VOLVO S60 POLESTAR

AFTER AN UNUSUAL SPORTS SEDAN FOR YOUR SUNDAY DRIVE? SOUNDS LIKE YOU MIGHT HAVE A NEED FOR SWEDE

- ALEX AFFAT

AS POLESTAR, ORIGINALLY Volvo's factory-backed touring car racing team and now a standalone EV brand, moves to realise a high-performance electric future, it's worth looking back on its more skunkworks take on Swedish performance.

Few modern sedans offer as intriguing an option for the price as the Volvo S60/V60 Polestar. Costing a hair under $110,000 at launch, Australia acted as a test bed for the sporty Swede, receiving a limited run of 50 Polestar-tuned S60 T6 AWDs back in 2013.

Thanks to a BorgWarner turbo, intercooler and a stainless steel 2.5-inch exhaust system, the Polestardeveloped S60's 3.0-litre inline-six produced 258kW at 6500rpm and 500Nm at 5500rpm. Polestar-specific Öhlins adjustable shocks, uprated springs (80 per cent stiffer than the S60 T6), front and rear stabiliser bars, toe link arms, carbon-reinforced strut brace and 336mm/302mm brakes elevated the dynamics.

Thanks to its Australian success, Polestar's engineering program went global in 2014, with limited S60 Polestars further offered to North American, European and Japanese markets while Australian vehicles received a $10,000 price reduction. The 2014spec cars gained 20-inch wheels with 371mm six-piston Brembo brakes up front, a new twin-scroll BorgWarner turbine and intercooler as well as a revised Haldex 4WD calibration for a more rear-biased torque distribution.

Polestar Volvos returned for their final iteration in 2015, with the S60 sedan joined by a V60 wagon counterpart. Further developments included a new brake booster and master cylinder for finer pedal control, as well as larger wind tunnel-tested spoilers to greater aid high-speed stability.