Winter SMP 24

The Volvo V60 Cross Country is a mid-size estate car with beefier looks and a taller ride than the regular estate car that is based upon. The Cross Country doesn’t have many rivals – only the more expensive Audi A6 Allroad, the cheaper Skoda Octavia Scout and the Volkswagen Passat Alltrack that costs about the same.

The V60 Cross Country cabin is very similar to the regular V60’s and as a result it’s a nice place to spend time. The Audi A6 Allroad has the more premium (and better finished) cabin, but the V60 Cross Country gets close and its floating centre console gives the car its own unique character, as well as freeing up space for an additional storage area. Some of the good work is undone by a confusing array of small buttons that are tricky to operate on the move.

The V60 Cross Country asks for a hefty premium over the regular V60, but is still cheaper than the A6 Allroad. Base equipment is reasonable, with Volvo’s emergency city braking and a high-tech infotainment system coming as standard.

In the front there’s plenty of space and a wide range of adjustment makes it easy to get comfortable behind the wheel. It’s not the same story in the back, though, where the sloping roofline eats into rear passenger’s headroom. Anyone over six foot tall will find there head’s a bit cramped, but there’s plenty of knee room. Volvo’s seats are known for their comfort – they seem to offer support in all the right places and you often leave the car with less aches and pains than you had when you got in.

Boot space is unchanged from the regular V60 meaning you get 430 litres with the seats up, expanding to 1,241 litres with the rear seats folded down. Even though that is a decent capacity, the Skoda Superb is cheaper to buy and offers 633 and 2,000 litres respectively.