Safety - XC60 14-17 v Focus

[Bagheera]

Hello All,

I'd love some advice around Volvo, particularly the XC60 and safety.

Our current family car is a 2014 Ford Focus Estate and it has a reasonable good Euro NCAP rating (94% I believe).

I've always loved Volvo's and have started my search for one to upgrade to something safer and bigger.

In your opinion, in a real world accident scenario, how would a 2014 XC60 come out v our current car? On one hand I think our current focus is slightly newer but then the XC60 is weightier and is a Volvo......? Is it just marketing spin or have they really got the edge?

My second dilemma is whether to stretch to a 2018 XC60. How much difference is there likely to be other than the active safety systems between the 2014 and 2018 models?

Final thought. XC60 D4 or D5 and anything to watch out for?

I'd appreciate any thoughts.

[GrahamBrown1]

If you’re buying a car for safety- you buy a volvo, job done. There inner safety cage is made of boron steel, the stongest steel used in the car industry today. When i visited the factory they put a lot of emphasis on safety. There is some hefty metal in these cars.

https://www.iihs.org/ratings/vehicle...-door-suv/2014

That’s a link for some info on the previous gen XC60 which is 5 star rated.

[Kev0607]

Originally Posted by Bagheera

Hello All,

I'd love some advice around Volvo, particularly the XC60 and safety.

Our current family car is a 2014 Ford Focus Estate and it has a reasonable good Euro NCAP rating (94% I believe).

I've always loved Volvo's and have started my search for one to upgrade to something safer and bigger.

In your opinion, in a real world accident scenario, how would a 2014 XC60 come out v our current car? On one hand I think our current focus is slightly newer but then the XC60 is weightier and is a Volvo......? Is it just marketing spin or have they really got the edge?

My second dilemma is whether to stretch to a 2018 XC60. How much difference is there likely to be other than the active safety systems between the 2014 and 2018 models?

Final thought. XC60 D4 or D5 and anything to watch out for?

I'd appreciate any thoughts.

I imagine your Ford wouldn't fair too well against a Volvo...

Volvo have always thrived on safety and safety features. They developed the seat belt and are built like tanks.

As for D4 or D5... D4's are plagued with problems, such as EGR valve issues, oil coolers and excessive oil consumption. The D5 gets my vote, the 5 cylinder D5 I mean (older model).

If you're looking at newer diesel Volvo's say 2016 onwards, the ones badged as D5 aren't a 5 cylinder engine like the older models were (newer ones have 4 cylinder engines). You need to be careful and do your research, as the 4 cylinder engines in newer Volvo's aren't as good as the older ones. In saying that, plenty of people on here have D4's... not everyone is a victim of the issues I mentioned, but they can happen because its a common issue. Its just a matter of when it happens! I've read that frequent oil changes helps, so don't skimp on servicing if you buy one.

In saying that, if you live in a ULEZ zone or travel into one, then you don't really have much option only buy one of the newer 4 cylinder engines (if its a diesel Volvo that you want, as they're ulez compliant). You can get some older 5 cylinder diesel models that are ulez compliant, but they're hard to come by.

[Bagheera]

Originally Posted by GrahamBrown1

If you’re buying a car for safety- you buy a volvo, job done. There inner safety cage is made of boron steel, the stongest steel used in the car industry today. When i visited the factory they put a lot of emphasis on safety. There is some hefty metal in these cars.

https://www.iihs.org/ratings/vehicle...-door-suv/2014

That’s a link for some info on the previous gen XC60 which is 5 star rated.

Thanks for taking the time to reply. That's interesting. I think Ford use Boron as well as some other manufacturers, but is it fair to say that Volvo make more use of it?

[Bagheera]

Originally Posted by Kev0607

I imagine your Ford wouldn't fair too well against a Volvo...

Volvo have always thrived on safety and safety features. They developed the seat belt and are built like tanks.

As for D4 or D5... D4's are plagued with problems, such as EGR valve issues, oil coolers and excessive oil consumption. The D5 gets my vote, the 5 cylinder D5 I mean (older model).

If you're looking at newer diesel Volvo's say 2016 onwards, the ones badged as D5 aren't a 5 cylinder engine like the older models were (newer ones have 4 cylinder engines). You need to be careful and do your research, as the 4 cylinder engines in newer Volvo's aren't as good as the older ones. In saying that, plenty of people on here have D4's... not everyone is a victim of the issues I mentioned, but they can happen because its a common issue. Its just a matter of when it happens! I've read that frequent oil changes helps, so don't skimp on servicing if you buy one.

In saying that, if you live in a ULEZ zone or travel into one, then you don't really have much option only buy one of the newer 4 cylinder engines (if its a diesel Volvo that you want, as they're ulez compliant). You can get some older 5 cylinder diesel models that are ulez compliant, but they're hard to come by.

Thanks Kev, appreciate the reply.

We're not massive city dwellers - tend to avoid them tbh and loathe the ULEZ policies so probably wouldn't let it influence my decision too much. The bit of extra clout of the D5 is appealing. In the XC60 models I'm looking at (14-17), I think that is the 5 cylinder model? 212bhp. I could be wrong so I'll look into that a bit more.

[Kev0607]

Originally Posted by Bagheera

Thanks Kev, appreciate the reply.

We're not massive city dwellers - tend to avoid them tbh and loathe the ULEZ policies so probably wouldn't let it influence my decision too much. The bit of extra clout of the D5 is appealing. In the XC60 models I'm looking at (14-17), I think that is the 5 cylinder model? 212bhp. I could be wrong so I'll look into that a bit more.

If you're looking on Autotrader for example, underneath the advert, click on "Specification" and then "Performance". There it will list the number of cylinders a car has. That's a handy way to check whether the car you're looking at is 4 cylinder or a 5.

[Whippy]

Put simply and without any Volvo fan boi hyperbole, the NCAP rating for the XC60 is considerably higher than that of the ford.

[GMcL]

You can go to the NCAP site and download the test results for comparison. Pre-2017 XC60 diesel Momentum 1,850kgs scores 34 points 94%, MK3 Focus 1.6 diesel hatchback 1,344kgs scores 33 points 92%

Of course those numbers are not the full story. The Focus will come off worse because the Volvo is half a tonne heavier and from a different class of vehicle; 5 door hatchback Vs 5 door SUV, basic physics.
NCAP numbers only make sense when comparing like for like. Compare a Q5 to an XC60 kind of thing.

[Forg]

Focus has better primary safety, because it's not as big & heavy so you're less likely to actually hit something.

XC60 will have better secondary safety though, by virtue of it being a Volvo and also weighing about 18 tonnes more.

Published crash-safety numbers have a tendency to make vehicles appear better when you're already involved in a crash, and against cars that are less likely to be involved in one.

[MikeGMT]

Originally Posted by Bagheera

Hello All,


My second dilemma is whether to stretch to a 2018 XC60. How much difference is there likely to be other than the active safety systems between the 2014 and 2018 models?

Final thought. XC60 D4 or D5 and anything to watch out for?

I'd appreciate any thoughts.

It's a while since I last looked at the specs; but the 2018 XC60 will most likely be the Gen.ll with the Sensus portrait central screen, different body shape and a lot of changes to the VEA engines and drive trains. 2014 was around the year the original XC60 had a facelift and the VEA engines were introduced. Choices included the new 2lt (4 cylinder) engine and FWD with the new 8 speed Geartronic, or the older 5 cylinder and 6 speed Geartronic, until this was dropped later on in the range. It can be a bit of a daunting task sorting out all the various differences and options available on the different models, so plenty to get your head around, just do your homework.