On Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Volvo V40 Cross Country Preview
Volvo is looking to increase its share in the growing Indian automotive market. The company is already mulling the prospect of setting up an assembly plant in the country and is currently conducting a feasibility study in this regard. The Swedish carmaker aims to sell 20,000 units per year in India by 2020, bringing their numbers closer to that of the German trio- Audi, BMW and Mercedes.
Volvo plans to launch a range of new products in India to achieve this targets and their next vehicle will be the V40 Cross Country. It is basically an entry-level compact crossover – one that will compete with the BMW X1 and the Audi Q3. With the astonishing growth seen in the demand for entry-level luxury cars, we think this is Volvo’s best bet to firmly establish itself in India.
The Cross Country is a toughened up version of the V40 hatchback with 40mm additional ground clearance. The looks of the car are also altered a bit to make it look a bit more rugged. The crossover gets bigger alloy-wheels with chunky tyres, body claddings, roof rails, skid plate and blackened rear view mirrors.
The five-seater Cross Country comes with 40/60 folding rear seats for extra space. It is equipped with safety features like pedestrian detection, auto braking and city safety which have won the Euro NCAP Advanced Award. The V40 Cross Country is equipped with AWD and hill descent control for decent off-roading capabilities.
The European spec versions of the crossover are available with four diesel engine options in the range of 1.6-litres to 2.5-litres with varying outputs. However, in India we are expecting just the 1.6-litre petrol and 2.0-litre diesel engine options.
The petrol engine is a turbocharged unit producing 180bhp and 240Nm of torque. The oilburner is also turbocharged unit developing 177bhp and 400Nm of torque. Both the engines will be mated to six-speed automatic gearbox; unfortunately we might not get the AWD variants in India.
We expect Volvo to launch the new V40 Cross Country in India by March for a price tag of close to Rs 24 lakh. On pricing it will slot in between the Mercedes B-Class and the BMW X1 and will be the new entry-level Volvo car below the S60.
Volvo is looking to increase its share in the growing Indian automotive market. The company is already mulling the prospect of setting up an assembly plant in the country and is currently conducting a feasibility study in this regard. The Swedish carmaker aims to sell 20,000 units per year in India by 2020, bringing their numbers closer to that of the German trio- Audi, BMW and Mercedes.
Volvo plans to launch a range of new products in India to achieve this targets and their next vehicle will be the V40 Cross Country. It is basically an entry-level compact crossover – one that will compete with the BMW X1 and the Audi Q3. With the astonishing growth seen in the demand for entry-level luxury cars, we think this is Volvo’s best bet to firmly establish itself in India.
The Cross Country is a toughened up version of the V40 hatchback with 40mm additional ground clearance. The looks of the car are also altered a bit to make it look a bit more rugged. The crossover gets bigger alloy-wheels with chunky tyres, body claddings, roof rails, skid plate and blackened rear view mirrors.
The five-seater Cross Country comes with 40/60 folding rear seats for extra space. It is equipped with safety features like pedestrian detection, auto braking and city safety which have won the Euro NCAP Advanced Award. The V40 Cross Country is equipped with AWD and hill descent control for decent off-roading capabilities.
The European spec versions of the crossover are available with four diesel engine options in the range of 1.6-litres to 2.5-litres with varying outputs. However, in India we are expecting just the 1.6-litre petrol and 2.0-litre diesel engine options.
The petrol engine is a turbocharged unit producing 180bhp and 240Nm of torque. The oilburner is also turbocharged unit developing 177bhp and 400Nm of torque. Both the engines will be mated to six-speed automatic gearbox; unfortunately we might not get the AWD variants in India.
We expect Volvo to launch the new V40 Cross Country in India by March for a price tag of close to Rs 24 lakh. On pricing it will slot in between the Mercedes B-Class and the BMW X1 and will be the new entry-level Volvo car below the S60.
