To drive the XC60 Recharge correctly, you must strategize. Typically, when I review cars, I block out an hour or two for an extended cruise, but Volvos with the T8 eAWD stink at that. If you plunk it into everyday hybrid mode, you drain the battery quickly and rumble home on the gas engine.

Most of my other driving is staccato, one-off trips. I hit the grocery store or pharmacy; I drop my son off at pre-school; I head to my parents’ house for dinner. These are short, two to three-mile trips where I rarely exceed 30 mph, which are inefficient with a combustion engine. But with the XC60 Recharge, you can make those trips in EV mode, return home, put the Volvo back in the charger, and repeat as needed.

In effect, you have to accept that you’ll have to rely on the gas more for longer trips. Still, I averaged out to about 34 mpg overall — substantially more efficient than the XC60 with the T6 gas engine.

Hearing 400 hp and 472 lb-ft of torque primes you to expect an absolute tire-shredder. And the XC60 Recharge can, if you’re so inclined, haul ass off the line. But most of the time, it’s pure Volvo: refined, quiet and competent, but not especially sporty. And like pretty much every Volvo, it’s incredibly safe, earning the coveted IIHS Top Safety Pick+ designation.