Hey all, I have a few hours before my flight back to the east coast, so I thought I'd give my impressions of zipping around in an S80 over the last 4 days.

As part of Hertz's Prestige Collection, and replacing it's earlier P2-based incarnation, the new S80 is a quietly conservative and comfortable choice for those looking for a safe, and uninspired ride.

Hits include:
- Relatively quiet ride
- Excellent supportive seats, with heating
- High Performance Audio System, 160 Watts, 8 speakers, w/Aux in (one of the best 'base model' radios I've heard so far) and 6 CD in-dash changer.
- Relatively well equipped for a base model vehicle
- Good handling for a front-wheel-drive, full-size vehile
- Safety all around - curtain airbags, ABS and Stability Control

Misses relevant to a rental car:
- No torque when merging, entering or passing
- Transmission still slow to downshift
- Sirius subscription was NOT activated!

Misses relevant to the car in general:
- No engine temperature guage
- Shift knob sounds hollow and feels flimsy and looks like it MIGHT be out of the (new) Taurus parts bin.
- Use of light coloured leathers and fabrics in heavy touch areas (such as door handles, shifter and steering wheel) show dirt and grime very easily.

Other Observations:
- Car has keyless, pushbutton ignition. Brake pedal must be pushed to start the engine.
- Valet trunk lockout is activated by locking the glovebox with the metal key that is part of the keyless fob. You then take the metal key with you.
- Car reviewed was Base Model 3.2 + Climate package (which adds heated front seats, headlamp washing, rainsensor wipers, heated windshield washer nozzles)

Around the hills of San Francisco the S80 does fairly well, with a quietly compliant suspension (though the compromise is an occasionally floaty ride across dips and valleys). Highway merging can be harrowing and scary as the 3.2 litre V6 struggles to find torque - my V70 with a 2.5 litre Turbo does much better. I did try a fill with premium fuel, but this only helped marginally.

Inside, the new S80 is a model of the progressive interior design that Volvo is unveiling in all of it's new models. Climate control is standard, as are three levels of seat heating. Other unique features include cruise control which displays the exact speed it is set to, and touch to pass turn signals, with mirror mounted indicators.

In short, it's a nice car, with that understated elegance which is probably the reason you're renting a Volvo instead of an Mustang in the first place. The new S80 carries on this occasionally favourable stereotype very well. And definitely worth the inlaws exclaiming "Hertz rents Volvos?! Wow!"