Volvo Shows Four Possible Design Directions for Next-Gen XC90

While Volvo’s stand at the 2011 Los Angeles auto show didn’t house anything we haven’t seen before (save a sassy version of the doomed C70 convertible), we did see some interesting stuff at the company’s slick Camarillo, California, design studio just prior to the show. There we got a peek at these four sketches, which show possible design directions for next-generation XC90 crossover. On first glance, they all look roughly the same, but closer inspection reveals variations in everything from the size and shape of the signature taillamps to the C-pillar treatment to the varying degrees of angularity in the overall shapes. All, however, look far more modern than today’s XC90, which has been on the market since 2002.

Volvo didn’t so much as hint about which of the four is most likely to get the green light, but it did say that the XC90 will be the first vehicle built on Volvo’s upcoming Scalable Platform Architecture. Also, in accordance with its previously announced future powertrain strategy, the next XC90 will feature only four-cylinder engines. Given the XC90’s size, you can expect direct injection and copious amounts of turbocharging, and possibly even some version of the kinetic energy recovery system that the firm is currently testing. Volvo wouldn’t comment on a hybrid version, but since the SPA platform is designed to handle all extents of electrification, you can bet your last Swedish fish there will be one. We were told that the next-gen XC90 will bow sometime in 2014.

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