SINGAPORE — This is weird, like finding out that Usain Bolt only eats carrot sticks.

The Volvo X60 T5 has 245bhp to give it a sprinter’s legs, but it uses so little fuel that it qualifies for a $5,000 CEVS rebate, the same as, say, a Toyota Vios.

This is a hefty, 1,776kg crossover, mind you, not a Japanese econo-sedan.

A new engine and gearbox are what allows the Volvo to pull off this witchery, at least on paper.

Instead of a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo, this T5 model now has… a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo.

Only this time there’s more power (245bhp, up from 240bhp) and peak torque is now 350Nm (up from 320Nm). It’s all sent to the front wheels through an eight-speed auto.

The torque arrives early and stays late too, making the Volvo properly quick. With the old engine the XC60 T5 made it to 100km/h in 8.1 seconds, but this new version halts the stopwatch at 7.2 seconds.

For comparison, the BMW X3 xDrive20i needs 8.6 seconds.

                               MORE: Want something even more frugal? Try this diesel X3

Yet, for all the speed it musters, the XC60 never feels overtly sporty. It’s probably a bit too heavy to move with real agility, and it isn’t playful about darting through corners.

If anything, the Volvo is business-like about it all, and the handling always feels reassuringly predictable and safe.

Now and then if you really put your foot down hard, the front tyres chirp and scrabble for traction momentarily, but otherwise there’s a surprising amount of traction from them.

                        MORE: Got a bigger budget? This could be the sportiest SUV in its class

Our car came with the optional 20-inch wheels but though the bigger wheels look seriously tasty I’d probably skip them myself.

They add an unnecessary bit of jiggle to the Volvo’s ride quality, and even if the lower profile tyres add a bit of steering crispness, the XC60’s steering is needlessly heavy to begin with.

Anyway, the XC60 is much more a family machine than a sporting one. It offers loads of room inside; though the glass area is small enough to make the cabin seem more cramped than it is, there’s plenty of headroom and three grown people fit nicely into the back.

At 490 litres in size the boot is usefully large, and you can always drop the rear seatbacks (with one hand) to bring load capacity up to 1,450 litres.

The cabin and door pockets offer plenty of storage too, allowing you to stash the clutter of family life out of sight.

There’s a new connectivity system called Sensus Connect that gifts the Volvo with voice control, along with the ability to tether with your phone to get connected with the web.

This lets you surf the ’net on the Volvo’s 8-inch screen (and only up to 7km/h), but I can’t see anything more than novelty value in this feature.

Far more interesting is the internet radio function it enables, which let me listen to comedy on BBC 4 for an evening. Came in handy, that, because I spent long hours behind the wheel trying to validate the XC60’s fuel-sipping claims.

And after a weekend of aimless driving, the fuel light came on at 796.4km. At that rate you’ll top up the 70-litre tank only once every other week, assuming you typically cover the Singapore average of 50km a day.

That’s seriously impressive for something this big and powerful.

Yet, the trip computer said we averaged 12.2km/litre at the end of it all, which was pretty short of the stated claim of 14.9km/L (or 6.7 L/100km).

I can think of a couple of reasons the XC60 didn’t live up to its promise (apart from a few visits to the redline).

The big wheels probably don’t help, assuming they add weight and momentum to the driveline (yet another reason to save yourself the $10,600 they cost).

                                     MORE: See what the old T5 engine had to offer

There’s a new Eco+ mode that tames the engine’s throttle response and gets the gearbox to shift up early, but you’ll never use it because it also defeats the air-con’s mission to keep your underarms free of sweat.

But more to the point, while the transmission has eight speeds, it doesn’t select top gear unless you bust the speed limit a bit.

Regardless, the new twincharged engine does offer uncommon frugality, and the recent facelift (new grille, new lights and no more black plastic trum running around the perimeter of the body) has kept the Volvo a handsome looking car.

So you’re left with a practical, good-looking package with loads of performance and enough disdain for fuel to save you five grand on taxes even if you don’t see the claimed numbers in the real world.

Does it matter to you? I suspect not. What’s it to you if Usain chows down on the odd steak here and there?

NEED TO KNOW
Engine 1,969cc, 16V, turbo in-line 4
Power 245bhp at 5,500rpm
Torque 350Nm at 1,500-4,800rpm
Gearbox 8-speed auto
Top Speed 210km/h
0-100km/h 7.2 seconds
Fuel efficiency 6.7L/100km
CO2 157g/km
Price $214,999 with COE
Availability Now

Also Consider: Audi Q5 2.0 TFSI, BMW X3 xDrive20i

An earlier version of this article stated that the XC60’s T5 engine has both a supercharger and a turbocharger. Wearnes Automotive has since clarified that the engine is only turbocharged.