New Car Reviews
The current Volvo V60 and S60 – have only one more year, but not in the way of major changes for the high-performance Polestar models. Gone is his comical loud Turbo in-line six-cylinder, and in its place is a 362-horsepower turbo – and supercharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder.
The six-cylinder Polestar was a car for Volvo fans, but not necessarily one to go out what in the viewing of the competition. It’s handling finesse and drivetrain lacked refinement, but more than made up for with oddball charm.
Unfortunately, the S60 and V60 Polestar some of the charm that the transition to four-cylinder power, but to win what is, allegedly, a much better drive have lost.
“The Motor is a remarkable piece of machinery with a specific output of 181 HP per liter. Which almost makes it the most powerful four-cylinder engine on the market, second only to Mercedes-AMG 2.0-liter 375-hp unit.
This 2.0-litre starts his life as a 316-horsepower four-cylinder in the new XC90, among other cars, but gets some hardware improvements. Of course, there are a larger turbo, which work in tandem with a newly designed air intake, new connecting rods, a new camshaft, and a beefed-up fuel pump. Although it will help a compressor and a turbo, the new engine is slightly lighter than the old six, you take weight from the front axle.
Of course, one would expect that a 2.0-liter-making this kind of power to pointed and undrivable, but the opposite is true. This is thanks to the compressor, which gives virtually instant throttle response below 3000 rpm, which is when the turbocharger kicks in. On mountain roads North of Phoenix and the Arizona Motorsports Park, it was easy to enjoy the car, 347 lb-ft of torque. It pulls hard from low revs in third, and even fourth gear, so that it is an extremely lenksam street-car Motor.
The Motor is connected to the same Aisin eight-speed auto, the other new Volvos, but with a Polestar-specific tuning. It is not a big improvement over the six-speed in the previous S60 and V60 Polestar, with much faster shifting, although down the rev switch is still to be agreed. This gear is not at the level of the ZF eight-speed used in Jaguars, BMWs and others, but it is a step in the right direction nonetheless.
As impressive as the engine is, I couldn’t help but think it was just a little bland compared with the old six. It sounds kind of like a GTI, but with a few extra pops on full throttle upshifts. It is connected to a dual-mode performance exhaust, but even in Sport mode, this engine is just too polite. Polestar should look to the Mercedes-AMG and Fiat-Abarth (or the old S60 and V60 Polestar) for the inspiration.
Advertising – Read More Below
What is not a fad, the Polestar is a semi-secret Sport+ mode. You activate it by holding the shift lever in the ” + ” position, and tap the downshift paddle twice in rapid succession. This mode keeps the revs above 4000 U/min increases the speed of switching and open it keeps the exhaust valves. It only works in automatic mode, and although it is a little too ridiculous for the street, it is perfect for a few people, the dare, her pole stars take to the track.
The drive, changes make up the bulk of what’s new for the 2017 S60 and V60 Polestar, but there is one more change worth mentioning is electric power steering. Yep, the Polestar has shunned hydraulic steering, but don’t get your pitchforks yet. The old Polestar had a nice steering wheel, but it was really nothing to write home about, so that there is no significant loss here. The EPAS system is nicely weighted and precise, but the feeling is missing. On the track, you hear the tires more than you feel anything with the tips of your fingers.
In the corners, which are composed of S60 and V60 Polestar, but not nearly as playful as you want a sedan with a road-oriented Sport. There is a lot of grip from the Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires and four-wheel-drive system, but it all feels a little safe. Only 50 percent of the torque to the rear wheels, and only in the most aggressive drive modes. This all-wheel-drive systems from Audi, BMW and Jaguar, all of which can send most (if not all) of torque to the rear wheels.contrasted with competing
The Polestar is capable of–it just does not “incite”, the drive in it is hard.
Unchanged from the previous S60 and V60 Polestar, the manually-adjustable öhlins dampers. These are the type of dampers you would install on your car, if you are a serious track day junkie, and while they are certainly not impressive hardware, I’m convinced they belong on the car. For the on-road part of our journey, they were on medium stiffness set in, but she felt much to hard for the street. Even on smooth roads, the Polestar bounced and rattled far more than necessary.
On the track by Polestar technicians they stiffened more, and to feel, somehow, from a relatively smooth road a bumpy one. Body control with these shocks is impressive, but you are not really jive with the Polestar – street-car intent. This is not a track-day special, so why should he have to drive like a?
The journey is not helped much by 20-inch wheels wrapped in ultra-low-profile tires. Someone should not say, Polestar engineers that you need super stiff suspension and big wheels make a nice handling car. Under the Polestar competition, Jaguar and Cadillac seemed to have found out that is best.
The Polestar provides a high level of performance in practice, but with a suspension setup that really only works on the track. The car is not quite sure what it wants to be. The engine and transmission are improvements on the last Polestar, but the chassis shows its age. Nevertheless, there is reason to be happy about Polestar in the future.
Soon, he ‘ ll versions of Volvo, the new 90 series. The mighty little four, will also be connected by electrical motors, even more performance and provide an interesting alternative to the German mainstream.
Going forward, Polestar, should take a close look at what the older six-cylinder S60 and V60 Polestar so charming, and some of the stiffness out of the suspension It would be a really interesting daily driving sports car on his hands.