A few weeks ago when Steve tested Volvo’s S80 2.5, he made reference to the fact that South Africans seem to have an eerie loyalty towards products of German origin. Sure, the Germans make some excellent cars, but so do the Japanese, the Swedes and the Koreans. For some reason, you’ve not arrived if your mode of transport doesn’t have its origins in Germany.

What a load of bollocks, quite frankly. Moving up in Volvo’s S80 range, there’s also the fantastic D5 diesel derivative. Powered by a 2.4-litre, in-line five-cylinder engine, it develops an impressive 151kW of power and 421Nm of torque, translating to a 0 – 100km/h acceleration of 8.5 seconds and a top speed of 230km/h.

The exterior doesn’t differ much from the 2.5 we previously tested, although the D5 does come with the more conservatively styled, 17” Cassini rims as standard (which I’d immediately swap for the sportier 18”Odysseus rims at R6700 extra).

The interior design is stylish and understated although I wouldn’t go for the mocca brown and light beige combination the test model came in. Yes, it looks lovely with the oyster grey pearl (read: brown metallic) exterior finish, but it’s a highly impractical combination that shows dirt immediately. Rather go for the black options, and replace the walnut finishes with cross-brushed aluminium for an immediately more modern look and feel.

As in the 2.5, equipment levels are very good, albeit slightly higher in the more expensive D5 model. Bi-xenon headlights are now standard (albeit still without an auto-function), as is Bluetooth, an air quality system and a high-performance sound system that does allow MP3 and USB playback through 8 speakers. For an added bit of posh, there’s a sun-curtain for the rear window (which I find a bit tacky in any car – even the Porsche Panamera has one!).

The D5 is a lovely engine and is much more responsive than I expected. I often found myself driving it in a more spirited fashion than what it was probably meant for, but it kept up in all the places. The Geartronic autobox isn’t bad, and certainly helps to achieve unreal fuel consumption figures: I drove everyone everywhere in the week I had the car, and I couldn’t get the tank empty. I shouldn’t have been surprised though. Volvo claims 6.2-litres/ 100km, which on a 70-litre tank equates to a range of over 1000km in an ideal world. Very impressive for this Viking ship!

The S80 is perhaps not as dynamically proficient as some of its German counterparts, but if you were still a boy racer at heart merely looking for something comfortable, you won’t be looking at an S80 in the first place. It’s a comfortable, rather luxurious limo-esque car that offers a lot for its R461 500 price tag. Yes, there are more affordable and less affordable options out there, but there’s something clinically beautiful about the S80, and for that, it will undoubtedly make my shortlist. The S80 D5 is without a doubt the model of choice in the S80 range.

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