S80 R-Design Package Coming?

For this month at least Volvo is enjoying a year-over-year sales increase of 26%, bringing sales up to 6,441 from 5,124. Whether or not that continues in the coming months remain to be seen, but the brand definitely has a solid lineup of vehicles like the XC60 and S80 to chose from. The S80 might be getting even more attractive, if a new report out of Autocar is to be believed.

Last month, Volvo released the R-Design package for the XC60 Crossover SUV. I liked the changes a lot, thinking they improved the look quite a bit. Unlike the R performance package (for instance S60R), R-Design is purely appearance, aside from a few changes to ride height and suspension settings.

Volvo has been reluctant to add the package to the S80 model, most likely concerned about potential sales of the trim line. “We will gauge reaction before we bring out a full R-Design for the S80,” says Volvo product manager Chris Wailes.

I hope they do end up bringing out a package for the S80, I think it would be a really nice addition to the lineup. I already like the S80 and the R-Design would make it even better. In other news about the S80, Volvo is also rumored to be considering bringing the start/stop technology used on other Volvos to the S80. Again cost is a factor as well as sales. Kind of boring! Come on Volvo, just pull the trigger on the R-Design at least. I'm sure it will be worth it!