Volvo to shake off Ford ties with new platforms, engines

Zach Bowman — Sat, 23 Feb 2013 13:00:00 EST

It would seem Volvo is finally getting around to throwing all of Ford's things out of the apartment. Automotive News reports the Swedish automaker is preparing to unleash a range of new engines as well as a fresh platform designed entirely in house. The powerplants include an all-new four-cylinder engine set to bow before the end of this year before arriving in the US by 2014. Shortly thereafter, the world should get its first glimpse at the next-generation XC60, which will the company's first model to make use of the Volvo scalable platform architecture (SPA). US buyers can expect to see that machine on their roads by early 2015.

The next V70 and S80 will also use the SPA, though those models will carry V90 and S90 designations when they hit dealer floors. But that doesn't mean Volvo has completely weened itself off of Ford technology. The V40 will continue to ride on Ford bones until the model's next chassis can be co-developed between Volvo and Geely.

Meanwhile, Volvo continues to suffer slow sales as a result of Europe's economic crisis. Volvo was forced to cut some 1,100 jobs in the EU last year and January saw sales slide by some 18 percent.

Volvo to shake off Ford ties with new platforms, engines originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 23 Feb 2013 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Volvo planning major lineup changes

Dan Roth — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 10:01:00 EST

Filed under: Sedan, Wagon, Europe, Crossover, Volvo

Automotive News is dishing on Volvo's product lineup plans between now and 2010. The newly released second-generation S80 won't see any major changes, nor will the new 70-series wagons, the C70, or the C30. The S40's going to bid us adieu, as there's price overlap with the S60, and the S60's not much larger than the S40. The C30's going to serve as the entry-level Volvo, while also angling at MINI's territory of cutieified premium small cars. The S60, while handsomely drawn, is becoming long in the tooth. A redesigned S60 will bow in 2010, and it will be smaller than the current model in an effort to differentiate it from the S80, as well as still serve those customers who would have gone for the S40.

While Gothenburg's losing a sedan offering, it'll be adding a CUV in early 2009 when the XC60 hits the streets. With the CUV market currently on fire, a smaller Volvo 'ute to go after X3 shoppers is a shrewd move. The basic hardware's already been piled together as the Land Rover LR2, which we suspect offers a decent preview of the XC60 experience. Basically, what we see happening is the phasing out of the P2 platform that Volvo developed in the '90s for the original S80, and a migration of all vehicles to some flavor of the EUCD platform.

[Source: Automotive News - Sub Req'd]

Volvo planning major lineup changes originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 04 Sep 2007 10:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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