Volvo S80: Now with environmental engine alternative

The Volvo S80 is now being introduced with a really fuel-efficient choice of engine, an economic unit in which environmental characteristic have been given priority without comfort and performance being sacrificed.

In conjunction with the launch of the Volvo S80 in the early summer of 1998, an engine programme was announced consisting of eight different engine alternatives, six petrol engines, one bi-fuel variant and one diesel. Four of these were already available at the time of introduction. At the Paris show, the Volvo S80 2.5D turbodiesel was presented and now it is time for the truly fuel-efficient B5244S4 engine.

With the introduction of the RN series, Volvo's engines have taken not just one but several steps forwards. The RN series is an upgrade of the N series, Volvo Cars modular engine family in aluminium. Extensive changes and improvements have led to even greater fuel efficiency and performance, with an improved cylinder head, substantially reduced inner friction and increasingly sophisticated engine management systems.

The B5244S4 has now joined the five-cylinder aspiration engine programme and is the environmental petrol-driven choice for the Volvo S80. It is a highly efficient engine of 2.4 litres which develops 140 bhp (103 kW) at 5700 rpm with maximum torque of 220 Nm at 300 rpm.

The engine is very responsive and a good match for the car. Smooth, lively and with good low and medium-rev torque, it offers good performance for its size. At the same time, the B5244S4 is very economical. Fuel consumption pursuant to EU Comb (93/116) is only 8.5 litres per 100 km for the manual version. This is a very impressive figure for a car as large as the Volvo S80 and has been achieved by, among other things, the choice of the 4.00:1 final drive ratio.