Volvo ended 2018 strong by winning multiple awards for its cars and 360c autonomous concept, continuing its recent award-winning streak.
The award-winning cars in question are the Volvo XC40 and the XC90. Both SUVs placed in the 2019 Consumer Guide® Automotive Best Buys, and this is the third year in a row that the XC90 received a Consumer Guide Best Buy award. Volvo’s 360c Autonomous Concept also won Interior Design Best of the Year Award in the Automotive Innovation.
Want Something Midsized? Check out the XC60, a smaller cousin to the XC90
XC90
The XC90 earned the Supreme Winner of the 2018 Women’s World Car award; the only award where the judging panel is made up exclusively of women. This award focuses on criteria such as value compared to price, aesthetics, ease of driving, environmental footprint, and other qualities. Considering that the car market is dominated by women — who have a final say in 85 percent of all auto sales — Volvo must be feeling pretty confident right now.
XC40
The XC40, a compact-sized relative of the Volvo 90 line, made waves with its ergonomic design using the Compact Modular Architecture platform. This platform was introduced with the 2017 XC40, and it allows Volvo to include the same advanced features and technology you’d find in larger cars into compact vehicles. Volvo engineered the CMA with electrification in mind and deserves some bonus points for trying to snuff out its carbon footprint.
Vovlo’s Rising Star: The XC40 line is new but has already made headlines
360c Autonomous Concept
The 360c autonomous concept is Volvo’s simulation of a future where self-driving cars control the road. Good news: it’s way more optimistic than dystopian movies. Bad news: it’s not happening for a while. Self-driving technology is still in its early childhood, and it’ll take time even after manufacturers perfect the cars. Human drivers and autonomous ones will need to share the streets for a while, and that’s a completely different problem.
When that future arrives and self-driving cars dominate the roads, the face of transportation will look very different. Volvo predicts that the real-estate market won’t be restricted as much by the distance between work and home because driving will no longer be a time-consuming chore. Instead, it’ll be a chance to sleep, work, eat, or catch up on your favorite show. Eventually, Volvo thinks that the autonomous travel industry might become closely tied with businesses outside of automakers, where some employers might offer autonomous travel packages as a type of job benefit.
We’re looking forward to that. For now, Volvo seems to be setting itself up pretty well for the future, which might still include sedans.
Sources: Women’sWorldCOTY, YouTube
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