DETROIT — Volvo has released the first official exterior images of its S60 Concept ahead of its debut at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show. The concept is a precursor of the next-generation S60 sedan that will go on sale in spring 2010. Volvo says it was created in part as an homage to the Land of the Midnight Sun, inspired by such cultural touchstones as Swedish crystal and Viking longboats.
The exterior design looks considerably more fluid and dynamic than that of the current car, which has been on the market for more than eight years without a major overhaul. The four-passenger concept rides on 20-inch wheels and low-profile tires and is painted Warm Liquid Copper.
One of the concept's unique features is the design of the rear parallelogram doors. At the touch of a button, they swing out and away from the body, then slide rearward, parallel with the body.
Volvo points out that in each of the headlamps, the LED lights create a silhouette of two miniature Viking longboats with sails filled.
Inside the car, the floating center stack is hand-crafted from solid Orrefors crystal, while the speedometer has been designed as a three-dimensional glass spiral. The "floating" seats are made of light-blond leather with contrasting stitching, while the doors are trimmed in blond birch wood.
Other features include radar-based adaptive cruise control and full automatic braking.
The S60 Concept is powered by a turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder gasoline direct-injection engine that makes 180 horsepower. Volvo said it plans to introduce the first turbo GDI engine in the second half of 2009.
Inside Line says: Volvo gets kudos for working a lot of its cultural heritage into this concept. — Anita Lienert, Correspondent
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