Volvo announced it is expanding its second Chinese assembly plant to accommodate a new large sedan built on the 2016 XC90’s modular platform.
The Swedish brand is already planning on shifting most of its product line to the Scalable Product Architecture, and the Daqing plant will be its first Chinese plant to be capable of producing these new vehicles, starting with what Volvo calls “an all-new premium sedan.” Daqing currently makes a rebadged version of the first-generation XC90, called XC Classic, for sale in China.
Signs point to that premium sedan being a successor to the current Volvo S80, to be called Volvo S90. Its Volvo’s next car on the to-do list, with sources pointing to a 2016 debut and sharing many of the styling and technology themes found on the new XC90. But as sales of sedans dwindle and crossovers become more popular globally, is it possible this Daqing plant could take the lead on making the big Volvo sedan?
Volvo has already made some big moves to benefit Chinese production this year. Just last week, it announced the XC60 crossover is now being built at its Chengdu plant. And this summer, it announced plans to import the Chengdu-made S60L to the U.S. in the first attempt to convince buyers its Chinese-made cars are just as good as its Swedish-made ones.
If the S60L plan goes well, it wouldn’t be at all surprising if the S90 became made only in China. And if Volvo’s quality promises about its Chinese plants hold up, it wouldn’t be a bad thing for American and European buyers.
By Zac Estrada
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