Volvo concepts

[Sae]

I know Volvo are foreign owned etc, but as a fan of breadvan shapes the world could do with a coupe shooting break to spice up the market right now...

http://www.volvocars.com/intl/cars/concept-cars/concept-estate#

 

[Mr Tidy]

Shape looks great - but I'm guessing it will be some nose-heavy FWD inert understeer disaster. :lol:

Some years ago I sort of wondered about a C30 with the 2.5 litre 5 cylinder petrol engine as I thought they looked good, then I read the reviews - better to get a Focus ST if you wanted to enjoy driving it!

Shame really, but from what I have read Volvos seem to have similar dynamics to Audis these days - so not for me! :thumbsdown:

 

[Sae]

Just think theres still an unfilled niche out there.
Id also like to see a bmw 4 series coupe estate, that would also work

Have to say i also have a soft spot for the old volvo brand as i started driving in my pops 740, but they havent had anything out since the mad touring car estate to tempt me, but they are heading in the right direction in the quality lux market

 

[GuidoK]

Some years ago I sort of wondered about a C30 with the 2.5 litre 5 cylinder petrol engine as I thought they looked good, then I read the reviews - better to get a Focus ST if you wanted to enjoy driving it!

Actually this is pretty funny, as the c30 is build on exactly the same platform as the Focus. So same engine position, same suspension arms etc.
So that pretty much leaves springrates and swaybars to differently tune the roadholding, as dimensions (wheelbase) are probably also the same.
And that 2.5 is the same engine as used in the Focus ST 2.5 :lol:
So you pretty much cant have cars that are more alike from a technical POV.

Volvo has used ford platforms for years. So any difference in steering compared to their ford brothers will be in tuning from springs and swaybars; the bigger volvos are certainly more comfort oriented.

Now they have their own scalable platform

 

[BMWZ4MC]

Whilst I quite like the Concept Estate, I think the Concept Coupe is absolutely stunning. It's everything the Audi A5 tries (and fails) to be. I'm sure that it would fall short of the mark though, were it ever put into production.
To me, the Concept XC Coupe and Estate reinforce how much more resolved and even elegant two doors are than four.

 

[Sae]

Its a seriously niche market, but id think they be surprised at how popular it would be if they made one - like the concept of course

 

[cj10jeeper]

Apart from some fancy tail lights I'm really not seeing anything exciting in that at all.
Not practical enough to be an estate and nothing like stylish enough to match coupes
Each to their own though..

 

[GuidoK]

That concept estate is like a shooting brake. I like it.
And volvo obviously has a history with that.

except this one's way cooler, from volvo's RWD days :roll:

 

[DMC63]

Another generic 'same shape as all the rest' car. Yawn :thumbsdown:

 

[Anonymous]

I think Ferrari FF does the job, might need to save up for a few decades though 8)

 

[GuidoK]

Another generic 'same shape as all the rest' car. Yawn :thumbsdown:

Same shooting brake shape like? ferrari gtc4lusso or FF?
Dont know of any other shooting brakes now available on the market? :?

So pretty unique. Pretty cool for a brand like volvo to be directly compared to ferrari... :roll:

 

[DMC63]

Another generic 'same shape as all the rest' car. Yawn :thumbsdown:

Same shooting brake shape like? ferrari gtc4lusso or FF?
Dont know of any other shooting brakes now available on the market? :?

So pretty unique. Pretty cool for a brand like volvo to be directly compared to ferrari... :roll:

Shooting brake? Never heard of it. I"m just going on the looks of the car. It's just another one of these with Toyota Prius rear lights.

 

[GuidoK]

Shooting brake? Never heard of it.

You really dont know the term shooting brake in car terminology?!?

Anyway, like stated by others: the only ones you can now buy are made by ferrari, and its a pretty niche model, so not at all 'generic same shape as all the rest', pretty far from it acutally as there only have been a handful in history. For every shooting brake there are probably 1000+ sedan/hatchback/estate models.
A shooting brake is like making an estate from a coupe, like a normal estate is made from the 4 door sedan.
Technically it should be a 2 door estate with a somewhat sloping roofline.
That range rover evoque 2 door is most close, but is an SUV, and imho also not a 'same shape as the rest' type of car. (that bmw x2 is still concept). That XC coupe is very much like those 2 (but again, I cant think of other cars in that segment; 2 door suv's)

So yeah, pretty rare as far as acutal produced models. Probably the rarest type of all different car body models available if looking at the actual models produced.
Volvo has had a real history with them, aston martin has, now ferrari has, Reliant build the scimitar, and there are a few more but thats it I think.
Would be awesome if volvo actually started making this one.

 

[DMC63]

Shooting brake? Never heard of it.

You really dont know the term shooting brake in car terminology?!?

Anyway, like stated by others: the only ones you can now buy are made by ferrari, and its a pretty niche model, so not at all 'generic same shape as all the rest', pretty far from it acutally as there only have been a handful in history. For every shooting brake there are probably 1000+ sedan/hatchback/estate models.
A shooting brake is like making an estate from a coupe, like a normal estate is made from the 4 door sedan.
Technically it should be a 2 door estate with a somewhat sloping roofline.
That range rover evoque 2 door is most close, but is an SUV, and imho also not a 'same shape as the rest' type of car. (that bmw x2 is still concept). That XC coupe is very much like those 2 (but again, I cant think of other cars in that segment; 2 door suv's)

So yeah, pretty rare as far as acutal produced models. Probably the rarest type of all different car body models available if looking at the actual models produced.
Volvo has had a real history with them, aston martin has, now ferrari has, Reliant build the scimitar, and there are a few more but thats it I think.
Would be awesome if volvo actually started making this one.

Interesting. Thanks for the info. I admit my eye for car shapes is very basic. When driving I see the repetition of the same shapes. Probably down to the wind tunnel kicking up the best lines for economy.

 

[Mr Tidy]

[post]1387164[/post] Actually this is pretty funny, as the c30 is build on exactly the same platform as the Focus. So same engine position, same suspension arms etc.So that pretty much leaves springrates and swaybars to differently tune the roadholding, as dimensions (wheelbase) are probably also the same.And that 2.5 is the same engine as used in the Focus ST 2.5 So you pretty much cant have cars that are more alike from a technical POV.Volvo has used ford platforms for years. So any difference in steering compared to their ford brothers will be in tuning from springs and swaybars; the bigger volvos are certainly more comfort oriented.

I know - that was my point! (Possibly should have mentioned the shared platform up front, rather than assume others' awareness). :wink:

The reviews I read at the time all seemed to struggle to see how Ford managed to make the platform drive pretty well, while the Volvo was so wide of the mark!

 

[GuidoK]

All reviews i've seen about volvo's on that platform (so c30 and v40) say that they're really good drivers cars.
And that would make sense imho as its virutally the same car as the focus. So I'm putting a critical note by the reviewers you saw.

Obviously stiffer springs or a stiffer swaybar improves handling, but it also looses comfort. This is a matter of choice and not a matter of potential. A good reviewer should see through that and recognize the potential of a platform regardless if it has a stiffer performance suspension setting or a softer comfort suspension setting.
Actually volvo has 3 stiffnesses in arb's available for the c30 so it even might have been that they got a specced car that didnt suit their liking, but again a competent reviewer should see through that. Maybe ford goes a step further in the most stiff one.
But still its like saying a 320d has a rubbish undercarriage and a 335i has a great undercarriage. That would be more a matter of taste than a really objective assessment as 95% of the parts and the overall design are the same

I know the focus RS has an altered front suspension which ford calls the 'revoknuckle' which is basically a mcpherson strut with an extra kingpin, but the ST hasnt. Maybe those reviewers were a bit blinded or under the impression that they had a more potential car under their behinds thay that they really had :wink:

 

[Sae]

To continue the shooting break theme, one photoshop that would cheer up the world if they built it