Compare the2023 GMC AcadiaVS 2023 Volvo XC60

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front shoulder belts of the GMC Acadia are height-adjustable, and the middle seat shoulder belts have child comfort guides to move the belt to properly fit children. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages children to buckle up. The Volvo XC60 has only front height-adjustable seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Acadia are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The XC60 doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Acadia has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The XC60 doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

Both the Acadia and the XC60 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the GMC Acadia is safer than the Volvo XC60:

	Acadia	XC60
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	21%	22%
Neck Stress	191 lbs.	198 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	129/383 lbs.	489/470 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH, results indicate that the GMC Acadia is safer than the Volvo XC60:

	Acadia	XC60
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	799 lbs.	906 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Warranty

GMC’s powertrain warranty covers the Acadia 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Volvo covers the XC60. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the XC60 ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are almost 6 times as many GMC dealers as there are Volvo dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Acadia’s warranty.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Acadia third among upper midsize suvs in their 2022 Initial Quality Study. The XC60 isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that GMC vehicles are better in initial quality than Volvo vehicles. J.D. Power ranks GMC above average in initial quality. With 94 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volvo is rated below average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that GMC vehicles are more reliable than Volvo With 64 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks GMC higher than Volvo.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Acadia 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder AWD gets better fuel mileage than the XC60 B6 running its gasoline engine (22 city/27 hwy vs. 21 city/27 hwy).

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the Acadia’s fuel efficiency. The XC60 doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

Both the Acadia and the XC60 have a standard automatic start/stop engine feature to stop unnecessary fuel waste and pollution at stoplights and heavy traffic. All Acadia’s have a standard disable switch for the system, so a driver can keep the engine from shutting off when the vehicle stops temporarily. The XC60 T8 doesn’t offer a way to disable start/stop.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the GMC Acadia uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended with the 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder engine for maximum performance). The XC60 requires premium, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

The Acadia AWD’s standard fuel tank has 2.9 gallons more fuel capacity than the XC60 (21.7 vs. 18.8 gallons).

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the GMC Acadia higher (6 to 7 out of 10) than the Volvo XC60 (5 to 7). This means the Acadia produces up to 8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the XC60 every 15,000 miles.

Transmission

A nine-speed automatic is standard on the GMC Acadia, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only an eight-speed automatic is available for the XC60.

Brakes and Stopping

The Acadia stops shorter than the XC60:

	Acadia	XC60
60 to 0 MPH	126 feet	131 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

The GMC Acadia’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Volvo XC60 only has 5 wheel lugs per wheel.

The Acadia has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The XC60 doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

Suspension and Handling

The front and rear suspension of the Acadia uses coil springs for better ride, handling and control than the XC60, which uses transverse leafs springs in the rear. Coil springs compress more progressively and offer more suspension travel for a smoother ride with less bottoming out.

The Acadia SLT AWD handles at .82 G’s, while the XC60 Recharge Core pulls only .80 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Acadia SLT AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the XC60 B5 Core AWD (26.9 seconds @ .67 average G’s vs. 27.3 seconds @ .62 average G’s).

Chassis

The front grille of the Acadia FWD 4 cyl. uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The XC60 doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Acadia uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The XC60 doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

Passenger Space

The Acadia offers optional seating for 7 passengers; the XC60 can only carry 5.

The Acadia has 40.8 cubic feet more passenger volume than the XC60 (143.8 vs. 103).

The Acadia has 2 inches more front headroom, 1.2 inches more front shoulder room, 1.6 inches more rear headroom, 1.7 inches more rear legroom and 2.4 inches more rear shoulder room than the XC60.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Acadia’s middle row seats recline. The XC60’s rear seats don’t recline.

Cargo Capacity

The Acadia’s cargo area provides more volume than the XC60.

	Acadia	XC60
Third Seat Folded	41.7 cubic feet	n/a
Third Seat Removed	n/a	24.4 cubic feet
Second Seat Folded	79 cubic feet	63.3 cubic feet

The Acadia’s cargo area is larger than the XC60’s in every dimension:

	Acadia	XC60
Length to seat (3rd/2nd/1st)	18.5”/48”/83”	n.a./37.8”/68.7”
Max Width	50”	43.5”
Min Width	42.5”	39.8”
Height	33”	30.6”

Pulling a handle automatically lowers the Acadia’s second row seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The XC60 doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

Towing

Maximum trailer towing in the Volvo XC60 is limited to 3500 pounds. The Acadia offers up to a 4000 lbs. towing capacity.

Ergonomics

The Acadia (except SLE)’s optional easy entry system glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The XC60 doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Acadia’s available exterior PIN entry system. The XC60 doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its Volvo On Call can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Acadia has standard extendable sun visors. The XC60 doesn’t offer extendable visors.

The Acadia offers an optional 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The XC60 doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

Economic Advantages

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Acadia is less expensive to operate than the XC60 because typical repairs cost much less on the Acadia than the XC60, including $22 less for a water pump, $4 less for front brake pads, $231 less for a starter, $155 less for fuel injection, $361 less for a fuel pump and $96 less for front struts.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends the GMC Acadia, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Volvo XC60 isn't recommended.

The GMC Acadia outsold the Volvo XC60 by 47% during 2022.