
22 Feb 2026