Volvo will stop manufacturing the Volvo S60 in the United States and, consequently, will stop marketing the model in America. Low demand convinced the Swedish automaker to put an end to production at the end of June.
The sedan segment has been constantly shrinking for the past few years. In a market where everyone wants a pickup truck, an SUV, or a crossover, models like the Volvo S60 don't really make sense anymore. Therefore, June is the last month for the model in production at Volvo's South Carolina factory.
Around 25 years ago, Volvo decided to ruin the party thrown by Mercedes-Benz and BMW in the compact executive sedan segment and rolled out the S60 in 2000 as the successor of the S70.
Back then, it was built on the carmaker's P2 platform that it shared with the S80, V70, XC70, and XC90. It was designed to be sporty, premium, and capable of competing with the BMW 3 Series and the Mercedes-Benz C-Class, which were making the rules (and are still doing it!) in the segment.
Volvo kept the production running until 2009, rolling out multiple facelifts. The second generation arrived in 2010, debuting as a 2011 model year in the US with an engine lineup made up of four petrol engines and three diesels and out-of-this-world safety features.
Photo: Volvo
The third generation arrived in 2019 as the model switched from the old platform to the newly designed Scalable Product Architecture (SPA). Volvo had its first factory in America ready, so the model went into production in Ridgeville, South Carolina.
But with all these aces up its sleeve, Volvo has to give up on the S60 in America. The automaker sold only 1,406 S60 units in 2023, down from the 5,277 sold in 2022. The production center in South Carolina will retool to produce the EX90 three-row electric SUV, which entered production late due to several setbacks along the development stage.
The move leaves the larger S90 the only Volvo-branded sedan on sale in America. The Volvo factory in Chengdu, China, will continue to build the S60, but it won't be imported into the US. The carmaker has already killed the S60 in the United Kingdom.
Those who want a Volvo S60 still have the opportunity to choose a car from the inventory. The S60 starts at $43,645 in the US. It is the price customers have to pay for the B5 front-wheel-drive, mild-hybrid version.
A four-cylinder, 2.0-liter turbocharged engine delivers 247 horsepower (250 metric horsepower) to the front wheels through an eight-speed Geatronic auto box.
The model is equipped with a panoramic sunroof and 18-inch five-spoke alloy wheels with all-season tires. Google services, Apple CarPlay and – typical of Volvo – a wide range of safety features are on board.
Google News