VOLVO is vying for the hearts and souls of BMW M3 and Audi S4 buyers with its V70R hot-rod, an unlikely concoction of Swedish industrial design and industrial sledgehammer performance. It’s also value-packed and practical to boot, but the guys and girls from Gothenburg have a hurdle or two to handle before the Germans start running scared. That said, this insane Volvo remains worthy of further investigation, especially if versatility as well as velocity is vital.

Volvo 850 T5
Released: October 1995
Ended: January 1997
Family Tree: V70THE V70R's most direct ancestor is the 850 T5 wagon sold here from October 1995. Packing 166kW/300Nm from its turbocharged 2.3-litre five-cylinder, the front-drive 850 T5 was available in five-speed manual and four-speed auto trim for around $74,950. Later 850 wagons received a facelift, Volvo's new naming convention and even more performance - witness the V70R models that packed 176kW (1997), 184kW (1998) and then 195kW (1999) - but none were as hot as the V70R tested here, the first real performance variant of the new V70 range that appeared here in 2000.
Facebook Twitter Instagram