Come MY2016 and the entire portfolio from Volvo will switch to Drive-E four-cylinder engines, signalling the end of their five-and six-pot motors.
Volvo’s commitment to cleaner and more sustainable mobility takes another step forward with the company announcing that as of model year 2016, all their production passenger cars will have only Drive-E engines. The move will see the company equipping the 1,969cc four-cylinder motors, in both petrol and diesel guise, with either a turbocharger, twin turbochargers or a combination of supercharger and turbocharger for maximum performance and efficiency. The new Aisin eight-speed torque converter automatic transmission will also feature as standard, with or without Haldex’s latest generation all-wheel-drive coupling.
The first of the lot to arrive was the new D4 Drive-E diesel, with either 181 or 190 PS and 400 Nm of torque, using i-ART direct injection for better combustion and cleaner emissions. The new XC90 will debut the twin-turbo diesel D5, which makes 225 PS and 470 Nm. The turbo-six replacing T6 motor now uses a supercharger and turbocharger to deliver 306 or 320 PS and 400 Nm of torque. There are a host of new motors which comprise the range, and which will probably come to India over time as the market expands.
| D2 | The new base diesel. Currently a 1.6-litre four-cylinder motor with 115 PS and 270 Nm. Expected to be replaced by a 1.5-litre three-cylinder motor with equal output. |
| D3 | Turbo-diesel Drive-E with 136 or 150 PS and 350 Nm. |
| D4 | Turbo-diesel Drive-E with 181 or 190 PS and 400 Nm. Available with AWD. |
| D5 | Twin-turbo diesel Drive-E with 225 PS and 470 Nm. Available with AWD. |
| D6 | Twin-turbo diesel with 215 PS and 440 Nm, available in plug-hybrid models. Expected to be replaced with the new D4 Drive-E motor. |
| T3 | 1.6-litre turbocharged, direct injection petrol with 150 PS and 240 Nm. |
| T4 | 1.6-litre turbocharged, direct injection petrol with 180 PS and 240 Nm. |
| T5 | 2.0-litre turbocharged, direct injection petrol with 245 PS and 350 Nm. |
| T6 | 2.0-litre supercharged and turbocharged, direct injection petrol with 306 or 320 PS and 400 Nm. Available with AWD. |
| T8 | 2.0-litre supercharged and turbocharged, direct injection petrol with 318 PS and 400 Nm, available in Twin Engine plug-in hybrid models with electric AWD. |
Volvo Car Corporation also announced plans to invest $500 million (Rs 3,100 crore) in a new plant in the US. At present a majority of Volvo’s cars come from Torslanda in Sweden and Ghent in Belgium, with engines coming out mainly from Skovde, in their home city of Gothenburg, Sweden. The company also has begun rolling out the XC60 from the Chengdu plant in China, with another at Daqing set to roll out models based on the Scalable Product Architecture (SPA) platform. On a global scale, the company saw record sales in 2014, with a jump in operating profit showing an encouraging way forward.
Volvo will soon introduce the new V40 luxury hatchback, as well as a petrol-powered V40 Cross Country. The S60 luxury sedan will also regain the T6 variant, with the new Drive-E motor of course. The XC90 will be launched later in September this year.
Story: Jim Gorde
