Volvo Concept XC Coupe previews next-gen XC90

Set to debut at next week's Detroit auto show, the Concept XC Coupe is the second of three design studies from the Swedish manufacturer, following last year's sporty Concept Coupe.

The concept’s are all based on Volvo’s new Scalable Product Architecture (SPA) platform and styled with its new design language – core elements of the brand’s future that will take the leap from show car to production car in the second-generation XC90 later this year.

The Volvo Concept XC Coupe features a number of clues to the design of the XC90, including the concept’s rectangular headlights with T-shaped LED daytime running lights, broad grille and flowing tail-light signature.

Volvo Car Group senior vice president of design Thomas Ingenlath says the concept features a modern interpretation of traditional SUV design elements, such as integrated side mouldings and skid plates sitting flush with the surrounding body panels, hinting that the new XC90 may target a cleaner design while still retaining the off-road credibility of the original.

The XC90 will sit much taller than the low-slung Concept XC Coupe, however, and feature four doors and seven seats rather than two and four respectively.

Details of the concept’s powertrain are yet to be revealed, though like all new SPA-based models it will be equipped with a member of the company’s new ‘Drive-E’ family of four-cylinder engines.

The Volvo Concept XC Coupe will official debut in Detroit on January 13.