It’s tagged as the sportiest Volvo ever launched in Malaysia, and it’s here – Volvo Car Malaysia today introduced the all-new second-generation S60, and to get things going the model is available in two CBU variant forms, these being the 3.0 T6 AWD (all-wheel drive) and 2.0 T5.

The T6 AWD is equipped with a 3.0 litre inline six-cylinder twin-scroll turbocharged engine that offers 304 hp at 5,400 rpm and 440 Nm of torque from 2,100 to 4,200 rpm. Volvo’s most powerful six-cylinder is coupled with Instant Traction AWD and mated to a second-generation six-speed automatic Geartronic transmission, and performance specs include a 0-100 kph sprint time of 6.5 seconds and a 250 kph top speed.

As for the T5, it wears a 2.0 litre four-cylinder turbo mill, here mated to a six-speed Powershift gearbox. Figures include a 240 hp at 5,500 rpm output and 320 Nm of torque at 1,800 to 5,000 rpm as well as a 0-100 kph time of 7.5 seconds. We tested this one sometime back during a drive preview of the car, covered in Danny’s comprehensive report.

The S60 T6 comes with a self-adjusting Four-C (Continuously Controlled Chassis Concept) chassis with three settings – Comfort for cruising, Sport for those naughty moments and Advance to increase driving dynamics. At the heart of Four-C is Volvo’s semi-active suspension with continuously controlled Monroe-Öhlins shock absorbers.

The T5 has a Dynamic chassis as standard, but both variants boast improved steering, stiffer springs and bushes as well as more damping than any previous model. Both versions also feature brake energy regeneration.

The Dynamic Stability and Traction Control (DSTC) now features Advanced Stability Control and Traction Torque Vectoring as part of the kit. The ASC anti-skid feature makes it possible to identify skidding tendencies at a very early stage, thus improving handling and allowing for rapid avoidance manoeuvres.

Meanwhile, Corner Traction Control by Torque Vectoring balances the torque between the front wheels during acceleration while cornering – the torque is distributed from a spinning inner wheel to reduce understeer and increase traction.

Safety-wise, the S60 is every inch a Volvo, with more safety components than any brand in its segment. The piece de resistance is the groundbreaking Pedestrian Detection with full auto brake feature.

A world’s first, the system detects pedestrians who walk onto the road in front of the car and warns the driver. If there’s no intervention from the driver, the system automatically applies full braking power. Pedestrian Detection – working in tandem with City Safety – can avoid a collision with a pedestrian at speeds of up to 35 kph.

Now, Pedestrian Safety may be the cherry on the cake, but there’s the usual host of active preventive safety kit to be found on the new ‘un, and besides Blind Spot Information System (BLIS), there’s Collision Warning with Auto Brake (CWAB), which warns and automatically brakes if the car risks hitting another vehicle from behind.

Then there’s Driver Alert Control (DAC), which detects and alerts tired and distracted drivers and Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) with Queue Assist, a radar-based adaptive cruise control system which automatically maintains a set gap to the vehicle in front. It’s operable up to 200 kph with repeated speeding up or slowing down, including speeds below 30 kph.

The T6 gets an additional feature, Lane Departure Warning, which alerts the driver if the car runs across the lane markers without the turn indicator being used. As for wheels, the T5 comes with five-spoke 17-inch Balder design alloys, while the T6 wears 18-inch Sleipner seven-spoke ones.

Inside the new S60, you’ll find a new infotainment system called the Volvo Sensus, which allows the driver to get up close and personal with high-tech features without having to read the owner’s manual (always a welcome thing, no?). Sensus presents information from the audio unit, navigation system and other functions on a 7-inch colour screen installed high in the centre console and is accessible via steering-wheel controls.

The T6 also boasts a Premium Sound system, replete with a class-D digital 5 x 130 watt amplifier, Dolby Digital (in combination with Dolby Pro Logic II Surround), the award-winning MultEQ from Audyssey Laboratories and 12 loudspeakers.

A whole palette of exterior colours (15 in all, based on the listing) as well as seven leather interior combinations are available for the S60 T5 and T6, with two brand new shades, Vibrant Copper and Flamenco Red, in the mix. The T6 is priced at RM348,000 while the T5 sells for RM288,000 (both prices on-the-road, without insurance).

For more information, visit the Volvo Car Malaysia website.

Live gallery of launch pix after the jump.

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