As the country is going through the season of festivities, many car makers are in-line to launch their products in the Indian auto market. Recently, it was learnt that Volvo might be introducing its next generation versions of S60 sedan and XC60 Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) in the Indian car market. Now the company has officially announced that these models will roll out in the country on 23rd October 2013. These cars were previously showcased at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show and both of them had gone through a lot of cosmetic updates, however, there was no significant change in the overall design.
Since the sales of luxury cars were not affected by the slowdown prevalent in the Indian auto market, Volvo is reportedly planning to launch a slew of vehicles in the country, which might also include the facelift version of XC90 at the upcoming 2014 Auto Expo. However, the company is still refraining from setting up its own assembly operations and is planning to bring these upcoming models through the Completely Built Unit (CBU) route In India. The significant changes seen in both the vehicles are their rounded appearance, wider front, revised grille and slimmer daytime running LEDs. The S60 sedan will now have cornering adaptive lights whereas XC60 gets torque vectoring technology on all trim levels.
At interiors, the company has given some minor updates to both the cars in the form of new 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system, besides the steering mounted paddle shifters that will be available in automatic variants. However, it is worth mentioning that these features have been borrowed from the V40 Cross Country that made its debut in India earlier this year. In terms of performance, Volvo has kept the same engine configurations as given on incumbent models. As far as the competition for S60 goes, it shall compete against the likes of BMW 3 Series, Mercedes-Benz C-Class and Audi A4. On the expected price, industry experts are betting that the updated models of Volvo might be around Rs. 1.5 lakh to Rs. 2.2 lakh costlier than the existing ones.
Earlier this year, Volvo adopted similar strategy of updating all its models comprehensively.Looking at present things, Volvo has not been able to challenge the German triplet as per the expectations of experts. Due to the small dealership network and high pricing, the sales of its vehicles have suffered a lot. However, the cars of Volvo are considered best in terms of adhering to safety norms. The organisation that checks the safety issues in a car, EuroNCAP had tagged V40 as the safest car they have ever tested. The Swedish car maker is now investing its capital in model upgrades and advanced powertrain technologies.
Meanwhile, the company had earlier introduced its compact crossover vehicle, V40 Cross Country in the Indian auto market at a price of Rs. 28.5 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi). It is powered by a 2-litre 5-cylinder diesel engine that gave away a mileage of more than 16 kmpl. At present, the car is offering a stiff competition to the likes of BMW X1, which is priced from Rs. 28.6 lakh to Rs. 33.4 lakh (ex showroom Delhi). Although the car of Volvo boasts of advanced features, it has not performed well in the Indian car market primarily due to the stiff competition offered by its rivals.
