Well, last weekend I got the opportunity to "play" with a Maya Yellow Metallic/Graphite Leather S60 2.4T. The car belonged to VCNA, it was loaned to us for an airshow where we were one of the sponsors. It was the 199th car out of production, pretty early and had 938 miles in the odometer.

First of all, the color was unique! Nothing to do with the old Saffron Metallic that we all know, this was a dark (do not want to use the phrase "mustardy") yellow METALLIC. Not bad but I like Panama Yellow, so who am I to say anything about a yellow car?

Overall lines seem to be very nice and fluid, the car gave me a much nicer impression than the XC did, initially. It has very "swooping" lines. It was equipped with sunroof, Navigation system, Cold Weather w/ STC, standard 16" wheels and it had the Touring Package which gives you auto-dim mirror, Homelink, laminated side windows, electrically folded headrests, trip computer, etc. The Premium package was also there (in-dash CD player, wood trim, passenger power seat, etc.). The acceleration was very smooth, the car feels a bit quicker than the S70 GLT. The steering response is pretty precise and light (not as light as the S80 but not as tight as the V70). Initially I expected a similar ride as a V70, but the S60 is pretty different in that respect. The cornering was something that puzzled me. The car seemed that it wanted to lean on aggressive cornering (more than 50mph) but it never lost its composure nor did it lean excessively. The tail end never wavered even when I hit the brakes pretty hard well after my entry in a pretty sharp turn at about 50mph. But I can tell, that if I had the 17" alloys, the car would have been plain awesome. Interior is very nice, very similar to that of the V70 with the exception of the steering wheel (three spokes, looks sportier), the steering wheel controls, the center armrest/cupholders. Overall headroom/legroom/shoulder room was very impressive in the front. Now, here come a couple disappointments for me: rear headroom was very good but only for 2 people, not 3. If the driver is taller than, say, 6'4'' (meaning the driver's seat is all the way back and a 6'er or taller sits behind him, it gets pretty tight. I looked in my papers, the S60 is 3" shorter than the S70! Was kinda shocked. So, the car has gotten to be very sporty but lost a bit of room in the rear. The next disappointment (but not as big) was the trunk room. I am used to the deceivingly big trunk of the S70, this is smaller. Not by much, it is still pretty good, but smaller.

I really like the tail lights. They are bigger than the S80's but they look pretty cool as they "hg" the rear panels. I do not like the egg-crate front grill; never liked the one they used in the '98/'99/'00 XCs.

I like the car very much (other than the shortcomings that I mentioned) I think it is a major improvement as an overall package over the S70. The pricing is unbelievable, packaged very well.

Today, I had the chance to drive one of OUR first S60s. We received a 2.4T model without sunroof and leather (pretty cheap!) and a 2.4 with the 5-speed manual (non turbo). So, having driven the 2.4T model this past weekend, I opted for the manual. It was Venetian Red Metallic with Graphite Leather and the standard 16" wheels. It also had a sunroof and the Cold Weather w/ STC package. MSRP is $30,450!!! Now, this was a HUGE surprise. The car is so nimble and so quick (especially o in 4th gear, something the the previous 850s and S70s never had!), sometimes i forgot that I drove a non turbo car! Engine was SUPER quiet, but overall the engine impressed me ("only" 168HP!!!). The ride and cornering was improved in this car (#1899 off the assembly line) so it makes me believe that the 2.4T that I drove over the weekend was a way too early car...This car really behaved like I expected an S60 to behave. Aggressive, sporty, never losing it composure and no lean in cornering.

I only drove this car for about 35 miles so I did not observe as much as I did with the 2.4T.

Yannis