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Volvo launches XC90 configurator site

In many ways the 2016 Volvo XC90 defines the future of the Swedish brand. The SUV is the introduction of the company's Scalable Product Architecture modular platform that should underpin most of its future models. It's also the first big chance to see whether consumers accept a model like this that's only available with four-cylinder power, granted a mill that is both turbocharged and supercharged. The configurator for this Swedish hopeful is just hitting the Web giving customers a chance to see what they think.
The only available powertrain on the XC90 at the moment is the 2.0-liter Drive-E with 316 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque, an eight-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive. The base price starts at $48,900, plus $925 for destination, but that number can balloon quite quickly. Upgrading to the R-Design package tacks on $4,000 or the even plusher Inscription package adds $5,600.
Furthermore, there are several option packages to add some extra tech and comfort to the SUV. The Vision Package with a backup cam is an extra $1,600, two versions of the Climate package to keep occupants warm come to $1,050 and $1,950, respectively, and the Convenience Package that includes adaptive cruise control adds $2,000. Depending on trim, there are up to 13 colors available in an attractive variety, although all but two add $550 to the price. There are also a wide variety of leather upholsteries to choose from.

Volvo to shake off Ford ties with new platforms, engines

It would seem Volvo is finally getting around to throwing all of Ford's things out of the apartment. Automotive News reports the Swedish automaker is preparing to unleash a range of new engines as well as a fresh platform designed entirely in house. The powerplants include an all-new four-cylinder engine set to bow before the end of this year before arriving in the US by 2014. Shortly thereafter, the world should get its first glimpse at the next-generation XC60, which will the company's first model to make use of the Volvo scalable platform architecture (SPA). US buyers can expect to see that machine on their roads by early 2015.
The next V70 and S80 will also use the SPA, though those models will carry V90 and S90 designations when they hit dealer floors. But that doesn't mean Volvo has completely weened itself off of Ford technology. The V40 will continue to ride on Ford bones until the model's next chassis can be co-developed between Volvo and Geely.

Stolen first production Volvo P1800 recovered

Late last month, we told you about a 1961 Volvo P1800 that had been stolen in Sweden. The thought of losing a classic coupe to an unscrupulous thief is troubling enough, but this wasn't just any P1800 - it was the very first production example minted, and the restored red-over-white two-door was owned by the vice president of the Swedish P1800 Club to boot. Chassis Number Two was pilfered from a Stockholm lockup on either August 21 or 22, and the theft triggered an international hunt of sorts.
Fortunately, that hunt has come to a (mostly) happy ending. According to Larmtjänst AB, a non-profit organization dedicated to fighting vehicle crime in Sweden, the car was spotted by someone who had read about the missing classic. The P1800 was recovered in Hägerstensvägen, a municipality of Stockholm, after being found abandoned on the road covered with a tarp. The owner is reportedly very relieved that his Volvo is mostly intact, marred only by a broken ignition and a dirty interior.