Volvo planning long-wheelbase S60L for Chinese market

Regular readers should be plenty familiar with the trend in the Chinese market towards long-wheelbase versions of the luxury sedans we have here. It's just what high-end customers in the decentralizing economy look for. And European automakers have been only too glad to oblige.

BMW, Audi, Porsche and Infiniti have all recently stretched their existing luxury sedans to lure new buyers in the rapidly developing Chinese market, and now word has it that Volvo is following suit with a long-wheelbase version of the S60.

The Chinese-owned Swedish automaker already produces a stretched version of the S80 in China, but has reportedly found little success. The hope is that the S60 – which for all its positive attributes does not have a particularly spacious rear bench – will plug that gap better in long-wheelbase form.