By Paul Whiston, June 27, 2025
Lo, in the twilight of the Second Age of the Motor Road, when wagons of steel bore families across wide lands and through shadowed cities, there rose a new steed of renown from the forges of Volvo: the XC60. From its first dawning in the year of 2008, this noble carriage strode forth with grace and strength, swiftly finding favour among the folk of many realms. It was crafted with care and clad in the virtues of safety, comfort, and quiet majesty — virtues treasured by all who travel far and often.
Surpassing even the ancient glory of the Volvo 240 — that stalwart chariot of yesteryear, beloved in many hearths and homes — the Volvo XC60 has now become the mightiest of Volvo’s creations, with more than 2.7 million of its kin roaming the world’s roads. From the white snows of the North to the great cities of the East, it has been built and borne across continents.
As the Third Age unfolded, the XC60 was granted new gifts: a heart of electric fire, known to wise-folk as the plug-in hybrid, and an honour — World Car of the Year, bestowed in the year 2018. And now, with the turning of the wheel to the year 2026, it emerges again, renewed.
The folk who once journeyed in the 240 now ride in the XC60, and where once they were children gazing out rain-flecked windows, now they are parents guiding the next generation through the wild and the winding.
The blood of heroes runs through both steeds. The 240, in its day, was a shield against ruin: with crumple zones like armour, and side-protection that gave birth to the runes of SIPS. In 1978, it brought forth the Child Booster Cushion, a boon for the young and small.
The XC60 continues that legacy with magic of its own: the enchantment of City Safety, the first spell of its kind to stop danger before it strikes. And in the year 2017, it cast a mighty ward known as Oncoming Lane Mitigation, drawing wandering wheels back to their rightful path.
Thus the tale of the XC60 is not only one of numbers and praise, but of lineage and purpose — a tale of guardianship, of memory, and of trust. As the 240 once stood as sentinel for the families of old, so now does the XC60 journey forth — a beacon of safety in a world ever turning.