2001 Volvo S60 Awd Sedan 4-door 2.4l on 2040-cars

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Volvo still undecided on offering plug-in hybrid versions of all models

The automotive world is only a few months away from getting its first real glimpse at Volvo's big gamble with the unveiling of the next-generation XC90 (pictured above as the Concept XC Coupe). We're already getting a preview of the revolutionary upgrades with the introduction of the Swede's Volvo Engine Architecture family into some of its 2015 models, like the recently driven S60. These changes are just the start, though. The real magic could be in the powertrains.
Dean Shaw, Volvo Cars North America vice president of corporate communications hinted to Autoblog a few months ago that every model sold in the US could come in a plug-in hybrid variant, starting with the new XC90. Despite confirmation rumors that this has now come to pass, Shaw told AutoblogGreen that the only thing Volvo is confirming right now is that the platform is capable of that. "We haven't confirmed that all US Volvos would be available with PHEV," he said.
Shaw did confirm that that XC90 will come with a gas and plug-in hybrid powertrain that offers "around 400 horsepower." According to Plugin Cars, the new XC90 will be unveiled in August and will make its public debut at an as-yet-unnamed auto show in the fall. Also, sometime during the 2016 model year, a plug-in hybrid variant will be added to its lineup.

Volvo S60 Polestar entering limited production in Australia [w/video]

The Volvo S60 Polestar Concept may be entering limited production in Australia and, depending how the Aussies take to this Swedish super sports sedan, could then be made available worldwide. The news comes from Austrlia's GoAuto, which claims to have received early info from its sources inside Volvo and its tuning/motorsport arm, Polestar.
Polestar released a short teaser video this week (watch it below) of what appears to be the S60 Polestar Concept clipping the snowy apex of an ice track's turn. The only information given with the teaser were the words "Limited Edition. Soon in Australia." Unveiled last June, the S60 Polestar concept has since made the rounds at auto shows, visited Jay Leno's Garage, played on the track with its future competition, and even secured a home for itself with a buyer who reportedly is paying Volvo some $300,000 to own it.
The S60 Polestar Concept is about the meanest machine one can imagine making out of Volvo's sports sedan. Packing 508 horsepower and 424 pound-feet of torque from its heavily modified T6 engine, then routing those revolutions through a six-speed manual transmission to all four wheels, the S60 Polestar is said to cover the sprint to 62 miles per hour in 3.9 seconds. A lower and wider body, brakes by Brembo, suspension bits by Ohlins and a diet to delete some weight make this car a serious issue for M3 and C63 AMG owners everywhere. GoAuto's sources say the production version's performance will be dialed back a bit from the concept's, but we'll have to wait until Volvo and Polestar make this sedan's production official to find out by how much.

Scratch that new crossover, Volvo teases ad campaign for XC60

If we were to paraphrase the opening lines of Kenneth Graeme's Wind in the Willows for our own purposes, we'd write, "Have you heard about Volvo? They never planned a new crossover at all. It was all a horrid low trick of theirs...." To be fair, though, we can't blame them for our own presumption. When the Swedish car company created a site called LeaveTheWorldBehind.com and teased a couple of videos for some kind of collaboration with Swedish House Mafia, we thought the crossover in one of the teasers pointed to a new vehicle on the way.
Turns out that's not the case. It really is 'just' a collaboration with the band on a music video for Swedish artist Lune's cover of their 2009 song, Leave the World Behind.
But there are Volvos in it, and you can watch it below and hear original song alongside. We've also included the press release with more details on why it all came together, and a behind-the-scenes video on the collabo. To paraphrase Forrest Gump, "That's all we have to say about that."