New engine family Volvo plug-in hybrid concept heralds

Volvo will display a plug-in hybrid gasoline crossover concept at the Detroit Auto Show with the technology that will eventually go on to vehicles for the U.S. and Chinese markets.

Plug-in Hybrid Concept XC60 has a range of up to 600 miles in hybrid mode and can go 35 miles on the electric motor. Fuel economy on the combined cycle is over 50 miles per gallon, Volvo said.

The hybrid crossover has a 280 hp turbocharged four-cylinder petrol and 70 hp electric motor. Volvo said that T8 put a plate on the concept, because the combined 350 hp hybrid is equivalent to an eight-cylinder engine.

The new four-cylinder gasoline powerplant is part of the new Volvo Environmental Architecture, or VEA, engine family.Volvo said a gasoline hybrid will go on sale in the United States but did not provide a detailed timetable.

Although Volvo is showing its new gasoline hybrid power plant in the XC60 crossover, "it is too early to say which model will be the first to feature this solution," Stefan Jacoby, CEO of Volvo Car Corp., said in a statement.

The electric motor is in the rear axle and is powered by a lithium ion battery pack that sits under the floor. Volvo said recharging takes 3.5 hours from a 220-volt outlet, and 7.5 hours using the standard 110-volt outlet in U.S. homes.

The new gasoline engine is combined with a new eight-speed automatic transmission.

Volvo's first production hybrid, the diesel-electric V60 Plug-in Hybrid, will go on sale in Europe this year.

Volvo's VEA four-cylinder engines will replace all of the company's four-, five- and six-cylinder powerplants starting in 2013 or 2014. Volvo executives say the smaller displacement engines will have the power and performance of its current range.

"In the XC60 Plug-in Hybrid Concept we demonstrate that our forthcoming four-cylinder engines offer the same high performance as today's sixes. At the same time, their fuel consumption will be lower than in current four-cylinder engines," says Peter Mertens, Volvo's senior vice president of r&d.

"It's time to stop counting cylinders. Four-cylinder engines are the most effective way to quickly reduce CO2 emissions and fuel consumption without compromising customer expectations when it comes to driving pleasure and performance."

Volvo shared that the new VEA engine family will have modular gasoline and diesel powerplants. The gasoline versions will have direct injection and balance shafts to improve vehicle comfort.

Volvo said it will be able to use varied levels of turbocharging that give it the flexibility to develop engines with unique horsepower and torque. The modular engines will have 30 cubic inches per cylinder. A three-cylinder powerplant is possible, Volvo said.

Making the manufacturing easier Volvo said the new engine family will use fewer parts and assuring higher quality.

The new powerplants are lighter than today's engines, according to Volvo, which did not provide specifications. Volvo also said fuel economy will increase up to 30 percent from its current range of engines.