WATCH: The sexiest Volvo you can find in Mzansi

Volvo is more renowned for state-of-the-art safety than sexy styling. But when the Swedish carmaker do decide to go to town, you sit up and take notice.

In 2019 Volvo Car South Africa showcased a bespoke XC90 at the Festival of Motoring which they dubbed the Beast.

This one-of-a-kind SUV was covered in matt black wrap, fitted with black alloys with all-terrain tyres and had a roof rack holding everything from jerry cans to mud tracks. Complementing the black were generous dashes of orange ranging from the brake callipers to the seat belts.

Watch the beauty of the Beast

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Three years later, they unleashed Beast 2.0 at the Festival of Motoring. This time around it was a XC60 T8 R-Design Recharge that got the makeover and The Citizen Motoring finally got to drive towards the end of 2022.

You simply can’t mistake Beast 2.0 for any other Volvo XC60. It features a high-gloss black wrap that is complemented by yellow detailing on the front and rear bumpers, 21-inch black diamond cut alloy wheels with yellow brake callipers, yellow exterior badging and a sleek roof box with bright yellow branding.

On the inside Beast 2.0 has Polestar yellow seatbelts alongside an impressive list of specifications. Features include a Bowers & Wilkins sound system, Head-Up display, a 360-degree camera, massaging front seats and equipment packages for power seats, lighting, lounge and driver assist packs.

Volvo + Polestar = instant grin

But, the really beauty of the Beast, no pun intended, lies in its performance. This plug-in hybrid, which is already the fastest non-electric Volvo SUV with total system outputs of 340 kW of power and 709 Nm of torque, is also equipped with the Polestar Engineered package.

Polestar software gives it faster engine response, more rapid gear shifts, better control during cornering, improved balance in the corners and better launch traction.

To add some bark to the bite, Beast 2.0 features a sports exhaust system from Heico Sportiv. The system made from stainless steel frees up yet more power and comes complete with active flap control which results in very sporty exhaust notes.

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Bystanders weren’t the only ones drooling during this one-of-a-kind XC60’s weeklong stay with us. We were salivating inside the cabin too.

Exhilarating

While the stock standard XC60 T8 offers a very sporty drive, Beast 2.0 is simply exhilarating. You constantly have to remind yourself that with its faster engine response, excellent cornering ability and exhaust notes that you are not driving a German performance SUV with an M in its title.

And while this kind of performance will thrill any petrolhead, it’s still got all the benefits from being a plug-in hybrid which battery and electric can give a green range of up to 81 km.

While it’s an excellent effort from Volvo so showcase all the tricks they have in the bag, it’s a gigantic pity there is only of these beauties on our roads.