► New 2017 Volvo XC40
► Smallest SUV in Swedish firm’s line-up
► Built on brand-new CMA architecture
Get a peek at the new Volvo XC40’s interior right here, courtesy of our spy photographers. The new small SUV has been spotted again in its rather hefty body cladding, but this time we can see what the new interior looks like.
It’s suitably Volvo-ish, with a portrait touchscreen and lots of plush leather – very much a scaled-down version of what we’ve seen already in the 90 series of Volvo cars and the new XC60. Rear legroom appears generous enough and the large rear windows should provide ample light when there’s no camouflage.
Volvo’s new XC40 is expected to make its official debut by the end of 2017, but CAR understands that it won’t be at the 2017 Frankfurt motor show, as Volvo isn’t putting up a stand there.
New Volvo XC40 for 2017: the details
The new Volvo XC40 will be based on the brand’s new CMA (Compact Modular Architecture) and will be one of the first of three 40-series cars.
There’ll be a new V40 hatchback later and we could see a saloon-based sibling carrying the S40 name, too.
Underneath that camouflage, the XC40’s styling is expected to closely mirror the Volvo 40.1 concept revealed in 2016 to publicise the new CMA platform.
Compact SUV and crossover sales continue to increase globally, and the XC40 stands to tap into a lucrative market. ‘A [small] SUV has been top of our wishlist,’ company president Håkan Samuelsson has previously told CAR.
Tell me more about Volvo’s new CMA platform
It’s been designed to accommodate a variety of drivetrains, including plug-in hybrid and potentially pure electric variants, too, alongside conventional pure combustion engine models.
Volvo will share this platform and some of its development costs with its Geely parent company (and its Lynk & Co spin-off). It won’t share its electrical systems however, and maintains that Geely’s CMA-based vehicles will be separately engineered entities rather than rebadged Volvos.
A 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbo petrol is expected to be available for the XC40 at launch, together with a four-cylinder diesel. A ‘twin-engine’ petrol-electric plug-in hybrid version is expected to follow.
Click here for CAR’s guide to the 40-series concepts and CMA platform
