In these times of manufacturers swapping assets, you may be wondering what the heck is going on. Even in my position, I'm finding it hard to keep track of who's out, who's in, who's going where and when and how and why...
If you're a budding enterprising business person with a dream to one day make and sell cars, the times have never been better. By using the few extra billion lying around in your apartment, you could snatch up a well-established, albeit poor to average performing, car manufacturer for cheap.
Volvo happens to be one of those well-established average performing makes that spent some time in the fire-sale isle in Ford's “makes-for-sale” store. Recently confirmed as part of the China's growing Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, the Swedish maker is now in a great position to continue developing its product. Don't think that these takeovers are a bad thing; in most cases, the buyer has sufficient resources to maintain momentum and by the same token, improve on its own line-up with the "buyee's" technology.
Clear and present design
The newest member of the Volvo family is perhaps the best they have made in the last 15 years. In fact, the XC60 is what you would get, in my mind, if you took every model in Volvo's portfolio, put them in a blender and voilà!
From any angle, the XC60 is without a doubt a Volvo. Its bulbous and shapely body carries the signature swollen bodylines which start from the purposeful-looking headlights all the way back to the twisted cat-ear taillights. In between, you will find a vehicle that looks bigger than it is; solid and unified.
The XC's cabin is that of a premium vehicle. The unique centre console design, slightly angled towards the driver, with the right tone of wood inlays, could be considered a piece of art. The textured soft-touch plastics are assembled with great care, and perhaps best of all is the weighted feel of all the controls.
If you're a budding enterprising business person with a dream to one day make and sell cars, the times have never been better. By using the few extra billion lying around in your apartment, you could snatch up a well-established, albeit poor to average performing, car manufacturer for cheap.
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| In fact, the XC60 is what you would get, in my mind, if you took every model in Volvo's portfolio. |
Volvo happens to be one of those well-established average performing makes that spent some time in the fire-sale isle in Ford's “makes-for-sale” store. Recently confirmed as part of the China's growing Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, the Swedish maker is now in a great position to continue developing its product. Don't think that these takeovers are a bad thing; in most cases, the buyer has sufficient resources to maintain momentum and by the same token, improve on its own line-up with the "buyee's" technology.
Clear and present design
The newest member of the Volvo family is perhaps the best they have made in the last 15 years. In fact, the XC60 is what you would get, in my mind, if you took every model in Volvo's portfolio, put them in a blender and voilà!
From any angle, the XC60 is without a doubt a Volvo. Its bulbous and shapely body carries the signature swollen bodylines which start from the purposeful-looking headlights all the way back to the twisted cat-ear taillights. In between, you will find a vehicle that looks bigger than it is; solid and unified.
The XC's cabin is that of a premium vehicle. The unique centre console design, slightly angled towards the driver, with the right tone of wood inlays, could be considered a piece of art. The textured soft-touch plastics are assembled with great care, and perhaps best of all is the weighted feel of all the controls.
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| The XC's cabin is that of a premium vehicle. |