Volvo S80 D-5 (Old)

Every bit of the S80 feels like it is designed to make the occupants feel comfortable and safe. Like the driver’s seat, it’s fantastic. The cushion is perfectly firm, there’s good support and the eight-way power-adjust seat means finding a comfortable driving position is easy. The steering heel has a huge tilt and telescopic adjust range, so that’s not a problem either. The slim A-pillars improve visibility and, despite the black interiors the car feels quite spacious and airy.

Body movements are very well controlled and the suspension simply pummels uneven surfaces into submission – silently. Only the sharpest of bumps elicits a thud from the suspension. The S80 comes with Volvo’s Continuously Controlled Chassis Concept (four-C) suspension system. It has three modes to play with – Comfort, Sport and Advanced. The Comfort mode irons out the occasional road irregularity, the Sport mode stiffens the dampers, while Advanced mode stiffens them even further for those max-attack driving days.

Volvo’s four-C suspension system interacts with the stability control, engine, brakes and steering to interrupt any hooligan tendencies you might have; so it can be quite a killjoy, especially when feel like having a little fun behind the wheel. The steering too is light, but is speed-sensitive, so weighs up as speeds increase, but not enough. It is very direct and accurate though.