It's just not on to say that Volvo's big car trinity - S60, V70 and XC70 - have had a facelift. Steve Harper, Volvo's platform chief designer, put us right as the three were doing the catwalk: "Facelifts are only skin deep - ask Joan Collins. We've done a serious and thorough improvement programme, some of it visual and some not." Andrew Hamilton reports
In the latter category is the application of Volvo's Four C active chassis, a technology previously available only on the S80 and advanced R versions.
The ever-caring Swedish maker wants us to enjoy our driving, a notion which might not have held 20 or more years ago. But fun comes with a bit of caring, or is it control? Four C, now second generation, adjusts chassis settings to suit the speed. The faster the car is going, the greater the damping.
With Four C you shouldn't have new big Volvos kneeling at the front, squatting at the rear or rolling sideways during hard braking, sudden acceleration or fast avoidance manoeuvres. Most of us would never expect Volvos to indulge in this kind of theatrical driving anyway. In fact the smaller print of Volvo's press material tells us that second generation Four C is still an option except on the S80 and R where it's standard.
As for the revamping that isn't a facelift, both the S60 and V70 get a new front with a more distinct nose and rounder contours. The S60 gets a black grille while that of the V70 is chrome plated. Meanwhile the grille of the muscular XC70 has larger "egg crate" mesh. On all three, smartening-up is just about noticeable but not in a way that might alienate existing owners.
What isn't noticeable is the improvement to the centre console. An elegant roller shutter conceals an illuminated storage compartment that also includes improved cupholders. New seats have added vertical adjustment, better lumbar support and slimmer head restraints, for better visibility from rear seat.
Along with the improvements - Harper estimates about 700 - Volvo presented two forthcoming technologies, Blind Spot Information System (BLIS) and Water Repellent Glass (WRG). BLIS operates with a digital camera on each door mirror. Not all of us were impressed - the warning is a tiny red light on the appropriate door mirror which a careful driver could easily miss. Maybe WRG is a better idea for visibility-obstructing raindrops but we doubt if either will hugely enhance a big Volvo's appeal. They are options too with likely respective Irish prices of €500 and €750.