L.A. Auto Show: 508-horsepower Volvo hopes to steal some attention
Amid all the hoopla surrounding the Los Angeles Auto Show’s bigger events, like the world debut of Porsche’s Cayman, Toyota’s RAV4 or Jaguar bringing sexy (and powerful) back, Volvo would kindly like you not to forget it exists.
To help you out, the company will be bringing to the L.A. show the S60 Polestar Concept. It cranks out a whopping 508 horsepower and 424 pound-feet of torque from a turbocharged, inline six-cylinder engine similar to the one in the all-wheel-drive production S60 we tested in 2010 (which has 300 horsepower and 325 pound-feet of torque in stock form).
But Volvo and Polestar didn’t stop after the engine tweaks on the S60 Polestar Concept. The pair says they widened and lowered the car’s chassis; retuned the Haldex all-wheel-drive system; and upgraded the suspension and exhaust system to better handle the added power.
These upgrades are good for a 0-62 mph time of 3.9 seconds and a top speed of 186 mph, according to the Swedish based, China-owned company.
Volvo says it has no plans to bring this hottie to production, but that may change if consumer reaction is positive enough. Polestar is Volvo’s answer to German in-house tuners like Mercedes-Benz’ AMG or BMW’s M division.
The duo already makes a Polestar-tuned version of the S60, though it’s much more demure than this concept. The S60 R-Design and XC60 R-design both have 325 horsepower and 354 pound-feet of torque, though you won’t find any Polestar badges on them.
For that, you have to seek out the limited-edition Polestar C30. This version cranks up that two-door hatchback’s horsepower to 250 and torque to 273 pound-feet, in addition to unique interior and exterior trim. Look for Highway 1 to get behind the wheel of one such C30 in the near future.
In the meantime, you can get your Volvo/Polestar fix at next week’s L.A. Auto Show, which will be open to the public from Nov. 30 to Dec. 9. Highway 1 will be covering the press days of the event from the floor of the L.A. Convention Center on Nov. 28 and 29. Stay tuned.
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