A Sunday in the Surrey Hills: Volvo XC60 Plug-in Hybrid
Some of the best drives happen when you don't really have a plan. No meeting to get to, no satnav countdown, just decent weather and a rough idea of where you fancy ending up. That was our Sunday with the Volvo XC60 B6 Plug-in Hybrid Plus out through Reigate and into the Surrey Hills with nothing more urgent on the agenda than enjoying the drive.
Our test car came in Vapour Grey, and it's a colour that suits the XC60 down to the ground. There's nothing shouty about this SUV. Where some rivals seem to want to announce themselves the moment they turn a corner, the XC60 does its own thing quietly confident, well proportioned, and unmistakably Scandinavian in the way it carries itself.
That character holds up once you're off the motorway and onto the kind of roads Surrey does so well, narrow, twisting, and constantly changing character. This is where the plug-in hybrid setup earns its keep. Pull away on electric power and the cabin goes almost silent; ask for more and the petrol engine joins in without any drama. It's the sort of powertrain you stop thinking about after the first few miles, which is exactly the point.
Honestly, the thing that stuck with me most wasn't a spec or a figure, it was how unhurried the whole day felt. Life has a way of turning even a free Sunday into something with an itinerary. The XC60 doesn't really let you do that. Good seats, a hushed cabin and a ride that irons out the rough stuff all nudge you towards taking your time rather than chasing the next junction. Reigate gave us a proper mix to test that on, busy high street one minute, empty lanes the next and the Volvo shrugged off both with the same easy composure. Tight streets didn't feel like a chore, open countryside didn't feel wasted, and the elevated driving position gave a clear view over hedgerows without ever feeling like you were piloting something oversized.
The interior does a similar job of staying out of its own way. Volvo has largely resisted the urge to fill the dashboard with buttons or graphics competing for your attention, and the result is a cabin that feels calm rather than cluttered. Materials are good throughout, everything sits roughly where your hand expects it, and there's little to distract you from the road or, on this particular drive, the scenery.
There was plenty of that scenery to go around. The Surrey Hills were doing exactly what they do best in the sunshine: green, rolling, dotted with the kind of villages that look like they were built for exactly this sort of afternoon. By the time we had finished our dog walk and got back to Dormansland, the XC60 felt entirely in its element and it's easy to imagine it being just as at home pulling up outside a country hotel, a client's office, or your own driveway after a weekend away.
That range of ability is really what the XC60 is about. Ask a premium SUV to do one job well and plenty of cars can manage it. Ask it to be genuinely practical during the week, relaxed on a long run, and a bit special when it needs to be, and the list gets much shorter. The XC60 ticks all three boxes without seeming to try particularly hard, backed up by generous space and the kind of build quality that reminds you why Volvo's reputation in this class is so well earned. As the sun started dropping over the countryside on the way home, it felt like a fitting way to close out the day, helped in no small part by a car that clearly knows exactly who it's for. The XC60 B6 Plug-in Hybrid Plus was never going to be the boldest or loudest SUV in its segment, and it doesn't seem to want to be. What it offers instead is comfort, efficiency and quiet quality in a package that just works, day to day and mile to mile.
Sometimes the best kind of luxury isn't about making an entrance, it's about making every mile a little better than the last.