What's the news?
Volvo will start rolling out its new 40-series models next year, and these 40.1 and 40.2 concepts are pretty much what the first two cars, a crossover and a hatchback, will look like.
Arguably, the 40.1, the crossover, is the more significant car as it will get Volvo into the hugely lucrative compact crossover market for the first time, unless you count the half-way-house V40 CrossCountry, currently on sale. Volvo boss Hakan Samuelsson has said that a compact 4x4 is "top of our wish list" and here, at last, it is.
It rides on an entirely new sub-structure, called CMA, or Compact Modular Architecture. It's a joint development between Volvo and its owner, Chinese car maker Geely. Basically, think of it as Volvo's answer to Volkswagen MQB setup and Peugeot-Citroen's EMP2. It's highly versatile, can be adapted for front or four-wheel drive, petrol, diesel, hybrid or full electric power and it's more affordable to build than the SPA chassis, which sits under the XC90, S90 and V90 and which will in 2018, be used to create a new S60, V60 and XC60.
Engines will also be largely new. Although Volvo has ruled out building a three-cylinder diesel engine for now (the company says it doesn't see the benefit of such a unit) it will make a compact 1.5 turbo three-pot petrol for the new XC40 and V40, which will be combined with a plugin hybrid module to make a T5 Twin Engine version.
Given how handsome this concept looks, and given how closely the XC90 and S90 followed their concept versions, I think we can safely say that Volvo's first proper small 4x4 will be pretty gorgeous.
So too will be the V40 hatchback, on this basis, and the 40.2 concept looks far more modern and sharp than the current V40. It's more versatile too. The existing V40 has only been built as a hatchback, but in keeping with Volvo's 'One Number, Three Models' plan the new 40 series will also get a four door saloon version to act as a rival to Audi's A3 saloon and the Mercedes-Benz CLA.
"Each member of our product family has its own distinct character, just like the members of a real family. CMA has helped us to capture something special, something youthful in our new concept cars. They have an energy, a disruptive and engaging urban character that makes them stand out amongst the crowd. This is the flavour of small Volvos to come," said Thomas Ingenlath, Senior Vice President, Design, at Volvo Car Group.
"By taking a modular approach to both vehicle architecture and powertrain development we have succeeded in leap-frogging many of the players in the premium segment," said Dr Peter Mertens, Senior Vice President Research and Development. "Our new battery electric powertrain variant opens yet another exciting chapter in the unfolding Volvo story."
"The new 40 series cars have the potential to improve our market penetration in an important growing segment," said Håkan Samuelsson, President and Chief Executive. "An electric powertrain program including both a new compact Twin Engine plug-in hybrid as well as a pure electric car are central to the CMA architecture." He added that the first new 40 series car is expected to go into production in 2017.
While Volvo will use the CMA platform to create the new 40 series, Geely will also use it to develop a new range of cars for the Chinese market, with major input from Volvo. It's not yet been decided whether any of these models will come to Europe as yet.