Volvo officially unwrapped the new 2011 V60 which will hit dealerships this fall. The new wagon of the Swedish car manufacturer though will not be sold in the US market. According to Volvo, about 90% of the expected production of the new Volvo V60 is intended for their European consumers.
The V60 wagon goes as a companion of its sibling V60 sedan and shares much of its features but adds some styling and function fit for families inclined to get the unit.
Volvo will offer the T series which runs on gasoline and the D series that depends on diesel.
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American carmaker Ford recently confirmed that Volvo and its related assets are going to be sold to Zheijiang Geely. The terms of the sale have been finalized but there are still closing conditions to be met before completing the sale.
Volvo plus most of its intellectual properties were assessed to be at $1.8 billion. Ford will be paid $200 million in the form of a note and the rest of the deal will come in as cash. Ford is still expected to collaborate with Volvo in some areas of the operation to ensure that there will be a smooth transition. The carmaker will also still supply vehicle components, stampings, and powertrains for Volvo as agreed. Volvo will also still have access to the information technology of Ford and its engineering support.
Portions of the intellectual properties which were co-developed with its former parent company can be used by third parties like Geely under sublicenses. Most likely the new owner will make use of the safety technology, forced induction for the engine, and dual clutch system.
How Geely will affect the future lineup of Volvo is still uncertain. For now the brand has just revealed its 2010 XC60 and the facelifted C70 convertible. The new S60 sedan is set to be rolled out before the end of 2010.
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Swedish car manufacturer Volvo recently released the first set of official images of their new Volvo S60 sedan.
The company being sold by Ford Motor promises that the new S60 will be more dynamic and sportier than the older members of the fleet. The production version of the S60 is very similar to the concept car that was unveiled during the Detroit Auto Show last January. The car keeps the stylish lines and aggressive stance of the concept car.
The S60 retains the attractive headlights and fascia of the show car. The new Volvo vehicle will go into production in their factory in Gent, Belgium by summer of 2010. It is expected to wow everyone at the Geneva Auto Show this coming March.
The new sporty member in the Volvo garage was specifically designed to meet head on the luxury sedans in the market like the 3 Series of BMW.
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Volvo Cars, Semcon, ETC, Vattenfall, and the Swedish Energimyndigheten has been sharing expertise and technology to produce hybrid plug-in concept vehicles in the Volvo concept facility.
Completion of three concept vehicles is expected this fall. These prototypes will be used by the companies to gain more knowledge of how consumers will need 
plug-in units in the future. They will look into how people want their cars to feel in terms of performance and functionality. Another important item to address is how people want to charge their rides.
The tie-up formed a six-man team which converted a standard combustion engine vehicle into a hybrid plug-in. The team installed an electric motor and batteries, and tweaked on the car’s configuration to make everything work together.
The collaboration proved to be very cost effective since there are experts from all the fields needed to come up with a viable concept car. The members of the team contributed their own inputs for project management, electronics, engineering, and powertrain.
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Swedish car manufacturer Volvo needs help and is looking at the Belgian government for extra funding. Volvo operates a factory in the region of Flanders in Belgium and Kris Peeters, the Flemish Premier, is discussing with Stephen Odell, 
CEO of Volvo, a possible loan amounting to $418 million.
The talks are expected to be done by this week before the elections in the region. If the loan will push through, experts are assuming restrictions on where the cash can be used. The loan guarantee is aimed at helping specifically the plant in Flanders.
The primary concern of the Flemish government is to preserve the employment of the workers. The business plan presented by Volvo will be studied under this light plus the possibilities of Volvo being acquired by other parties. The Premier will only agree to the loan if he can get long term commitments from Volvo and understand its long term plans.
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As we have read in the previous reports, Ford initially denied Volvo’s sale, however, it has been confirmed that Chinese automaker Geely is Volvo’s official buyer, outbidding the fellow Chinese car companies like the Beijing Auto, Chongqing Changan Automobile Co., and Dongfeng Motor Group, and even the European constellation.
According the Shenzhen News in China, unnamed yet reliable sources inside the Chinese government have leaked that Geely has written and signed the purchase letter for Volvo. Geely and Ford are still going over the final details of the purchase, emphasizing on the turnover of the technology, the brand’s existing marketing strategies and positioning, layoffs, and Geely’s plan to kick off Volvo’s production in a brand new factory in Guangdong Province.
According to the ongoing deal, the first Chinese Volvo’s full design will be designed solely by Geely—the new-generation XC90to come out in 2011. Moreover, Geely will invest almost $10 billion to help build and strength the brand.
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Swedish car manufacturer Volvo, in line with its DRIVe Towards Zero campaign will be launching a hybrid vehicle by 2012. The announcement also puts spotlight to the partnership formed between Volvo and energy firm Vattenfall.
Vattenfall will be helping Volvo in the production of their first plug in vehicle and their line of electric vehicles in the future.
The agreement between the two companies to develop the needed technology have been forged since 2007.
Saab has also joined forces with Volvo and Vattenfall to help in the endeavor. Saab has developed a concept 9-X BioHybrid.
Volvo has on the drawing boards the concept car based on the hatchback C30 for their plug-in hybrid car technology. By mid-2009. Volvo will run a test of their V70 plug in cars cruising on the roads of Europe.
The demo vehicles is aimed at giving Volvo and its partners the feedback that they need from the first hand experience of the people behind the wheels. They want to hear about the comments of consumers with regard to the new car technology so they can adapt to possible driving habits and apply the necessary innovations.
Vattenfall will explore the different means of charging the vehicle at home or through network of public charging stations.
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Volvo is introducing two 2.4-liter, five-cylinder, turbo diesel engines: the twin turbo D5 with 420 Nm of torque and 205 horse power, and the single turbo 2.4D with 420 Nm of torque and 175 horse power.
The higher powered engine has already been launched in the Volvo S80, but both engines will soon be available in Volvo V70, Volvo S80, Volvo XC70 and Volvo XC60 in most markets by spring of this year.
Among the two D5 engines, the twin turbo engine is also more fuel-efficient. The engine allows for a higher level of exhaust gas recirculation compared to other engines. The twin turbo D5 effectively combines high performance with low fuel consumption.
The single turbo 2.4D was also optimized to use up lower levels of fuel. The engine is set to have a different injection system compared to the one D5 nestles. Its fuel efficiency and combustion will depend thoroughly on precise fuel injection sequences.
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At the upcoming Geneva auto show, Volvo cars will be introducing seven latest DRIVe models, in which three of them bear start/stop and regenerative charging systems.
The Volvo DRIVe cars line is categorized into three, according to the three emission levels.
The first category is the 120 g level. The Volvo S40, C30 and V50 1.6d DRIVe will be equipped with the Start/Stop function this spring 2009. The Volvo 1.6D can produce 109 horsepower and a torque of 177 pound-feet. This feature aids in lowering the emissions up to 107 Gco2/km for the S40 and V50 models, and 104 Gco2/km for the Volvo C30.
The next emission level is the 140 g level. Volvo V70 and S80 are now featured with the DRIVe editions. The vehicles are still furnished with 1.6-liter engine configuration and manual gearbox. The optimized engine unit helps a lot on the Volvo’s large scale sedans to trim down fuel consumption and emissions of CO2.
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Ford is looking to sell the Swedish brand Volvo which it acquired in 1999. The tag is at $6 billion which is close to how much Volvo was acquired. Ford is using the expert advice of JPMorgan Chase & Co.
The move is considered by Ford amid the weakening of the auto industry and global economy. The company is looking to boost its finances for operations and aims to partake in the $9 billion aid from the US government.
Volvo was considered the top caliber vehicle for safety last January of 2008. Ford is counting on the confidence of the market on the Volvo brand to attract bidders.
Any heavy discount will be favorable to the buyer but will not be ideal for Ford. The choices may also be among Chinese car producers, business groups arranged by the Swedish government, or by buy out companies.
The Renault group of France has clearly stated that they are not interested in Volvo. Same is true for Korea based Hyundai.
SAIC from China declined to comment but are seen by experts as a potential bidder. Another buyer from the Far East is the Dong Feng Motor Group.
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