123auto has a review of the Volvo XC60, here are the highlights:

Volvo happens to be one of those well-established average performing makes that spent some time in the fire-sale isle in Ford’s “makes-for-sale” store. Recently confirmed as part of the China’s growing Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, the Swedish maker is now in a great position to continue developing its product. Don’t think that these takeovers are a bad thing; in most cases, the buyer has sufficient resources to maintain momentum and by the same token, improve on its own line-up with the “buyee’s” technology.

Clear and present design
The newest member of the Volvo family is perhaps the best they have made in the last 15 years. In fact, the XC60 is what you would get, in my mind, if you took every model in Volvo’s portfolio, put them in a blender and voilà!

From any angle, the XC60 is without a doubt a Volvo. Its bulbous and shapely body carries the signature swollen bodylines which start from the purposeful-looking headlights all the way back to the twisted cat-ear taillights. In between, you will find a vehicle that looks bigger than it is; solid and unified.

An underdog
Volvo as a brand is often overlooked. In my opinion, those that choose competing European or Japanese brands such as BMW, Audi or Infiniti, especially if driving dynamics are secondary to comfort, are missing out on some of the most cosseting cars on the road.

The $39,995, the base XC60 faces stiff competition from the likes of the Audi Q5, Infiniti EX35, BMW X3 and Acura RDX. With an as-tested price of $53,445, the XC60 is not the least expensive but it does include all the kit one could ever want, save for the navigation system which is a $2,625 option. A basic T6 carries a price tag of $49,995.

If being different, meaning not driving a BMW or an Audi, does not scare you, the Volvo will surely impress even the most discerning buyer with its high level of quality and creature comforts.

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VOLVO is well regarded as an automaker of safe cars and crossovers. But this Swedish brand has evolved into a maker of distinctively styled and safe vehicles.
Its latest effort is the compact XC60, a five-passenger crossover that is a step smaller than its XC90 crossover. Inside, the XC60 seems more of a midsize for interior space and cargo capacity.

Volvo also has one of the best controllers for its navigation system. The inputs are made on a small control pad behind the right steering-wheel spoke. There is a small joystick, a “back” button and an “enter” button. The idea is for the driver to not take his hands off the wheel. There is also a remote feature so the passenger can make changes.

Clever engineering and safety features come at a cost of weight and price. And while the XC60 may seem pricey, its “popularly equipped” price is comparable with those of such vehicles as the Acura RDX, Audi Q5 and BMW X3.

Read the full review at Jamaica Observer

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Given Volvo’s reputation for safety, when the company calls its new XC60 the safest Volvo yet, and probably the safest vehicle in the world, it’s not just hyperbole. It should be a serious consideration when out shopping. Impact test data was not available at the time of this review, but if a crash test dummy could ‘come to its sensors’ it should try to get in line for the XC60 test that day.

Volvo has rolled out the XC60 for 2010 to stake its share in the extremely popular small luxury crossover SUV segment, taking on the BMW X3 and much newer Audi Q5 and Mercedes GLK, among many, many others. Safety being in its DNA, this part of the XC60 story starts with the very steel used to make it and body structure that employs collision management to distribute energy. The very shape and flush elements of the energy absorbing front-end reduces the severity of impact with pedestrians and cyclists. Bumpers that match the height of lower car bumpers negate bigger than usual fender bender bills, and the transversely mounted engine will be less likely to penetrate the passenger cabin in a front-end collision. The XC60, of course, comes with a full complement of multi-stage front and side curtain airbags. We are talking about the company that invented the side airbag, not to mention the single most important advancement in automotive safety – the three-point seatbelt. Fifty years later, the XC60 boasts another nifty Volvo first. It stops itself!

The City Safety system is born out of these statistics. Seventy-five percent of crashes occur at speeds under 30 km/h, and half of those are because of distraction, where the driver did not brake at all! Behind the rear-view mirror on the XC60 is a laser that scans for objects 6 metres ahead. Based on the distance to any vehicle or object and your speed, the system calculates braking forces needed to avoid collision. If you exceed that threshold by, you guessed it, NOT hitting the brakes or not pressing down on the peddle hard enough, the system takes over. The City Safety system does not promise to avoid collision, but even if there is contact the severity of the crash will be reduced significantly. There are some limitations, however, like snow and ice covering the laser. In addition, that laser is best at reading reflective objects like a car, so don’t plough through your flat beige garage door showing off this cool new feature to your neighbor.

Despite its 2,774-mm (109.2-inch) wheelbase the XC60 provides a lot of leg and cargo volume at 1,907 litres (67.3 cu ft). Built-in two-stage booster seats are a very nice feature, too. XC, of course, stands for cross-country, and the XC60 provides ample ground clearance of 230 mm (9.0 inches) for off-road use. It does not offer lower gearing, however, because at its heart it is a luxury family mover.

Read the full review on Autos Canada

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Here is a new review of the Volvo XC60 from Kustomatic:
This oeuvre-on-wheels may be sharing a niche currently dominated by impressive entries from big guns like BMW (BMW X3), Land Rover (Land Rover LR2), Acura (Acura RDX), and Infiniti (EX35), but, being a flagship product of the Swedish company’s thrust to enhance the design DNA of its cars and being billed as the “safest Volvo ever,” it can surely outshine its earlier counterparts.
According to Volvo, the car is packed with “more emotive form and more energy” compared to all the other cars it has manufactured through the years. Volvo Cars Design Director Steve Mattin further claimed that “if you say that you’d recognize a Volvo from a hundred meters away today, I dare say the XC60 radiates a clear Volvo presence from at least twice that distance.”
But there is something more interesting than the luster—the XC60 is available in metallic finishes: electric silver, black sapphire, barents blue, maple red, to name some—catching the eyes of people from this “double-distance” Mattin is talking about. The XC60 is offered with drivers having a say on what engine will run their XC60s: it can either be the turbocharged T6, which produces 285 horsepower, or two variants of the D5 turbodiesel—for Europe—yielding 185 and 163 horsepower respectively. All Wheel Drive (AWD) is fitted as standard.
The XC60 also features a revolutionary braking technology called “City Safety,” which enables the car to automatically brake whenever the car is about to drive into something—a wall, another car—and the driver is not able to respond. This is done via built-in cameras and sensors that can detect imminent impacts.
“We are the first manufacturer in the world to offer this type of feature as standard. City Safety clearly advertises that the new XC60 is the safest car Volvo has ever produced,” Volvo CEO Fredrik Arp said. “The car is packed with our accumulated safety know-how and technology, both when it comes to preventing accidents and protecting all the occupants in a collision.”
Aside from these special attributes, the XC60 does not leave out other staples of a dream comfort car. It has standard Bluetooth connectivity, HD Radio, Sirius Satellite Radio, USB and auxiliary inputs for audio players, power front seats, roof rails, and even a large moonroof.

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Likes:
Attractive styling
Well-trimmed interior
Good handling and acceleration

Dislikes:
Poor fuel economy
Lots of techno buttons

The 2010 Volvo XC60 is the Swedish car company’s first foray into the compact crossover segment—the same niche that includes the BMW X3, Land Rover LR2, Acura RDX, and Infiniti EX35. Happily, the Volvo entry is one of the handsomest of the bunch, comes standard with all-wheel drive and surprising off-road specs, and adds to the brand’s reputation for safety with a new twist.

With the $38,025 XC60, Volvo allows its designers freer rein. The XC60 is a handsome machine—particularly from the side, where it reminds other drivers of a four-fifths-scale Buick Enclave, and from the rear, where the taillights flow into its shoulders like the deltoids of a muscular athlete. The large “ironmark” badge and big grille complete the pro-sports analogy and may be a little big for some tastes. Inside, it’s even more appealing: The Volvo trick of making a thin-panel console leaves storage behind its wood-paneled center stack, metallic trim outlines big geometric shapes, and all sorts of pleasing colors and textures fill out the cabin.

The Bottom Line:
The 2010 Volvo XC60 brings unexpected style and a heavy dose of safety technology to families with all-weather needs.

Read the full review at : The Car Connection

Acura RDX, BMW X3, Buick Enclave, Four-wheel drive, Land Rover Freelander, Makes and Models, Volvo, Volvo XC60