Category: Executive 
Price Range: £22,245 to £36,745
Good fuel economy, low emissions, punchy performance, comfortable seats.
Fidgety ride, not as good to drive as competition, frustrating electric handbrake.
The best S80 in the range still lags behind the competition.
The smallest diesel Volvo returns a fine 49.6mpg while emitting 151g/km of carbon dioxide. This means it slips into VED band D and those running the S80 for business are liable for the 21% tax contribution. In isolation, not a bad result, but compare it to the BMW and it is well and truly beaten.
Manual and automatic versions of the 2.0-litre 5-Series have lower fuel economy and emissions than the S80: the manual 520d averages 55.4mpg and emits 136g/km of CO2, putting it into the 18% business tax bracket. Even when you take into account the BMW's £3,205 price difference, business users in a 5-Series pay less company car tax per month than they would if they were in the S80.
