Facelift for the 2010 Volvo S80

By Matt Brogan | January 06th, 2010

Volvo is starting the new year with a fresh face for its S80 flagship range as well as other upgrades to help make it stand out in the luxury segment.
The bold new grill with the larger Volvo insignia first seen on the XC60 lets people know its the new S80. With interior upgrades to lift the atmosphere of the cabin.
Powered by the D5 with 151kW twin turbo diesel, the new S80 is standard with all-wheel drive. The top of the range is equipped with a V8 engine which adds Lane Departure Warning with Driver Alert Control, Blind Spot Information System (BLIS), Adaptive Cruise Control with Collision Warning and Auto Brake functionality as standard equipment making the S80 the leader in safety technology.

Volvo’s R-Design pack will be a model variant instead of an option. Featuring 18-inch wheels, lowered sports tuned suspension as well as styling upgrades to include a rear spoiler, matt silver grill and exterior mirrors and chrome exhaust pipes.
The all-wheel drive system uses a Haldex clutch to distribute power between the front and rear wheels. Featuring Instant Traction which has a bias of 80 Nm which favours the rear wheels when starting on slippery or loose surfaces.

Being a Volvo it goes without saying that safety is a priority and the S80 comes standard with Dynamic Stability and Traction Control (DSTC), Volvo’s Side Impact Protection System (SIPS), Whiplash Protection System (WHIPS), seat pre-tensioners in all seats, duel stage front airbags, seat mounted side airbags, inflatable curtain airbags and emergency flashing brake lights.

Standard on the V8 is Volvo’s VNS navigation system which is an option on the T6 and D5 models with new menus and more user friendly icons. The signature floating centre console and ignition key bezel now have aluminium inlays.
Adding to the quality of the interior are new switches for the power windows and lighting for the door handles. Pricing for the Volvo S80 starts at $79,950 for the D5 and tops out at $101,450 for the V8 R-Design.

Peter

These look good in the R design. Saw one in Japan, and it was a real head turner. Interior is lovely too, the leather is exquisite and the stereo top notch. I drove the V8 when they first came out, and it was very impressive, quite quick (about 6.4 I think), but the front end was a bit meh to look at and it put me off. The R design bumper treatment fixes that, IMO. Another underrated car from ovlov.
brent

I like the classy but understated interior but the outside I’m not sold on. Nothing wrong with it but nothing to catch the eye and if I squint my eyes I can see a bit too much Falcon.

Peter

That was pretty much my view too. At the time I drove the s80 I had an s60R, and the look of the s80 wasnt enough to get me accross to it. The front end looked pretty much identical to the s40 my wife had at the time, when you were paying another $40K. As I mentioned, though, I saw a tricked up one in Japan (probably not an R-design on reflection, they may not have been out then) with decent front bumper treatment and looked lowered, and it was very smart. My wife now has the s40T5 R design, and it is amazing how much of a difference the kit makes to the looks, though probably I am the only person who’d notice.