New Delhi: Volvo Car Corporation is planning to expand it product portfolio in India to attract a wider audience to its products.

As part of this endeavour the company is planning on launching its sports utility vehicle (SUV) XC60 in India in 2009. The SUV was launched at the ongoing Geneva Motor show. (View the Volvo XC60 video)

Paul de Voijs, managing director, Volvo Car India said the target audience for the XC60 includes customers with an active, urban lifestyle.

Last year Volvo Car India, a division of Ford Motor Company, launched the Volvo S80 and Volvo XC90, its flagship models, in India. Currently, the company markets its products through 3 dealerships, one each in Delhi, Mumbai and Chandigarh.

The XC60, also described as a crossover vehicle was first seen in concept form at the 2007 Detroit Auto Sow. The company is touting the XC60 as "the safest and most sensual Volvo ever,' mainly on the back of a new "city safety system," which, at speeds up to 30 km / h, automatically stops the XC60 should it sense the car is about to collide with another vehicle if the driver does not react in time. (View the Volvo XC60 picture gallery)

In addition to the city safety system the car has a trailer stability assist (TSA) and a further-developed DSTC system. It is also available with all the accident-avoidance and protective safety technologies that Volvo Cars offers.

Volvo cars have a reputation for safety and at the launch of the Nano at the New Delhi Auto Expo, a Volvo official had categorically stated that Volvo would not compromise on safety by offering a car at Rs-1 lakh.

In the US the XC60 will debut with a single engine - a turbocharged T6 that will generate 281 bhp and will come with standard all-wheel drive and traction control. The company expects the US to be the biggest market for the XC60, with projected annual sales of up to 20,000 units.

In Europe where the SUV is on sale, the XC60 comes equipped with Volvo's blind-spot sensing system, whiplash prevention systems, seatbelt pre-tensioners, lane departure warnings and other such gizmos.

European customers will have a choice of a 285-horsepower turbocharged gasoline I-6, or two turbodiesel 2.4-liter I-5s; both a 185- and 163-horsepower version.

All XC60s will sport a six-speed automatic (although a manual is optional on the diesel) and all-wheel drive. Later in 2009, Volvo will market a front-wheel-drive XC60, equipped with a 2.4-liter turbodiesel that meets Euro 5 emission standards, producing less than 170 grams of carbon dioxide per kilometer.

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