1996 Volvo 850 Turbo Sedan 4-door 2.3l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Volvo XC90 successor EV might have been outed in patent images

Motor1 found a trademark application Volvo filed at the EU Intellectual Property Office on June 13 to reserve the name "EXC90." A month later, the Worldscoop Forum for European car fans posted these images, sourced from the same government agency. We can't be certain the two filings are related, but circumstantial evidence points to this being the full-sized XC90's battery-electric successor that will be called the EXC90. Another circumstantial log for the fire is that Volvo ex-CEO Hakan Samuelsson said the coming family transport would start with a vowel. Based on yet another trademark filing from last year and Samuelsson saying Volvo would "give cars a name as you give a newborn child," we've been looking out for the name Embla. But hey, EXC90 Embla would cover all the bases, and it could differentiate the battery-electric XC90 from the hybrid version we know will continue to sell. Rolling with the possibility, the drawings show a crossover taking clear cues from both the current XC90 and the Volvo Concept Recharge design study from November of last year. The headlight design, sold grille and vertical lower intakes look traced from the Concept Recharge. The hood is much more upright, a la the retail XC90, as are the horizontal roof and full-figured sides. In back, the drawings diverge from the XC90 and the concept. The backlight is more raked than that on the XC90, meaning it's far more angled than the upright hatch on the concept. The C-shaped lights are more like units on Volvo sedans, unconnected to the upright light elements beside the hatch glass in the same way the XC90's and concept's are. Below that, there are no visible exhaust outlets, but the ICE-powered XC90 hides its outlets, too. Not long after posting these exterior shots, Worldscoop posted interior shots as well. These represent designs that differ from every Volvo interior save for the inset where the portrait-oriented infotainment screen goes. The left and right steering wheel spokes feature floating inserts. The instrument panel stretches a single vent across its width, removing the vertical vents next to the infotainment screen, and might be reminiscent of the unit in the Polestar in placing the HVAC controls at the bottom of the touchscreen.

2025 Volvo S60 the last model year for the sedan in the U.S.

Once Volvo finally got the EX90 headed down assembly lines at the automaker's South Carolina plant, the plant's other product, the S60 sedan, was on borrowed time. A few days after the EX90 news, Instagram account volvo.forlife posted a pic with the caption, "Did you know that with the start of production of the @volvocars #VolvoEX90 at the Charleston, South Carolina plant, the production of the #VolvoS60 will also be coming to an end?" The S60 got about three more days of borrowed time, Volvo telling Road & Track that "After five years Volvo Cars is ending production of the S60 sedan in Ridgeville, South Carolina at the end of June 2024 for the U.S. and some other markets to focus on the all-new EX90." We suspect the sedan would have died earlier if EX90 production had commenced on time. The reprieve could have given the news more time to infiltrate the back channels, and might help explain why S60 sales are up 255% so far this year. Volvo's Chengdu, China plant that also makes the S60 will continue to do so, but those cars aren't coming here. The South Carolina facility can now concentrate on ramping up output of the Volvo EX90, already underway, and the Polestar 3, which commences local shortly. We haven't had an S60 sit through Autoblog exams for a bit, but the the sedan's seen no major revisions since we last drove the current third generation introduced in 2019. We lauded it for fantastic styling, a luxurious interior, and robust tech, dinging it only for a braking system not totally prepared for a driver to enjoy the dynamic potential of a 4,000-pound sedan with 400 horsepower and 472 pound-feet of torque.    That T8 Inscription trim is no more, but the rest of the S60's plaudits remain valid. Until inventory dries up, the S60 comes in three trims priced from about $45,000 to $53,000 before options. All are powered by turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder mild hybrid making a combined 247 horsepower and 248 pound-feet of torque, in front- or all-wheel-drive, and rated to tow 2,000 pounds.    

Volvo working to allow groceries delivered to your car, even when you aren't there

Volvo cites research showing that 60 percent of online shoppers had problems with their deliveries in 2013, and that missed first deliveries cost the industry roughly one billion euros ($1.37B US) in re-delivery costs, as impetus for its "Roam Delivery Service" that delivers packages to your car. The service uses Volvo On Call and Sensus Connect car-connectivity and telematics apps already installed in vehicles, and a digital key with a timed window of operation.
The car owner is notified if delivery to or pickup from the car would be the best option, which they then have the option to approve or decline. If approved, the position of the vehicle is sent to the delivery driver, as well as a digital key that can open the car. Once the delivery has been made, the owner is notified and the digital key is erased, leaving only a time stamp to record when the car was opened and then locked.
The technology will be shown to the public at the Mobile World Congress later this month. There's a video and a press release below with more on the details.