Here's a quick look at some competition, equipped with 6-cylinder engines and all-wheel drive:

Acura RL, 290 hp, $63,900
Audi A6 3.2 quattro, 255 hp, $59,900
BMW 528xi, 230 hp, $62,500
Infiniti M35x, 275 hp, $52,900
Lexus GS 350 AWD, 303 hp, $61,000
Lincoln MKS AWD (2009), 270 hp, price not yet available
Mercedes-Benz E300 4MATIC, 228 hp, $65,800

The S80 isn't the cheapest of the lot, nor is it the more expensive.

The Volvo S80 is a sedan that claims to be a sports luxury sedan.

Conclusion
The Volvo S80 is a sedan that claims to be a sports luxury sedan, especially with its optional adjustable suspension. Although it does offer some pretty good road manners, we should best consider it as a comfortable open road cruiser.

Comfort, silence, discretion and solidity; those are the qualities that are highlighted by our test of the S80. It's too bad that the costly option packages include gadgets that are more or less useful. A no-options 3.2 AWD suits me fine.

Green light
Build quality
Luxurious cockpit
Competent 6-cylinder engine

Yellow light
Useless BLIS device
Four-C suspension more or less interesting

Red light
Option packages are too expensive




Photo Credit : Olivier Delorme