VOLVO’S revamped large car ranges are being presented as 2014 models but they’ll be turning up in UK showrooms from July and they’re available to order now.
The S60, V60, XC60, V70, XC70 and S80 all get a bit of a facelift and there are improved equipment levels as well, including DAB radios and the active TFT instrument panel first seen on the V40 last year.
R-Design models get sportier looks and suspension settings, as well as revised seating.
Cars fitted with the 1.6-litre D2 diesel engine will have lower CO2 emissions, which will feed through directly into reduced company car tax bills for business motorists.
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For example, the S60 D2 with manual transmission will go from 114 to 103g/km, which means that it drops from the 17 per cent band for company car tax to 15 per cent.
These improvements are also shared by D2 versions of the smaller V40, with cars rated at an already-low 94g/km dropping to 88g/km.
Following on close behind, Volvo is gearing up for the introduction this autumn of an all-new range of four-cylinder diesel and petrol engines.
Until now, Volvo has used a mixture of its own engines with five and six cylinders, and smaller four-cylinder power units sourced via its previous owner Ford. These will increasingly give way to the new engine range, designated VEA, or Volvo Engine Architecture.
The company is aiming for the new down-sized engines to deliver better performance than today’s fives and sixes, while beating the current four-cylinder range for economy – good news for business car users. The VEA range will replace eight previous engine architectures, greatly streamlining Volvo’s operations.