New Car Review of the 2005 Volvo S80 Full-Size Luxury Sedan

Description: Full-Size Luxury Sedan
Base MSRP Range: not available
Invoice Price Range: not available
Where built: Sweden

Leading Volvo's fleet is the S80, largest sedan in the line and the most luxurious. There are four trims in 2005, culminating with S80 T6 Premier flagship series.

Body styling was revamped last year with the prow flashing fresh fascia, foglamps, grille and headlamps with highlights in chrome and dark silver finishes. Active safety tools, designed for an alert driver to guide S80 away from danger, include quick-action rack and pinion steering and disc brakes connected to anti-lock brakes (ABS) with electronic brake force distribution (EBD), traction control (TCS) and optional Dynamic Stability and Traction Control (DSTC) system plus the FOUR-C (Continuously Controlled Chassis Concept) shock damping.

For powertrains, Volvo presents three choices, each tied to an automatic transmission. S80 2.9 carries an aluminum six-pack that displaces 2.9-liters and produces 194-hp. S80 T6 uses a light-pressure twin turbo six to make 268-hp. Optional AWD traction is available now with the S80 2.5T AWD, which packs a 2.5-liter 5-cylinder turbo for 208-hp.

S80 T6 Premier brings a DVD-based video entertainment system with liquid-crystal-display (LCD) color monitors planted in the back of headrests of front buckets. Run-flat tires are the latest option for any S80 trim.