I Drove The 2027 Volvo EX60 And Think It's The Best Volvo Ever. All Because It’s Electric.
Volvo’s focus on minimalist luxury has always been a natural fit with EVs. With the EX60, the company finally sticks the landing.
Volvo’s first two bespoke-EV launches didn’t go to plan. The EX30 was waylaid by tariffs, arriving late and with a far higher price than planned, leading to a quick death. The EX90 was delayed by software and quality issues, which persisted far into its first year on sale. The result is Volvo has burned a lot of goodwill and even more cash in an attempt to get its electric ambitions rolling.
Now, its EV future hinges on the EX60. The mid-size crossover has to right the wrongs of the previous attempts, all while battling stiff competition from cars like the Mercedes GLC EV, BMW iX3, and Rivian R2.
Can Volvo finally get an EV launch right? Does it really have what it takes to do battle with the best of them?
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I’ll save you the suspense: Yes it can, and yes it does. Over five hours of back-country and city driving around Barcelona, the Volvo EX60 was exceptionally smooth, nearly silent, and utterly charming. I haven’t driven the R2 or the iX3 yet, so I can’t say that it’s best-in-class. But it’s an EV that finally feels like a true Volvo, through and through.
Gallery: 2027 Volvo EX60: First Drive Review Gallery
Volvo EX60: Key Specs
There’s a range war brewing in this segment, and the EX60 comes correct. Or at least it will, as the range-champ all-wheel-drive model, the P12, won’t launch until later this year. It’ll offer up to 400 miles of EPA range with 20-inch wheels, thanks to a massive 117 kWh pack (112 kWh usable). That top-end model will offer 670 horsepower and sprint to 60 in 3.8 seconds. All of this should scuttle any expectations of Scandinavian minimalism.
2027 Volvo EX60 Specs
Yet the launch models will be a bit more reasonable. The base trim is the rear-wheel-drive P6 Plus, with a starting price of $59,795. If you want four-wheel traction, you can step up to the $62,145 P10 Plus. Volvo is quick to point out that this is cheaper than the plug-in hybrid version of the equivalent-size XC60, which comes standard with AWD but starts at $62,545. I’ll note, however, that a base XC60 mild hybrid is still about $8,000 cheaper than the cheapest EX60.
Even if you opt for the base model, though, you won’t be getting stiffed on power or range. The P6 comes with 369 hp and 354 pound-feet of torque, clipping to 60 in 5.7 seconds and topping out at the same speed as every other Volvo these days: 112 mph. The RWD powertrain and lighter battery make it the efficiency leader of the bunch, squeezing up to 307 miles of range out of its 83 kWh battery (80 kWh usable.)
Most people will end up in the P10, though, as its standard all-wheel-drive remains a must-have feature for luxury crossover shoppers regardless of whether they actually plan to leave the pavement or brave heavy snow. That’s fine here, as there’s only a small price premium for the dual-motor version, which offers 503 hp, a 4.4-second 0-60 time, and 322 miles of range on the base wheels. All three EX60 configurations charge from 10-80% in just 16 minutes, too, so there’s really no need for the added range of the P12 for the vast majority of shoppers. You’d be saving less than 20 minutes a few times a year, but if 400 miles is the safety blanket you need to coddle you into an all-electric life, so be it.
Volvo EX60: Interior Review
I’m going to start with the highlight, for me: The wretched, no-good window switch design from the EX90 is gone, banished to hell where it belongs. There are four individual switches at the driver’s disposal to control four separate windows. What a breakthrough.
This is a good stand-in for the approach Volvo has taken in general, balancing the new desire for button reduction and efficiency with the ergonomic needs of real human beings. So there are no hard buttons for climate controls, but the temperature setting is persistent on the screen and adjustable in one tap, with good enough temperature regulation that I never felt the need to fiddle with it. All of your music lives in the screen, of course, but there are physical buttons for skipping tracks, power on/off, and volume control.
The EX60's cabin is simple, but airy and high-quality.
It loses some points here for having software-controlled vents, a trend I can neither understand nor support. While ditching buttons at least saves some money, I have yet to hear a compelling reason for expensive and finicky power vents that you drag into position using the touchscreen. A Volvo spokesperson said that some customers like being able to get airflow pointed right where they want it, but I contend that the easiest way to do that is by pointing the vent yourself.
Whatever. The rest of the interior is plush, well-built, and bright enough to make me forgive Volvo here. It lacks the flair of Volvo’s last-generation interiors, and therefore doesn’t look as charming in photos, but the excellent seats, crisp displays, minimalist design, and high-quality materials make it a lovely place to spend time.
One detail I love: The under-trunk storage area is divided neatly, with a little bucket on the left with a removable liner that can be used as a trash bin.
Volvo EX60: Software & Tech
The EX60 also introduces a new generation of Volvo UI, with a big landscape-oriented touchscreen and a tidy driver information display with a head-up display on the windshield. The menus here are smooth and intuitive, and with quick animations and no noticeable bugs over my five-odd hours of testing.
The system is powered by Google’s Android Automotive and comes with Google Built-In for voice commands and mapping. The big news here is the introduction of conversational navigation using Google Gemini, which is an honest-to-god breakthrough for in-car navigation. You can say things like “find me a charging stop along my route with 350 kW or faster speeds and a nearby park to walk my dog” or “find me a Tesla Supercharger near a restaurant with good vegetarian options” and the car will comply almost instantly.
I’ll have a full review of that soon enough, but suffice it to say it makes planning EV road trips in the EX60 a breeze. I’m not going to glaze the Volvo too much here, though, as the technology is also coming to Mercedes EVs, a slew of General Motors products, a bunch of other Volvo and Polestar models, and—if you have an Android—anything that supports Android Auto.
But it’s a good thing to highlight because it showcases Volvo’s overall approach to technology in this car. The EX60 is incredibly sophisticated, but almost humble about it. Get in a modern high-trim Mercedes and it will constantly prompt you with warnings and advice, telling you to try its “Energizing Comfort” features or reminding you not to forget your phone. Even many Volvos have hyperactive driver monitors and safety systems that won’t stop bonging and beeping.
Not the EX60. The technology is polished, but it’s mostly out of the way. Pull away and the EX60 feels and acts like a mostly normal car, with simple toggles that allow you to change one-pedal driving behavior and powertrain responsiveness. It doesn’t dazzle you with countless chassis settings and alerts. It’s quiet, collected, and smart, as you’d want any Swedish companion to be.
The main controls for the climate system are in the touchscreen. But because the EU requires physical controls for certain key functions, you can enable your max defrost setting with a roof-mounted hard button.
Mostly that allows you to enjoy the centerpiece of the tech suite, at least to me: The Bowers & Wilkins stereo. It comes standard on the Ultra trim of the P6, P10, or P12 models, and it is just a beautiful bit of equipment. Bumping Dolby Atmos-mixed tracks on its 28-speaker array while cruising down Spanish backroads was truly one of the greatest in-car experiences of my 10-year career reviewing cars. When I played “Come Away With Me”—one of the best Atmos mixes of all time, for my money—it felt like Norah Jones was whispering in my ear.
Credit the headrest-mounted speakers, which enable one of my favorite party tricks in the EX60. If you’re cruising along with sleeping kids, you can set the music to only play out of your speakers. While most cars can do some sort of balance adjustment, I’ve never ridden in something that so totally isolates sound to one passenger, with the headrest speakers enabling a level of immersion I wouldn’t have thought possible. It was lovely.
Volvo EX60: Driving Experience
There’s a reason I’m putting this section below the last. Because the EX60 may be compliant, precise, and quiet on the road, but its real magic is in how the whole package comes together. The combination of a minimalist cabin, unobtrusive tech, and a silent drivetrain makes the EX60 almost disappear around you. Driving around the Spanish countryside, I just couldn’t get over how polished the whole thing felt.
It’s not just that Volvo brought its strengths to the EV market. The company seems to have finally made good on the natural match between its brand identity and the advantages of EVs. Volvos have always been at their best when they are quiet, competent companions that make miles melt away. Of course going electric improved that experience.
Speaking to the media gathered for this test drive, Volvo product and technology comms boss Thomas McIntyre Schultz put it well: “Everything that is great about this car is great because it’s electric.”
He’s right. The stereo hits better because it’s in a quieter car. The seats feel more comfortable because they aren’t being subtly shook by the clickety-clack of a coarse four-banger. The cabin is nicer, more spacious, and more sophisticated because it is inside a true software-defined vehicle, with all of the cost and packaging advantages that entails. Reliability will be better, because the car is simpler. And there’s no safer car than a car without an engine, where the entire front end can become a crumple zone.
EVs still struggle where excitement is the goal. I’d still rather have a Miata on a back road than a Model S Plaid. That’s a challenge for brands like Porsche. But what Volvo wants to do and what EVs can do seems a perfect match. In my experience, the EX60 felt two generations ahead of anything gas-powered, and a generation removed from the bugginess of the EX90. It felt like the most relaxing car on the road.
Volvo EX60: Early Verdict
I’ve long argued that EVs will naturally outcompete gas cars as they achieve price parity in more segments. That isn’t happening yet in the mainstream crossover space, where a Honda CR-V or Toyota RAV4 is still a fair bit cheaper than an equivalent Chevrolet Equinox EV or Hyundai Ioniq 5.
In the luxury market, though, the moment has arrived. Midsize crossovers like the iX3 and EX60 aren’t just approaching price parity, they’re also just better cars than their gas-powered counterparts. No matter how much you spend on an XC60, you won’t get something this smooth, this fast, this quiet, or with technology that’s nearly as polished. As these cars hit the lot, it’s going to be harder and harder to justify going with gas in this segment, especially considering the well-to-do buyers here almost all own their own homes.
I can’t yet say that the EX60 is the best electric midsize luxury SUV on sale—which, in my view, would automatically make it the best midsize luxury SUV overall. But it’s certainly vying for the title. And while driving enthusiasts may want the iX3, and adventure-oriented folk may skew towards the Rivian, the EX60 delivers what a Volvo buyer is looking for. It may not be the flashiest, or the fastest, but it is an absolutely serene place to spend time. That’s exactly what a Volvo is supposed to be.
Contact the author: Mack.Hogan@insideevs.com
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