The sale of luxury cars in India has been growing faster than that of regular cars, perhaps because some buyers want to be different. The sale of Volvo saloons and SUV’s especially have been growing faster than their big German rivals. To further accelerate their sales Volvo has now introduced a new smaller engine to make the entry models of their range even more affordable. This new D3 engine is actually quite remarkable as it manages to belt out a huge 163 HP with 400 Nm of torque from a small 1984 CC diesel engine. So, the buyer benefits from being able to get a prestigious and economical Volvo car at an attractive price without having to compromise on performance. The new engine is also quite revolutionary as it has five cylinders instead of the more conventional four, six of V6 engines. Readers will be surprised to learn that this layout also reduces engine vibration and noise. The vibrations generated by all the strokes of a four-stroke engine are unequal. The most energy is generated by the power stroke that is followed with an easy exhaust stroke. The third, or fuel suction stroke, also needs little energy while the last, or compression stroke, needs more. In a four or six cylinder engine all the strokes come at 90 degree intervals and cause unequal vibration.
In a five stroke engine the energy generated by all the strokes are scattered to make the engines silky smooth. With this new engine Volvo has been able to bring down the prices of their entry level models considerably. The three litre S60 small saloon will drop from around `35 lakh to just `24 lakh making it seriously affordable. The prices for the S80 is at `32 lakh and `34 lakh for the XC60 SUV is also appealing. Volvo has not however compromised with their basic DNA and all models carry a full complement of features for comfort and safety. There is very adequate power and torque but the new engines promise to also be very fuel efficient. Under ARAI test conditions fuel consumption figures for the S60, S80 and XC 60 are an impressive 18.8, 17.8 and 14.7 KMPL respectively.
The S60 is an elegant saloon that is 4.6 meters long while the S80 is 23 Cms longer. The XC60 SUV is the same length as the S60 but 23 Cms taller with 23 cms of ground clearance. The S60 and XC60 also have a bigger 3000 cc engine as also the S80 that has an even bigger 303 HP 4400 cc V8 engine. Volvo has thus made the luxury class much more affordable.
The writer is an automotive expert and the former editor of a national magazine