Volvo reveals 10 places where X does not mark the spot

click above image for more pics of Volvo's sunken treasure

As Volvo reminds us, three-quarters of the earth's surface is under water, so trying to find its sunken treasure of $50,000 worth of gold doubloons and the keys to a new XC90 SUV is not going to be easy. Autoblog readers are furiously working their way through the challenges and riddles offered by the Hunt, and you can follow their progress for tips and clues or just get up to speed by reading the comments on this post.

Volvo, however, doesn't want people to get too discouraged by the daunting task that lies before them, so it's unveiled 10 places it has not sunk its treasure. Most of the places are humurous, with only a few actually being locales on our planet. Check out the complete list after the jump for a midday chuckle.

Also, we're not sure if they contain any clues, but we located additional pics of the treasure chest in the process of being sunk.

[Source: Volvo]

1. The Dead Sea. We wanted to sink our treasure, not float it.
2. The Red Sea. Volvo's brand colors are blue.
3. The Sea of Love. While we truly admire our treasure hunt participants, this sentiment may be a little strong. Besides, it's a song.
4. The Sea of Tranquility. We wanted to make our hunt accessible to everyone, not just astronauts landing on the moon.
5. The Caspian Sea. It may be the world's mightiest lake, but it's no challenge for our sea-faring pirates. We needed a real high-seas adventure.
6. Off the Shores of Skeleton Island (a.k.a. Treasure Island). Way too obvious - we learned from last year's Hunt that we have to keep our treasure hunters on their toes.
7. Bermuda Triangle. We wanted to make sure our treasure was difficult to find, not impossible.
8. Atlantis. It was a hot favorite, but we couldn't find it.
9. Sea World. We already have enough sharks going after our treasure.
10. Watergate. Enough people went under.