Lux Land Yacht Bound for Volvo Stable

Volvo’s not whispering in anyone’s ear, but Volvo dealers surely are. That’s how we’ve learned that Volvo Cars plans to insert two new vehicles at the top and near the bottom of its current lineup.

According to dealers, a range-topping XC100 will soon take its place atop the model ladder, with a coupe-like crossover slotted well below. How else is Volvo supposed to keep its sales momentum?

This tidbit comes by way of Automotive News. It seems that U.S. dealers informed about the XC100 are salivating at the thought, with one describing it as an “absolute home run.” Currently, the long-running XC90 wears the flagship hat.

Who so much Volvo in one vehicle? You already know the answer. Big sells, and Volvo’s Germanic rivals have big in spades. The arrival of an updated Mercedes-Benz GLS and altogether new BMW X7 left Volvo with little choice but to pursue the plus-sized import SUV crowd.

Another dealer referenced Range Rover and the Rolls-Royce Cullinan as potential rivals. Clearly, Volvo is loading up on lux. Not only will the vehicle, slated to arrive in electrified form of various sorts, be plush, it will also be suitably big. AN reports that the vehicle will stretch 7 inches longer and 5 inches wider than the XC90 — a model the future XC100 will borrow its platform from.

Before this Scandinavian behemoth starts production in South Carolina in late 2023, American buyers will have a taste of the C40, a coupe-like version of the compact XC40 crossover. Sporting reduced cargo volume and a more svelte profile, the C40 is said to be priced to sell. Like its sibling, it will also offer a battery-electric powertrain when it arrives in late 2021.

For Volvo, going smaller and larger in the light truck field, using as many existing components as possible, is a play for boosted volume and margins, especially on the upper end.

Volvo’s U.S. sales nearly doubled in the past half-decade; flush with Chinese cash and with a growing stable of vehicles with which to temp buyers, 2019 saw the brand top the six-figure mark for the first time since 2007.

[Image: Volvo Cars]