Volvo is hoping to encroach into the territory of smaller rivals with its low-CO2 executive sector S80 saloon and V70 estate Driv-e models, arriving in October.
The two models will emit just 129g/km of CO2, which Volvo UK large car product manager Chris Wailes hopes will give the Swedish brand a unique proposition.
“It will give people with a capped CO2 car policy of 130g/km the option of a large saloon or estate car,” he told BusinessCar.
Wailes admitted that at the moment 130g/km isn’t a key company car cut-off point, but said some public sector fleets are looking at the figure on the back of EU plans to make it an important figure as the average allowed by car manufacturers across their entire model range.
“It’s not going to be for everyone but it gives another choice to people out there,” said Wailes. “A low-CO2 car but not with compromised space.”
The 129g/km Driv-e models will be powered by the company’s 1.6-litre 109PS engine, and compare with the BMW 520d’s 136g/km and 177PS of power.
The engines follow-on from sub-160g/km XC60 and XC70 models coming this summer, launched alongside 104g/km and 107g/km stop-start-equipped versions of the C30 and S40/V50 respectively.