From XC60 to RS6 (no messing about!)

[Considered1]

So we bought a brand new XC60 in 2014 and I honestly thought I’d be keeping it for ever. I was quite prepared to as after getting such a huge £8k off list price I ticked most of the option boxes, Driver support pack, Volvo on Call were fantastic.

I definitely thought I was keeping it after sensing what I would get for it as a trade in for perhaps the new XC60 (always wanted a T8 and even bought the plate T8 HYB just incase!). My Volvo dealer offering perhaps the worst trade in at less than 50% of what I paid got me thinking why did I buy another new car after leasing the last 2 (Audi A6 2.0d and BMW 320d ED). The answer is I was happy to keep it, loved it, and you can’t buy a Volvo lease car afterwards ,and with so many options, PCP was so much easier on the monthly payments (esp when I claim running a vehicle for business).

I even polestarred the Volvo and was putting it to good use up and down the motorways giving the upmarket executive lane a few surprises when ‘coming through’!

But the tax man is changing the 18% depreciation I can claim from next year and my 21 year old was badgering me to get that “supercar” I’d always promised him before I got to 50, also next year.

So I gave him the challenge, only if you can find me a car that has lost more than I would pay for a brand new car in the first place (ok excluding a T8). So very quickly we homed in on the perfect vehicle, bigger space for the dog, goes like stink when required without chipping your teeth, good looks, enough tech to appreciate the journey and above all as comfy as the Volvo.

Didn’t try many other alternatives as we saw a few 8-9 year old Audi Rs6Avant’s in our budget of £20-£30k, Did try a newer Rs4 (2013) which was just more than I thought it was worth, and seats not as good as in the RS6. The newer 4.0 RS6 from birth around 2013 onwards we’re still £50k+ but this one is on my computer desktop and I shall be watching the prices for the next few years at least.



But a friend of mine took me for a spin in the damp of his new M4 and explained all these technical reasons why you couldn’t just put your foot down in a straight line, so I was somewhat amazed to find that the laws of physics just don’t apply to the Audi Quattro system, all 572hp deployed pdq it has to be said!.

Now Google is a wonderful thing and I’m no petrol head so I just looked for any common faults before taking an 8 year old car still worth £25k-£30k seriously. We drove a 700hp rs6 near Newcastle and the main sales guy was learning fast about Volvo’s and was up for more or less a straight swap but sadly didn’t know anything about the “infamous oil seal problem”. Something like a 50p rubber seal between the engine and the gearbox that melts with the heat and leaks, seems to happen to them all, or at least I could not risk it. After emails to virtually every seller only a handful would reply, clearly the others have been caught out or think it ain’t going to happen, or happy for Warranty companies to pick up the bill of up to £4.5k as it’s an engine out job!

So missing out on one or two that were a couple of hundred miles away and went before I plucked up the courage to see them offer me 5K less for mine but pay their full asking price in return, we (the boys in the house) were lucky enough to be one of the first to test the car we ultimately bought after just 20 mins drive but I got the 20k it had demanded as the release price for the XC60. The deal was subject to all the correct servicing paperwork (including oil seal fix) and my better half and I driving it for a few hours down some of our old routes to see how the ride would be for the boss.

She gave her consent in that usual way only wives can do, not sure why we are doing this as I really like “my” Volvo.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWAcpngwADk


So today we’ve had the RS6 for exactly 4 months, so enough time I think for the novelty to wear off and give some serious reflection.

What have we got and what is it like to own and drive.

The signature gives the basics but this car was £77k new, still on 58,000 miles when we got it and will turn 65,000 miles next time someone takes it out.

The car has three suspension modes, and spends all its life ( ok maybe not when the youngster takes it out) in “comfort”, other modes are available but really not needed on the public highway, and it is really really comfy, my wife commenting how just so on our return journey this evening. She says it is better than the Volvo and a bit quieter too.

Soft close doors are a nice touch but not something I’d pay for, likewise keyless entry and go button, although I would put this on the nice to have list for future reference. Proper xenon lights, nice DRL’s keep you highly visible. Seats are fully electric incl lumbar and memory with key memory thing as we had on the Volvo, needed when we have a 6ft 2 Seat adjuster in the family. What took me by surprise is the electric steering wheel adjustment which is great, and even pulls itself out of the way automatically when you get in and out.

Wipers are left on auto and largely cope with everything that gets thrown at them, one minor thing that did let the Volvo down, ok make that 2 as guess what, the wing mirrors dip to the correct angle when parking up. Only thing that is manual is having to remember to retract the wing mirrors prior to exit.

Sound and Tech.

I’ve never understood paying for superior sound system in a car until now, wow, sorry guys the penny (ok a bit coin) has finally dropped, the Bose system is just brilliant, and I can see why anyone who spends a huge amount of time on the roads would see this as money well spent, I still probably wouldn’t from new but hey big thanks to the chap that did. Digital free view TV again is something wouldn’t pay for comes in useful when there is breaking news to be followed.

I was more than a little worried that a newish IPhone would just not work with an 8 year old MMI system but managed after a bit hit and miss initially after buying the relevant £60 cable from Audi of course. Phone works via Bluetooth with a better signal as I would guess this car actually uses its Ariel on the roof, now there’s a novelty.

I’ve run an extension cable for the MMI which is meant to stay in the glove box but a cheap holder on the air vent puts my phone in the perfect place out front. So much so I now use Waze on my new iPhone 8 which is better than any satnav I’ve ever used as it’s always up to Date, shares real time inputs from other road users and even syncs with my calendar for getting to appointments a la On Call! I did upgrade the satnav by getting a disc from one of these websites for little investment and it works fine for anyone who’s interested.



I can also access my millions of songs via Apple Music straight from my phone and Apple Watch asking SIRI to play my playlists works fine but manually trying this via the MMI/dashboard sometimes skips tracks so I think the car would need a software update for that.

Is the performance that good.

Everyone is blown away with the acceleration and nice boom as the car changes up, initially you are just thankful that the car does the gears for you, when you bury your right foot as you just couldn’t change gear that quickly, but there are only 6 to play with and I’d be interested to see how the new ones compare as the car is pulling c2,000 revs at 80mph. Economy is not too bad on the motorway but would make you cry if you did a lot of miles in town but I’m hoping for around 12,000 pa these days and the difference between 40mpg and 20mpg is something me and the taxman can afford. Car tax is £500pa but again largely a business expense for me. I took an Audi warranty as the gearbox does clunk a little but all the mechanical folks say that’s normal, just surprising that it’s “sealed for life” so no gearbox service, although I’m leaning toward the Audi forum chaps suggestions of getting it done, but not at the expense of my no limit warranty! Be great to have a chat with an Audi tech when I get the chance.

You don’t get tired of the noise, the 5 litre engine just purrs most of the time, the boom on Change up is not too loud but I don’t have any modifications, it’s all standard. Fail to wash the car for a few weeks and you don’t stand out either, something I quite like. Most folk who know their cars don’t mess with you as your gone in seconds (about 3 or 4 actually) if need be. It’s a responsible sort of power but makes overtaking meandering Sunday drivers extremely easy, the only thing hard to judge is when to stop accelerating whilst still passing traffic incase you catch a motorbike and the brakes can never be as good as the acceleration so we don’t go silly but if you get caught out the car goes round the bend like it’s on rails. I don’t hurtle round bends anyway, you don’t need to the fun is safely on the straights but you need to set a speed limiter alarm which I have so you don’t loose your licence.

So all in all a very pleasing purchase, mid life crisis, or whatever takes your fancy. The cabin is a really nice place to be on an evening with all the ambient lighting making it quite special.

The wheels are a b g r to keep clean and the 20inch rims will get kerbed but they are replaceable eventually or a second set of winters would do the trick. Just had a big service at Audi which is £800 and 4 new tyres which are best part of £200 a corner but that should see it through mot next year before brake pads will be next.

Expensive, so not for the faint hearted, but I read up on what to expect, but do you know what, unless you are female you may just get why we do it, why we take pride in looking after these incarnations and give them the life they so deserve.

What do I miss most from the Volvo, On Call safety button and remote start but that was just showing off, actually I rarely do mornings anymore. Cars will always be behind phones for tech and a good phone is way cheaper than the depreciation on a new car. Adaptive cruise I thought I’d miss but the Audi standard cruise keeps nicely to the set parameters and is easily adjusted and if it gets too crowded I’m outa there anyway!

Would I have my XC60 back, yes I would and I will certainly be on the look out for a second car when we can afford it.

Merry Christmas folks and wishing you a safe New Year.