The Volvo XC70 is back, but this time around it's a not jacked up high-riding wagon with toughened-up styling.
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The XC70 is the first product from Volvo to ride on the new Scalable Modular Architecture (SMA) designed primarily for "extended range plug-in hybrid" drivetrains.
Newly reinstalled CEO Hakan Samuelsson says the new XC70 offers a "highly attractive alternative to customers who are not yet ready for fully electric cars".
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Drivetrain and battery details have yet to be released, but the company claims the XC70 has an EV range of 200km when using China's generous CLTC standard.
Similarly Volvo is keeping its powder dry regarding the XC70's dimensions, with the company simply stating it is "slightly larger and more spacious" than the 4.7m-long XC60.
The XC70 will be available to order later this year in China, and Volvo says it will explore "potential additional markets at a later stage". Presumably more details about the car will be released closer to its full launch.
Along the side, the XC70 has flush-fitting door handles and frameless windows. At the rear, the brand's signature hockey stick tail-lights reach all the way up to the roof.
Back in 2021 Volvo was one of the first "legacy" automakers to commit to an electric-only range, promising to sell its last vehicle with an internal combustion engine by 2030. In Australia the brand was even more ambitious, claiming it would go EV-only by 2026.
While the market share for electric vehicles continues to grow, especially in Europe and China, their uptake hasn't been quite as fast as many automakers had originally envisioned. Volvo has now revised its target, hoping to have electrified vehicles – plug-in hybrid and full electric – account for 90 per cent of global sales by 2030.
Clearly the launch of an all-new plug-in hybrid model in 2025 wasn't part of Volvo's planning at the beginning of the decade. With the XC70, not only is Volvo reacting to drivetrain preferences, but according to Mr Samuelsson, it is also "example of regionalisation, where we adapt to the local market needs".
Following on from the EM90 people mover, the XC70 is the second Volvo model designed primarily with China in mind.
The XC70 name has been dormant since the mid-2010s. It first appeared in 1997 on a high-riding, all-wheel drive variant of the V70 wagon, patterned after the highly popular Subaru Outback based on the Liberty wagon.
Branding differed from market to market, with some calling the lifted the Volvo wagon the V70 Cross Country, and others the V70 XC.
It wasn't until after the launch and success of the XC90 crossover the company finally settled on the XC70 name.
Starting in 2016, Volvo simplified its model naming structure around the 40-, 60- and 90-series, eliminating the likes of the V70 and S80. It also reserved the XC prefix for its SUV-like crossovers, with lifted wagons reverting to the Cross Country moniker.
After three generations of high-riding wagons based on the V70, Volvo introduced a Cross Country version of its V90 in 2016, slotting in above the V60 Cross Country launched in 2015.
The V90 Cross Country was discontinued in Australia in 2021, with the axe swinging on the V60 Cross Country earlier this year.
MORE: Everything Volvo
Content originally sourced from: CarExpert.com.au
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