2014 Volvo XC90

For the longest time, we have been treated to Volvos that have the cutting edge design of a loaf of bread. It’s been one of the biggest knocks on the Swedish brand, and it appears that the company is determined to introduce a new generation of vehicles that will be a lot edgier than what we’re used to.

One of the next-generation models that’s expected to be introduced in the coming years is the Volvo XC90 crossover. Despite its popularity, the XC90 has been around the block for almost 10 years with very little changes being done on it. These design sketches of the future XC90 that the company recently released shows that Volvo may be serious in re-defining the way their vehicles look. The 2014 XC90 will sit atop the Scalable Platform Architecture (SPA), which is the platform for just about every new Volvo in the works. The XC90 is anticipated to be the first Volvo to use this platform and will also be one of the largest to use it.

We also know that the XC90 will have a 4-cylinder engine under its all-new hood, as will all vehicles using the SPA platform. Given the XC90’s size, its four-pot will likely include the direct injection system and turbocharger that Volvo says will be fitted on most SPA-based vehicles. The exact size of this new 4-cylinder engine is not quite known, but it’ll have to punch out at least 200 horsepower to make it competitive against the base level X3 Drive20i. There is also the possibly for a traditional and plug-in hybrid option.

The current XC90 is no slouch in the luxury department, but Volvo is expected to punch up the interior a little bit, while still offering 7-person seating capabilities. On this outside, we do have a few images to go off of, and they are rather extreme.

The body lines are nothing like you would expect to see on a Volvo, featuring a very high beltline and a wide lower grille. The upper grille is especially wide for a Volvo and the overall appearance of the car just looks sleeker than any Volvo on record. Then again, these are just concept drawings and rarely do these concept drawings really pin down the resulting model.

This is all we know about the upcoming 2014 Volvo XC90 for now, but we will continue to update this review as more information becomes available.

UPDATE 06/05/2012: This review has been updated with more details on the 2014 Volvo XC90!