Volvo Concept 40.1, Concept 40.2 previews design of future small cars
Volvo Concept 40.1, Concept 40.2 previews design of future small carsPR Handout

Swedish car maker Volvo is working on strengthening its portfolio by adding new 40 series cars. The company recently unveiled the Concept 40.1 and Concept 40.2, which is touted to be the precursor of the XC40 crossover and the next-gen V40 hatchback. These models will reportedly come to India soon after the production version is launched in the international market by the end of 2017.

According to a report in the Economic Times, the first model to hit the road will be a sport-utility vehicle, which will be the production spec of Concept 40.1. This will be followed by a sedan, which will be the production spec of Concept 40.2. The SUV model will go up against the BMW X1 and Audi Q3, while the sedan of Volvo will go up against the Audi A3 and Mercedes-Benz CLA.

"Entry SUVs are extremely important for a market like India," ET quoted Peter Mertens, senior vice-president for research & development, as saying. "We are seeing a lot of growth coming in from the segment in BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China ) countries," he added.

The new compact cars will be the first to be built on the Compact Modular Architecture (CMA) of Volvo. This is the scaled-down version of the SPA architecture that underpins the new S90 and XC90. The new small car range of Volvo will include a full electric vehicle as well as twin engine plug-in hybrid powertrain variants. Previously, Volvo had divulged its plan to sell up to 1 million electrified cars by 2025 globally, and small cars are expected to contribute a huge chunk to it.