Previews a flagship sedan

Following last week's teaser, Volvo has officially unveiled the Universe concept at the Shanghai Auto Show.

Built to preview the company's flagship sedan, the Universe has a restrained design that is undeniably elegant. While Volvo is staying mum on details, the car features LED headlights, "suicide" rear doors and a sloping roofline that gives the concept a dynamic stance.

Inside, passengers are treated to a luxurious cabin that boasts leather upholstery, wood trim, a floating center console and individual seating for four.

According to Peter Horbury, Vice President of Design at Volvo, "The Concept Universe is exceptionally refined, yet with all the simplistic assets that make Volvo champions of the uncomplicated. There is a growing appreciation for this ingenious blend of design and technology among modern luxury car buyers. This trend paves the way for our success. We are convinced that our special brand of luxury has a great future."

Making its world premiere today at the Shanghai Auto Show is the new Volvo Concept Universe, a study for a luxury sedan model that also provides a peek at the Swedish automaker’s future design language.
While Volvo did not release any technical details on the Concept Universe, the fact that it measures less than 5 meters in length points at a design study for a replacement for the firm’s S80 sedan and not a larger, Mercedes-Benz S-Class rival that the Swedish company’s Chinese owner Geely has been recently talking about.

Stefan Jacoby, President and CEO of Volvo Cars, said that the firm’s new concept model “offers the world a sneak preview of what people can expect from our next top-of-the-line sedan."

Volvo said it plans to bring the new concept sedan to Europe as well as the United States in order to “to bring it into the global context” that the company is aiming for with all of its models.

Commenting on the study, the Swedish company’s vice-president of design, Peter Horbury said: "The Concept Universe is exceptionally refined, yet with all the simplistic assets that make Volvo champions of the uncomplicated. There is a growing appreciation for this ingenious blend of design and technology among modern luxury car buyers. This trend paves the way for our success. We are convinced that our special brand of luxury has a great future.”

True to its word, Volvo hosted the world premiere of its new concept model at the Frankfurt Motor Show. The oddly named Concept You was created not only to give us a glimpse of the Swedish firm's evolving design DNA and showcase its new platform architecture, but it also hints at Volvo's next generation large sedan.

“Concept You gives you a good indication of what you can expect from our next large sedan," said Volvo CEO, Stephen Jacoby,. "The blend of contemporary Scandinavian design, exquisite craftsmanship and intuitive technology will appeal to luxury car buyers all over the world," he added.

Volvo’s head of design Peter Horbury says that the study adopted a more coupe-like profile and a fastback rear end after gathering feedback from the Concept Universe, which was displayed in Geneva this past March.

“The most valuable input has been used in the development of Concept You," says Horbury. "This car features a more daring profile, while the front moves towards a more classic Volvo look.”

The cabin features a clean and minimal design with the control center comprising of four main areas: a digital Driver Information Monitor, a HUD (head-up display) on the windscreen, a touch-screen in the upper part of the center console and another one between the two rear seats.

"We used a number of touch screens to replace buttons and controls," says Horbuury. "Smart phones and pads have brought mobile infotainment into the new era. The technology helps us to create a refreshingly uncluttered interior.”

Another innovation is the Alpine sound system which features the “FreshAir” subwoofer, a technology not yet in production that uses air outside the car to optimize the car's occupants' listening experience.

The Concept You also demonstrates the carmaker’s new Scalable Platform Architecture (SPA) that will be used on a variety of vehicles together with a new range of downsized engines.

It looks like Geely boss Li Shufu isn't the type of person that gives up too easily. Even though Volvo CEOs Stefan Jacoby and Hakan Samuelsson have opposed the idea of a Volvo flagship sedan on grounds that such a car would not fit the brand's “green” image, the big boss from China (you probably remember that Volvo is owned by Geely), recently told Chinese media that the Swedish company will develop a flagship sedan to compete with Audi A8, BMW 7-Series and Mercedes-Benz S-Class.

Expected to be called S100, the luxury sedan will be based on a stretched variant of the platform of the next generation Volvo S80. Shufu said the Volvo S100 will be larger and more luxurious than the new S80 and in another league than the current long-wheelbase S80 L, which is made in China. The S100 will also be built in China, in the new Volvo factory in Chengdu, but it remains to be seen whether it will be exported to other markets as well.

Li Shufu didn’t mention anything about engines, and this is where Volvo may have a problem, as the automaker has recently announced that it will focus on four-cylinder engines in the future and gradually drop its 5- and 6-cylinder units. A flagship sedan only available with 4-cylinder engines would have trouble convincing customers in a segment where image is very important. Volvo has already ditched the Yamaha-sourced V8 engine that was offered on the XC90 and S80.

Will replace the S80

What Car? has published extensive details concerning Volvo’s upcoming flagship sedan, the S90.

We already know it will replace the aging S80 in the lineup and that it will also spawn a V90 wagon designed after the stunning Concept Estate. The S90 will draw its styling cues from the Concept Universe unveiled back in 2011 at the Shanghai Auto Show and will ride on the same newly developed platform as the second-gen XC90 from where it will source just about all engines.

Expect the range-topping version to be the T8 Twin Engine which mixes up a four-cylinder 2.0-liter supercharged & turbocharged gasoline engine with a rear-mounted electric motor. In the XC90, this hardware combo grants a combined output of 400 HP (294 kW) and 640 Nm (472 lb-ft) and chances are the S90 will get an identical setup. The high-voltage battery pack should provide enough juice for an electric range of around 25 miles (40 km).

Set to be built in China, the Volvo S90 will likely be more expensive than the outgoing S80 but it is understandable taking into account it will be literally an all-new model thanks to the Scalable Product Architecture (SPA) which will eventually be used on all medium to large Volvos.

The S90 is scheduled to go on sale in 2016 but it will probably be revealed in the second half of this year. Shortly after the sedan’s introduction, the aforementioned V90 wagon will follow and will probably share the same assembly line with the S90 at the Daqing factory in China where they continue to make the first XC90 sold locally with the “XC Classic” moniker.