Volvo S60 T8 Twin Engine Plug-in Hybrid arrives – and S60 trim options upgraded

The new Volvo S60 can now be had with the T8 Twin Engine plug-in hybrid drivetrain delivering 385bhp, and Volvo has upgraded the S60’s trim levels too.

It’s taken a while to arrive, but Volvo has finally got round to offering the new S60 saloon with the T8 Twin Engine plug-in hybrid powertrain.

That means Volvo’s 2.0 litre petrol engine with 299bhp mated to an electric motor good for another 86bhp for a combined 385bhp and 472lb/ft of torque, good for a 0-62mph sprint in a very decent 4.6 seconds.

Of course, as a plug-in hybrid, the S60 T8 comes with the usual fairy story official economy and emission figures, in this case 176mpg and 39g/km, and a not quite so fairy story official EV range of 36 miles (probably 20 in the real world).

But, if the battery is charged and ready to play, the S60 T8 will be lively, and if you’re clever, and get round to plugging it in, most owners will be able to crawl to work in silly traffic without using any fuel. 

The downside is the cost, which is, bar a couple of quid, £50k, but if you’re a business driver then the upside is much lower BIK rates than the other S60 option the S60 T5.

Speaking of costs, it’ll now cost you more to get in to any S60 too, as Volvo has dropped the R-Design and Inscription trims (no S60 Momentum in the UK) and replaced them with R-Design Plus and Inscription Plus, rather than just adding extra stuff to the existing trim levels.

That’s no doubt to justify the price hike – up by around £1,200 on the old trim levels – although there is more stuff on offer, and there’s an S60 Polestar upgrade on the way too.

The extended and upgraded S60 is now available to order, with the S60 T5 available in Inscription Plus and R-Design Plus trim, but the S60 T8 only in R-Design Plus Trim.