It should come as no surprise that this may be the longest section of the review of the 2011 S60. Volvo doesn't skimp a bit on safety, which is something any parent can appreciate.

Standard safety equipment includes four-wheel-disc antilock brakes with brake assist, an electronic stability system, traction control, active head restraints and six airbags, including side curtains for both rows. Volvo's City Safety system also comes standard. It puts the brakes on for you in slow-speed traffic situations when a collision is eminent. That doesn't mean you shouldn't brake; it just means that if you're not paying attention in bumper-to-bumper traffic and the car in front of you suddenly brakes, the S60 will apply the brakes if you haven't done so. Standard! That's amazing.

If you want to amp up the already beefy safety components, you can add the Technology Package ($2,100). This includes Volvo's Collision Warning with Full Auto Brake, which can prevent a collision with a car or person at speeds under 22 mph; adaptive cruise control and a lane departure warning system. A backup camera is part of the Multimedia Package ($2,700), which includes a navigation system, and front and rear parking sensors are optional and cost $500.

Child-safety seats fit pretty well in the S60, but there's a bit of seat bolstering that can make installing the car seats a little tricky. With the driver's seat set at my preferred position, it was a tight fit for the rear-facing infant-safety seat in the second row. If you're shorter, it may not be a problem.

The two sets of lower Latch anchors are easy to get to, and the three tether anchors also are easy to access because the head restraints collapse downward.