Volvo and it's Performance arm, Polestar will become a totally new electrified brand

Volvo Cars, the premium car maker, has announced that Polestar, its performance car arm, is to become a new separately-branded electrified global high performance car company, marking the latest stage in Volvo’s ongoing transformation. 

In order to drive the development of the brand, Volvo Cars also announced today that Thomas Ingenlath, Senior Vice President Design at Volvo, will assume the position of Chief Executive Officer at Polestar. Mr Ingenlath has been the inspiration behind Volvo’s award winning design renaissance in recent years. 

“Thomas heading up the Polestar organisation shows our commitment to establishing a truly differentiated stand-alone brand within the Volvo Car Group,” said Håkan Samuelsson, president and chief executive of Volvo Cars. 

Mr Ingenlath will be joined at Polestar by Jonathan Goodman, who will become Chief Operating Officer. Mr Goodman moves from his position as Senior Vice President Corporate Communication at Volvo Cars. 

“With 25 years of commercial experience in the automotive industry, Jonathan is ideally placed to provide operational experience alongside Thomas’s vision, building on the experienced management team that will drive the Polestar brand forwards” said Mr Samuelsson. 

“Polestar will be a credible competitor in the emerging global market for high performance electrified cars. With Polestar, we are able to offer electrified cars to the world’s most demanding, progressive drivers in all market segments.” 

Volvo Cars acquired 100 per cent of Polestar Performance in July 2015, having worked together in motorsport since 1996. In the future, Polestar will offer Polestar branded cars that will no longer carry a Volvo logo, as well as optimisation packages for Volvo’s range of cars under the Polestar Engineered brand. 

Polestar will enjoy specific technological and engineering synergies with Volvo Cars and benefit from significant economies of scale as a result of its connection to Volvo. These synergies will allow it to design, develop and build world beating electrified high performance cars. 

Mr Ingenlath said: “I am really excited to take up the challenge of establishing this exciting brand, developing a fabulous portfolio of bespoke products and channelling the passion we have throughout the Polestar team. The next chapter in Polestar’s history is just beginning.” 

Polestar will make further announcements about its products, industrialization and commercial plans in the autumn

The long awaited Volvo XC60 has been revealed at Geneva - and about time too !

Volvo Cars, the premium car maker, today revealed the long-awaited new XC60 premium SUV at the Geneva Motor Show.

The new car replaces Volvo’s highly successful original XC60, which in the nine years since its launch became the best-selling premium mid-sized SUV in Europe, with nearly a million units sold globally. The XC60 today represents around 30 per cent of Volvo’s total global sales.

“We have a strong heritage in designing stylish and dynamic SUVs that offer the latest in technology. The new XC60 will be no exception. It’s the perfect car for an active lifestyle, and it represents the next step in our transformation plan,” said Håkan Samuelsson, President and Chief Executive, Volvo Car Group. 

New comfort and safety technology

The new XC60, one of the safest cars ever made, is fully loaded with new technology. Steer Assist has been added to the ground-breaking City Safety system. A new safety system called Oncoming Lane Mitigation uses Steer Assist to help mitigate head-on collisions, while Volvo’s Blind Spot Indication System (BLIS) now uses Steer Assist functionality to reduce the risk of lane-changing collisions.

“We have focused on building a car that can deliver pleasure to all of your senses – from a commanding view of the road ahead in a beautifully appointed and calm cabin, to a safe, inspired and confident ride,” said Henrik Green, Senior Vice President Product & Quality at Volvo Car Group. “We’ve paid particular attention to making life easier for our customers by providing them with the creature comforts and services that take the hassle out of everyday life.”

Pilot Assist, Volvo’s advanced semi-autonomous driver-assistance system, which takes care of steering, acceleration and braking on well-marked roads up to 130 km/h, is available in the new XC60 as an option.

Performance

The new XC60 offers Volvo’s award-winning T8 Twin Engine petrol plug-in hybrid at the top of the powertrain range, delivering 407 hp and acceleration from 0-100 km/h in just 5.3 seconds.

“We have a wide range of powertrains. The new XC60 will be launched with the diesel D4 engine at 190 hp and the D5 with PowerPulse technology delivering 235 hp. We also have the petrol-powered T5 delivering 254 hp and the T6 which, with both turbo and superchargers attached, delivers 320 hp and 400 Nm of torque,” added Henrik Green.

But it is not just under the bonnet that the new XC60 delivers healthy performance. The new CleanZone four-zone climate control system removes harmful pollutants and particles from outside the cabin to deliver Scandinavian-fresh air on the inside.

Volvo Cars’ driver infotainment and connected services offer, Sensus, and the Volvo On Call app both receive a graphical update with improved usability. As in the 90 series cars, smartphone integration with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto is also available.

Sculpted feel

“The XC60 is an SUV not designed to look down on others but to drive. The exterior has an athletic sculpture with a subtle, timeless quality. The interior is a masterful composition of well-resolved architecture, beautiful materials and the very latest technology – all perfectly blended together. The XC60 provides a true Scandinavian experience, which will make our customers feel special,” said Thomas Ingenlath, Senior Vice President, Design at Volvo Car Group.

Volvo Cars’ new XC60 is set to go into production in mid-April at the Torslanda Plant in Sweden.

Note to editors:

There are no plans to offer the T6 powertrain in the UK.

Official performance and fuel consumption data is preliminary.

Volvo not only launches the All-New XC60 at Geneva, but it launches new driver safety systems as well.

Volvo Cars, the premium car maker, has announced that the new XC60 SUV – which will be revealed at the Geneva Motor Show – will feature three new advanced driver-assistance features aimed at keeping the driver out of trouble.

The new safety features are designed to provide the driver with automatic steering assistance or support – when required – to help avoid potential collisions. Volvo believes that these new features will make the new XC60 one of the safest cars on the road.

“We have been working with collision-avoidance systems for many years and we can see how effective they are. In Sweden alone we have seen a decline of around 45 per cent* in rear-end frontal crashes thanks to our Collision Warning with Autobrake system. With the XC60 we are determined to take the next step in reducing avoidable collisions, with the addition of steering support and assistance systems,” said Malin Ekholm, Senior Director, Volvo Cars’ Safety Centre.

City Safety has been updated in the XC60 to include steering support, which engages when automatic braking alone would not help avoid a potential collision. In such circumstances, the car will provide steering assistance to avoid the obstacle ahead. City Safety helps to avoid collisions with vehicles, pedestrians and large animals. Steering support is active between 50-100 km/h.

Volvo Cars has also added a system called Oncoming Lane Mitigation, which helps drivers to avoid collisions with vehicles in an oncoming lane. The system works by alerting a driver who has unwittingly wandered out of a lane by providing automatic steering assistance, guiding them back into their own lane and out of the path of any oncoming vehicle. This system is active between 60-140 km/h.

Volvo Cars’ optional Blind Spot Information System, which alerts drivers to the presence of vehicles in their blind spot, has also received an update to include steer assist functionality that helps to avoid potential collisions with vehicles in a blind spot by steering the car back into its own lane and away from danger.

“All three of these new features represent clear steps in our work towards fully autonomous cars,” added Malin Ekholm. “We have all of the benefits of the safety technology we introduced in our larger 90 series cars in the new XC60. This is fully in-line with our strategic approach to develop automotive safety systems based on real-life, real-road safety. Our vision is that no one will be killed or seriously injured in a new Volvo car by the year 2020.”

The XC60 will deliver a host of high-end safety systems, just like its larger 90 series siblings, including Large Animal Detection, Run-off Road Mitigation and the semi-autonomous driver support and convenience system, Pilot Assist, as an option.

The new Volvo XC60 will be revealed at the Geneva Motor Show.

* Collision Warning with Autobrake is a part of the City Safety system. The 45% reduction in rear-end frontal crashes in Sweden relates to cars equipped with the third generation of this technology.

Volvo announces annual profits, Turnover and sales for the last 12 months.

Volvo Cars, the premium car maker, has reported a robust 66 per cent increase in operating profit in 2016 to SEK11.0bn compared with SEK6.6bn in 2015, as global sales hit a new record of 534,332 cars.

Net revenue for the period increased 10 per cent to SEK180.7bn compared with SEK164.0bn in 2015, while the operating profit margin improved significantly, from 4.0 per cent in 2015 to 6.1 per cent in 2016.

The results provide the latest proof that Volvo’s ongoing financial and operational transformation is gathering pace. Global sales rose 6.2 per cent, underpinned by an 11.5 per cent increase in China and an 18.1 per cent rise in the US, Volvo’s two largest individual sales markets.

“Volvo is going from strength to strength,” said Håkan Samuelsson, president and chief executive. “The new models are successful, sales are at record levels and profits are up substantially, reflecting the contribution of all our employees. On the back of these achievements, I foresee that 2017 will also be a record year in terms of sales.”

The last financial year was an important one for Volvo Cars.

For the first time in its 89-year history, it conducted a €500m bond issue in May, followed in November by a SEK3bn bond issue. In December, it raised a further SEK5bn from the sale of equity to three institutions.

On the operational front, Volvo Cars completed the roll-out of its top-of-the-range 90 series cars during 2016, successfully repositioning the brand as a genuine premium competitor.

Volvo Cars also announced two significant new alliances in 2016 that reinforce its leading position in autonomous driving, connectivity and safety.

In August, it joined forces with Uber, the ride-sharing company, to develop next-generation autonomous driving cars. In September, it announced plans to create a new joint venture with Autoliv, the worldwide leader in automotive safety systems, to develop autonomous driving software, the first time a leading premium car maker has joined forces with a tier-one supplier to develop new ADAS and AD technologies.

“With these alliances, Volvo Cars is positioning itself for coming changes in the automotive industry. These themes of sustainable profitability, rising sales and new business initiatives will be continued in 2017,” said Mr Samuelsson.

Volvo Cars, the premium car maker, has raised SEK5bn from the sale of newly-issued preference shares.

Volvo Cars, the premium car maker, has raised SEK5bn from the sale of newly-issued preference shares to a group of Swedish institutional investors.

The group of investors comprises two Swedish pension funds, AMF and the First Swedish National Pension Fund (AP1), as well as Folksam, a Swedish insurance company.

The preference shares may be repurchased or converted into listed ordinary shares upon the majority shareholder’s decision. At this time, no decision has been taken.

The issuance has been conducted to further diversify Volvo Cars' long term funding sources.

The detailed terms of the sale have not been disclosed, but the transaction will have an immaterial dilutive effect on the current 100 per cent ownership of Volvo Cars by Zhejiang Geely Holdings.

The share sale follows two bond issues earlier this year, a EUR500m bond to global institutional investors in May, and a further SEK3bn to Swedish institutional investors in November. The bonds were issued for general corporate purposes and aimed at increasing the company's financial flexibility.

Today’s move is another step towards Volvo Cars’ long expressed ambition to act as a listed company.

Volvo Cars’ financial performance is strong. It is expected that 2016 will be another record year in terms of sales, with growth coming across the board from its three main sales regions of Europe, China and the US.

Operating profit for the first nine months of the year was SEK7.7bn compared to a full year operating profit for the whole of 2015 of SEK6.6bn, prompting Volvo Cars' expectations for the full year to "substantially improve" profits compared to last year.

Volvo Cars has successfully built a sense of momentum around its transformation since it was acquired by Zhejiang Geely Holdings in 2010, driven by the ongoing renewal of its complete product range, powertrain and chassis technologies and safety and connectivity technologies.

In coming years Volvo Cars will continue to reposition its brand to compete with its global premium rivals, revive its operations in the US and develop its global manufacturing footprint, grow further in China and double its market share in Europe.

It will also introduce an entirely new model range, embed its new engine technologies and maintain its position as the leader in car safety and autonomous drive (AD) technologies.

Volvo Cars is also forging alliances that place it at the forefront of the latest technological developments in the automotive industry developments.

It intends to set up a joint venture with Autoliv, the leading automotive safety technology company, to design and manufacture separately-branded AD and driver assistance software technology packages for sale to third party OEMs.

Volvo Cars has also joined forces with Uber, the ride sharing company, to build and co-develop base vehicles for AD cars.

Volvo Cars, the premium carmaker, has unveiled a new upgraded China version of its S90 sedan and a top-of-the-line luxury model called S90 Excellence.

Volvo Cars, the premium carmaker, has unveiled a new upgraded China version of its S90 sedan and a top-of-the-line luxury model called S90 Excellence, both aimed at the high-end sedan market, in advance of their first public appearance at the 2016 Guangzhou Motor Show.

The new S90 will be the most premium car ever made in China. Both versions will be built in Volvo Cars’ production facility in Daqing, China, and exported globally, highlighting the high levels of quality that underpin Volvo’s global manufacturing strategy.

“China will play an increasingly important part in our global manufacturing ambitions. Our factories here will deliver world-class products for export across the globe in coming years, contributing to our objective of selling up to 800,000 cars a year by 2020,” said Håkan Samuelsson, President and CEO, Volvo Car Group.

Volvo has paved the way in developing China’s exports of cars to global markets. It was the first Western car maker to export a premium China-made car to the US in 2015 with the S60 Inscription, which received a full 5-Star rating in National Highway Traffic Safety Administration testing.

Premium credentials

Both the S90 cars underscore Volvo’s credentials as a premium car maker.

“The first thing you notice in the S90 Excellence is that we have removed the front passenger seat and replaced it with what we call the Lounge Console, designed to meet the chauffeur-driven executive customers’ need to relax or work while on the move. The second thing you will notice is the high quality materials that combine to deliver a well-thought-through and immersive luxury feel,” said Thomas Ingenlath, Senior Vice President Design at Volvo Car Group.

The S90 Excellence incorporates many features designed to enhance the in-car experience – a full panoramic roof, foldout worktables, clever storage, a heated and cooled cup holder, an adjustable footrest and a built-in entertainment system featuring a large display for work or entertainment purposes. The S90 Excellence also includes a rear-seat touchscreen control interface, a built-in refrigeration compartment and handmade crystal glasses from Swedish glassmaker Orrefors.

The S90 will be available with Volvo Cars’ award-winning T4 and T5 petrol engines and the top-of-the-line T8 Twin Engine plug-in hybrid, delivering an uncompromising mix of performance and pure electric power that makes the most of Volvo’s ‘Relaxed Confidence’ chassis settings. The S90 Excellence will only come with the T8 Twin Engine powertrain option.

The new cars will come with a host of standard safety features including Large Animal Detection as a part of the City Safety system, Pilot Assist, which is a hands-on-the-wheel semi-autonomous driver assistance system that works up to 130 km/h.

Volvo’s new 90 Series cars also come with the convenience of smartphone integration, incorporating Apple CarPlay and Android Auto allowing convenient access to familiar smartphone features via the large centre display in the car.

Both cars will be available with a new CleanZone air quality system that employs an ionic air cleaner, a PM 2.5 real-time monitor in the four-zone air conditioning system.

The new S90 goes into production in November. The S90 Excellence follows next year.