Volvos Ultra-Luxe 3-Seater Hybrid Makes Global Debut In City

Swedish luxury carmaker Volvo has chosen Mumbai to globally unveil its first three-seater ultra-luxury hybrid car, despite the deepening crisis in the domestic auto market.

The ultra-limited edition car XC90 Excellence Lounge is priced at Rs 1.42 crore and will be sold to only a select few, Volvo Car India managing director Charles Frump said in an official statement Wednesday after a the rollout of the ultra-luxury car last evening here.

“Our distinctive approach aims to deliver a luxurious and calming experience to our customers. The XC90 Excellence Lounge is the most exquisite car weve ever made. “It rides on the success of over 100 XC90 T8 Excellence (4-seater) delivered so far and India is the highest selling market for that product, said Frump.

The car is in line with Volvos commitment towards a sustainable solution as it emits only a 49g/km CO2 the company said. “India is the first market where we are launching this car. In the first batch we are rolling out only 15 cars to a select few,” Frump said.

Volvo Cars has made a commitment that from 2019 every new car will be electrified-mild hybrid, full hybrid or full electric, he added. In spite of the domestic industry reporting the worst quarter in almost two decades, Volvo India logged in a full 11 percent growth, selling 1,159 units in the June quarter.

Volvo has dealerships in all major cities like Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune, among others.

Recently, the luxury automaker discontinued Volvo V40 and Volvo S60 in the Indian market. The second generation the V40 was on sale in India in the Cross Country appearance since 2013 and the second generation S60 has been on sale in India since 2011. The V40 was last updated in 2016 while the S60 sedan received its last major update in 2014.

The two vehicles were based on the Ford platforms and not on the company’s more advanced CMA and SPA platforms which are currently being used in other Volvo cars.

Volvo India’s product portfolio now includes five models i.e. S90, V90 Cross Country, XC40, XC60 and XC90. All five variants were locally assembled at company’s facility in Bengaluru. Also, the Volvo is contemplating local assembly for the third-generation Volvo S60, right from the time of its India launch in 2020. Importantly, the locally assembled models account for 60 percent of Volvo’s total sales in India.

(With inputs from PTI)