2007 Volvo XC60 Concept

Volvo has come a long way from the company that produced safe, stodgy and square sedans for the better part of its life before Ford purchased the manufacturer and expanded their product line. In their current incarnation, Volvo offers a wide range of vehicles, from small entry-level cars and wagons all the way up to large SUV crossovers. With the release of the BMW X3, Volvo decided to respond with a mid-size crossover of their own. The end product is the 2007 Volvo XC60 Concept, which debuted at the Detroit Auto Show in January.

The Volvo S60 resembles a less brutal version of the full-size XC90 crossover. A friendlier front fascia has large air vents and a wide grille split by the Volvo logo bar. Projector headlamps are slanted into the front fenders. A front skid plate is barely visible under the bumper, and a matching rear skid plate indicates that at least one engineer at Volvo is optimistic about owners taking the crossover out for a bit of off-roading. 20-inch wheels and a lifted body help provide the needed ground clearance for this type of adventure, and the XC60 is also outfitted with all-wheel drive. Out back, the cargo area offers 3 different methods of access: the standard full tailgate lift, a partial opening of just the upper tailgate glass, or a unique system that pushes the lower part of the tailgate out and then lifts it up in the air, allowing access to cargo positioned low on the floor. While this is a novel device, and is fun to watch in action, it doesn’t seem necessary or even practical, and feels like just one more item to wear out and break at the worst possible time.

The interior of the Volvo is designed with luxury in mind. A ‘floating’ center console is fit snugly into the driver’s side of the cockpit. This console includes the engine Start/Stop button as well as climate controls and gear selector, which is in the form of a slider. The climate control knobs sink back into the console until they are flush with the panel when the vehicle is not running, and the entire control surface is a single sheet of plastic divided into illuminated touch buttons. While this looks quite stylish in a concept vehicle, it is not exactly the most practical method on the street, where bright sunshine would render the entire panel almost unreadable, and a lack of tactile feedback could have drivers wondering if they actually pushed the ‘button’ hard enough. The entire interior is bathed in glaring white with black accents. The seats are leather with a strange center cutout that extends narrowly from the top of the headrest to the middle of the seatback. Volvo refers to this as the ‘ponytail slot’, and claim that it improves ventilation and rearward visibility.

Volvo has not made a lot known regarding the engine options to be offered with the XC60 Concept, but it is based on the same platform as the Land Rover LR2. The LR2 uses a variety of 4 cylinder and 6 cylinder gas and diesel engines, so it would appear that the most likely scenario is for the XC60 to offer the gas variants of these motors. One of the most intriguing aspects of the XC60 doesn’t relate to its engine, but rather its brakes. Volvo has designed something it calls the ‘City Safety’ system. Active at all speeds belong 30 kilometers per hour, City Safety is designed to reduce the speed of a vehicle prior to a collision by pre-charging the brakes in dangerous situations. In fact, if the system detects that a collision is imminent below 18 kilometers per hour, it will take over and automatically brake the car to a standstill. A perfect solution for those constantly distracted by cell phones and MP3 players.







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May 18, 2008, 6:09 am