Volvo C Coupe Concept Is a Modernized P1800

After a week of teasing, VolvoVolvoSweden, 1927 > present49 models
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has revealed its Concept C Coupe, and it turns out that it is a modernized interpretation of the company’s famous P1800Volvo P1800Sweden, 1960 > present3 photos
coupe.  Although, Volvo claims that it also took inspiration from contemporary Scandinavian design for the car as well, but that is not as easily identified.

Volvo’s new head of design Thomas Ingenlath created the look of the C Coupe. He said that is inspiration was to combine the emotion of Volvo’s past while pointing towards the company’s future.

The C Coupe is not an exact copy of the P1800, but it reinterprets the car’s major styling points. The C Coupe is actually more of a personal luxury car with long, sharp lines and a rearward-biased look.  It has a low hood with a rectangular grill with convex slats.

The T-shaped LED running lights that bisect the headlights are meant to be a new Volvo styling feature and will make their way to future cars. The boomerang-shaped taillights will also be reused on a production car.

The interior is done in a combination of blue and gray with highlights including a solid crystal gearshift. The dashboard in covered in leather with stainless steel trim. The infotainment system uses a large portrait touchscreen, similar to the Tesla Model STesla Model SUnited States of America, 2012 > present2 photos
.

The engine in the concept is a petrol plug-in hybrid from Volvo’s new Drive-E engine family. It uses a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder with an electric motor that Volvo claims with 400hp and 443lb-ft of torque.

The C Coupe is the first Volvo publicly shown to use its next generation Scalable Product Architecture (SPA) platform that will debut in production form on the next generation XC90Volvo XC90Sweden, 2002 > 201355 versions
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in 2014. The modular platform will underpin most Volvo models in the near future.

The new platform will work on any type of car in a variety of sizes. It allows Volvo to use a single platform to save money but still have interesting styling.

“The Volvo Concept Coupé is no futuristic dream car. It is designed to demonstrate the capability of our new architecture: the confident stance, the proportions and the most prominent design signatures. Even though the all-new XC90 is an entirely different type of car, you will recognize the connection instantly when it is revealed next year,” said Thomas Ingenlath.