Volvo's replacement for the current S80 will look to rival top-end models from BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Jaguar when it is launched later this yearThe new Volvo S90 - the replacement for the S80 - will draw heavily on the technology and style of the recently revealed second-generation XC90 as it bids to draw buyers away from the Audi A6, BMW 5-series and Jaguar XF, according to the firm’s vice-president of product strategy, Lex Kerssemakers.
The S90 is expected to be launched later this year and take some design cues from the Volvo Concept Universe of 2011. An estate version, named Volvo V90, will follow shortly afterwards.
“We have to learn the lessons from the XC90,” said Kerssemakers, speaking at the Detroit motor show. “The incredible reaction we’ve had to that car, with 6000 people placing orders before they’ve even sat in it, shows that we are on the right track. We see design as a key ingredient, of course, but also the interior treatment, the in-car technology and the option of an electrified powertrain.”
The Volvo S90 and V90 are expected to be offered with the same choice of powertrains as the XC90, with the UK market focusing on the 394bhp T8 ‘Twin Engine’ plug-in hybrid and the D4 and D5 diesel engines.
Kerssemakers admitted that the large saloon market was contracting, but said the market was still too big and too important for a car company’s image among buyers to ignore. “The opportunities are getting smaller, but the market is still big enough to give us a strong business case,” he said.
“Demand in China and the US remains strong, and we believe we have a package of assets from the powertrain to the interior to the design that means we have no excuses not to fight with the very best for sales in the sector.”
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