Compare the2025 Volvo XC60VS 2024 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Towing
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Volvo XC60 have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The XC60’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the XC60 and Atlas Cross Sport have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The XC60 Plus/Ultra/Polestar has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Atlas Cross Sport’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The Volvo XC60 offers optional built in child booster seats. They’re more crash worthy than an added child seat because of their direct attachment to the seat. Volkswagen doesn’t offer the convenience and security of a built-in child booster seat in the Atlas Cross Sport. Their owners must carry a heavy booster seat in and out of the vehicle; XC60 owners can just fold their built-in child seat up or down.

The Volvo XC60 has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer knee airbags.

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the XC60 deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The XC60’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The Atlas Cross Sport’s side airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

The XC60 has a standard Whiplash Protection System (WHIPS), which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the WHIPS allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. At the same time the pretensioning seatbelts fire, removing slack from the belts. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the XC60. But it costs extra on the Atlas Cross Sport.

The XC60’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the XC60 and the Atlas Cross Sport have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and available 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 Volvo XC60 is safer than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport:

	XC60	Atlas Cross Sport
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	125	307
Neck Injury Risk	22%	30%
Neck Stress	198 lbs.	412 lbs.
Neck Compression	15 lbs.	59 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	178	277
Chest Compression	.5 inches	.7 inches
Neck Injury Risk	28%	39%
Neck Compression	55 lbs.	117 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 and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Volvo XC60 is safer than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport:

	XC60	Atlas Cross Sport
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	190 lbs.	215 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	185	208
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	12 inches	13 inches
HIC	237	309
Spine Acceleration	29 G’s	41 G’s
Hip Force	410 lbs.	594 lbs.

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

Warranty

The XC60’s corrosion warranty is 5 years and unlimited miles longer than the Atlas Cross Sport’s (12/unlimited vs. 7/100,000).

Volvo pays for scheduled maintenance on the XC60 for 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Volkswagen pays for maintenance for the Atlas Cross Sport (3/30,000 vs. 2/20,000).

Reliability

The battery on the XC60 is in the trunk, which protects it from hot underhood temperatures that can degrade battery life. By keeping the XC60’s battery 20 to 30 degrees cooler, its life is increased by years. The Atlas Cross Sport’s battery is in the hot engine compartment.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Volvo vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen With 22 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Volvo higher than Volkswagen.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Volvo vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Volvo 2 places higher in reliability than Volkswagen.

Engine

The XC60 T8’s standard 2.0 turbo/supercharged 4-cylinder hybrid produces 186 more horsepower (455 vs. 269) and 250 lbs.-ft. more torque (523 vs. 273) than the Atlas Cross Sport’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the XC60 B5 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport:

	XC60	Atlas Cross Sport
Zero to 60 MPH	6.2 sec	7.7 sec
Quarter Mile	14.7 sec	15.9 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	91.5 MPH	90 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the XC60 running on electricity gets better mileage than the Atlas Cross Sport:

			MPGe
XC60
	AWD	T8 Electric Motor	66 city/60 hwy
Atlas Cross Sport
			MPG
	FWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	20 city/27 hwy
	AWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	19 city/26 hwy

On the EPA test cycle the XC60 running its gasoline engine gets better mileage than the Atlas Cross Sport:

			MPG
XC60
	AWD	2.0 turbo/supercharged 4-cyl. Hybrid	28 city/28 hwy
		2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	23 city/30 hwy
Atlas Cross Sport
	FWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	20 city/27 hwy
	AWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	19 city/26 hwy

The XC60 T8 Extended Range can travel with zero emissions for 35 miles. The Atlas Cross Sport can’t move without running its internal combustion engine.

Regenerative brakes improve the XC60’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

The XC60 has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the XC60’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Atlas Cross Sport:

	XC60	XC60 T8 Polestar Engineered	Atlas Cross Sport
Front Rotors	13.6 inches	15.7 inches	13.2 inches
Rear Rotors	12.6 inches	12.6 inches	12.2 inches

Tires and Wheels

The XC60’s optional tires provide better handling because they have a lower 35 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Atlas Cross Sport SEL Premium R-Line’s 45 series tires.

Suspension and Handling

The XC60 has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The Atlas Cross Sport’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

The XC60 offers an available driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The Atlas Cross Sport’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The XC60 Ultimate has a standard automatic front and rear load leveling suspension to keep ride height level with a heavy load or when towing. The XC60’s height leveling suspension allows the driver to raise ride height for better off-road clearance and then lower it again for easier entering and exiting and better on-road handling. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a load leveling suspension.

The XC60 B5 Core handles at .87 G’s, while the Atlas Cross Sport 4Motion pulls only .78 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The XC60 B5 Core executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.2 seconds quicker than the Atlas Cross Sport 4Motion (26.6 seconds @ .64 average G’s vs. 27.8 seconds @ .61 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the XC60’s turning circle is 2.6 feet tighter than the Atlas Cross Sport’s (37.4 feet vs. 40 feet).

For greater off-road capability the XC60 has a 2.2 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Atlas Cross Sport (8.5 vs. 6.3 inches), allowing the XC60 to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

Chassis

The XC60 is 10.1 inches shorter than the Atlas Cross Sport 4Motion, making the XC60 easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The design of the Volvo XC60 amounts to more than styling. The XC60 has an aerodynamic coefficient of drag of .32 Cd. That is lower than the Atlas Cross Sport (.34 to .36) and many sports cars. A more efficient exterior helps keep the interior quieter and helps the XC60 get better fuel mileage.

Towing

The XC60’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Atlas Cross Sport’s (3500 vs. 2000 pounds).

Ergonomics

Unlike the driver-only memory system in the Atlas Cross Sport SEL, the XC60 Ultra/Polestar has a passenger memory, so that when drivers switch, the memory setting adjusts the driver’s seat and outside mirror angle and the front passenger seat also adjusts to the new passenger’s preset preferences.

The XC60 Ultra/Polestar has a standard heads-up display that projects speed, warning and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the XC60 has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the Atlas Cross Sport only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

Consumer Reports rated the XC60’s headlight performance “Very Good,” a higher rating than the Atlas Cross Sport’s headlights, which were rated “Good.”

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The XC60 offers available headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer headlight washers.

The XC60’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Atlas Cross Sport has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The Volvo XC60 has power folding mirrors that offer unparalleled convenience while maneuvering in tight places or parked. With the mirrors folded it’s easier to walk past and help prevent parking damage. The mirrors can be quickly unfolded when the driver is ready to leave. Power folding mirrors are only offered on the Atlas Cross Sport SEL Premium R-Line.

The XC60 Ultra offers optional massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Atlas Cross Sport.

Recommendations

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the XC60 as the 2018 North American Utility Vehicle of the Year. The Atlas Cross Sport has never been chosen.

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