Volvo plans to unveil the first V8 production model in its 77-year history at September’s Paris show. To improve competitiveness, especially in America, Volvo’s largest market, the range-topping XC90 and S80 get a new Yamaha-designed and built V8.
Autocar sources suggest it will be a 4.2-litre V8 developing 320bhp, making it more powerful than the existing top engine in both, the 270bhp turbocharged T6. The V8 will be mounted transversely only on all-wheel drive versions. This is not the first time Volvo has planned a V8. The 90deg Douvrin V6 was intended to form the basis for a V8 in the early ’70s, but that plan was killed by the energy crisis. Cosworth developed a V8/V10 for Volvo in the ’90s but this engine, too, was shelved.
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