Volvo has confirmed the long-expected news that it will launch a Cross Country version of the new V90 range-topping estate.
The car is due to go on sale in early 2017, around 20 years after the first Cross Country model, the V70, appeared. It will rival the likes of the Audi A6 Allroad.
Few specific details of the new V90 Cross Country have been officially announced so far. We do know that the V90 variant of the model will include an increased ride height and all-wheel-drive as standard as well as what Volvo describes as “a chassis optimised for comfort and control in all weather and road conditions.”
It is understood that the V90 XC sits 65mm higher than its sister models and boasts larger wheels and tyres. Its front and rear bumpers are bespoke to offer off-road friendly approach and departure angles.
Design head Thomas Ingenlath insists that the car has been created with proper off-road ability as a priority. “Designing a Volvo Cross Country is not a styling exercise, a plastic job – it is based on honest capability,” he says.
“The Volvo V90 Cross Country… will continue the genuine tradition of the Volvo Cross Country with a new recipe: the blend of powerful off-road capability in a most elegant, sophisticated, tailored wagon suit,” Ingenlath adds.
Development of the Cross Country has included extensive testing in northern Sweden where temperatures regularly dip below -40 deg C, and in the heat of the Arizona desert.
UK models are likely to retain the D4 and D5 diesel engines of their stock sister models and while Volvo is not yet quoting prices for the new Cross Country industry sources suggest they will start from around £43,000.
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