Images of the all-new Volvo V40 have been leaked onto the internet ahead of its official unveiling at next month's Geneva Motor Show. The unauthenticated images first turned up on the Facebook page of a Polish car magazine and appear to show Volvo's rival to the five-door Volkswagen Golf, Ford Focus and premium rivals like the BMW 1 Series and new Audi A3.
Built on a modified Volvo S60 platform, the V40 also borrows the big saloon's front-end styling, but past that much of the inspiration can be traced to the XC60 SUV, albeit in smaller form. Two features - the shoulder line that kinks below the rear window and the full-length glass roof - do stand out as unique to the V40.
As is the way with leaked information there is no word yet on powertrains although it is thought that the V40 will be the first car to be fitted with Volvo's new range of modular four-cylinder VEA (Volvo Environmental Architecture) engines. This would appear to rule out a D5-powered version, as the new engines will be no bigger than 2.0-litre.
The Volvo V40 will be officially launched at the Geneva Motor Show in less than two weeks and is expected to spawn a BMW X1-rivalling SUV, tentatively called the XC40. Might Volvo have managed to keep images of that secret ahead of a Geneva reveal? Only time will tell...