Story: Jim Gorde
Photography: Volvo Car Corporation
Volvo have just introduced the all-new XC90 in India, and it’s already rewriting their success story in India with almost all of the 300 allocations of the top-spec ‘Inscription’ model already spoken for. That is no surprise considering the XC90 wowed audiences – potential buyers and motoring journalists alike – when it was displayed for the first time. The fact that the limited 1,927 numbers of the ‘First Edition’ were sold out via digital commerce (online!) in a day and a half speaks volumes about the trust the brand has globally as well as the anticipation for the new model. Now that it’s here, even we’ve seen what it brings to the table, and we’ve come away highly impressed as well. The all-new XC90 R-Design has just been launched internationally, and it will be launched in India next year, as will the new XC90 Excellence, a more luxurious 2+2 seater version set to rival the Range Rover, Volvo hope.
The V40 is the first Volvo for the least amount of money you can buy, with the C (Coupé) line, which was basically just the C30 hatchback and C70 convertible, not being offered any more. The V40 Cross Country (XC) is the higher, beefier and more ready-for-anything version, but it’s still no XC40. The S60 Cross Country is the world’s only crossover sedan on sale today, and that, we hear, is next on the cards from Volvo Auto India.
Why the S60 XC? Well, for one, the S60 is a beautiful, stylish, modern and very functional and comfortable car. That’s exterior and interior boxes both ticked. However, with a 136 mm of ground clearance and the wonderfully-consistent speed-humps in India (!) is there any wonder why it makes sense to have a factory-stilt job with adapted dynamics? That’s just what the S60 XC is. With 65 mm of added ground clearance – that’s 201 mm – it’s higher than some crossover SUVs. In D5 spec, it has all-wheel-drive and a six-speed Geartronic automatic. The 2.4-litre straight-five turbo-diesel motor makes 190 PS and 420 Nm of torque. This isn’t the new Drive-E motor, though we expect to see one under the bonnet at the time of launch in India, if it happens next year.
