car new modifications | modifications including a new car |All about New Car Automotive

In addition to filling RideLust’s daily “cool stuff” requirement, the pair of 2004 Volvo XC90’s built by LEGOLAND® California also take care of our obligatory Volvo-love too.

Full gallery after the jump

Press Release [via SeriousWheels.com]: Volvo Cars of North America, LLC (VCNA) and LEGOLAND® California are joining forces to promote driving safety and family values. As part of the recently announced partnership agreement between the subsidiaries of the two Scandinavian icons, a replica of Volvo’s award-winning SUV, the Volvo XC90, was constructed of LEGO’s famous modeling bricks.

The Volvo XC90 made of LEGO bricks was built by LEGO Master Model Builders, members of an elite team of talented artists who design, create and maintain the thousands of LEGO brick models at LEGOLAND® California. Constructed at the U.S. headquarters for LEGO Systems, Inc. in Enfield, Conn., the Master Builders began production of the Volvo XC90 in January 2004. Noted as one of the top-three most gratifying projects of its kind for the Master Builders, the intricate stages of assembly were captured with time-lapse photography.

As the recognized leader of safety in the automotive industry, Volvo is the “Official Car” of LEGOLAND® California and will work with the theme park to bring messages of driving safety to the park’s 1.3 million annual visitors. The Volvo XC90 made of LEGO bricks, although not drivable, will stand at the park entrance as a symbol of the two companies’ commitment to safety and family.

“The partnership is a perfect fit with our ‘Drive - for Life’ initiative that focuses on affecting driver behavior and safety,” said Vic Doolan, president and CEO of VCNA. “We will be working with LEGOLAND to develop innovative safety awareness activities.”

Recently, LEGOLAND®’s popular Driving School (ages 6 to 13) and its Jr. Driving School (ages 3 to 5) were reintroduced to carry Volvo’s name and reputation for safety. These popular park attractions offer children the opportunity to drive electric-powered vehicles made to look like LEGO bricks within the controlled environment of the drive course. The rules of the road are emphasized, as well as good safety habits such as buckling up seatbelts.

“By encouraging safety as a learned behavior at an early age, we all benefit - it’s never too early to learn about the rules of the road,” said Doolan.

“We specialize in family education and entertainment,” said John Jakobsen, president and GM of LEGOLAND® California. “Our partnership with Volvo brings the type of quality and reputation that our visitors expect from their experience in the park. We could almost consider our driving programs a public service, in addition to fun and adventure,” he said.

VCNA, part of the Volvo Car Corporation of Gothenburg, Sweden, provides marketing, sales, parts, service, technology and training support to Volvo automobile retailers in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Puerto Rico.

In addition to the award-winning XC90, the Volvo automobile line is comprised of: the 2004.5 all-new S40 sedan; the sporty S60 sedan – including the award-winning performance sedan – S60 R, and its performance wagon counterpart – the V70 R; the flagship S80 luxury sedan; versatile V70 wagon and rugged XC70 (Cross Country); the C70 convertible; and, the compact S40 and V40 models.

LEGOLAND California is a 128-acre theme park geared specifically towards youngsters ages two through 12. With more than 50 family rides, “hands-on” attractions and shows, LEGOLAND California provides education, adventure and fun in this first park of its kind in the United States.

In addition to LEGOLAND California, there are three other LEGOLAND parks in the world - LEGOLAND Billund in Denmark; LEGOLAND Windsor, outside of London; and LEGOLAND Deutschland in Germany.

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From Autopia: the Swedish safety moguls at Volvo are bound and determined to put an injury-proof car on the road by the year 2020. To do this, researchers are currently studying the African locusts in an attempt to integrate the little bugger’s “sensory-input routing methodologies” with Volvo’s computerized safety features. If thousands of the locusts are able to travel in swarms without constantly hitting each other, shouldn’t people during their morning commute be able to do the same thing? Volvo thinks so, and that’s why they’ve partnered with Dr. Claire Rind and the Insect Vision Laboratory at the University of Newcastle in London. Although studies have revealed that the locusts’ inherent algorithms are far more advanced then the current technology, Volvo has been steadily working since 2002 to adapt the Locust Principle for their cars. “We still have many years of research ahead to bring that small locust brain into our cars,” said Jonas Ekmark, director of preventive safety at Volvo, but it’s not an impossible task and by 2020, Volvo hopes to match the African locust’s internal processing system beat for beat.

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SPECIFICATIONS:

Model: 2010 Volvo XC60 AWD
Engine: 3.0-liter /DOHC inline 6
Horsepower/Torque: 281 hp @ 5,600 rpm/297 lb.-ft. @ 1,500-4,800 rpm
Transmission: 6-speed driver-adaptive automatic
Wheelbase: 109.2 in.
Length/Width/Height: 182.2 x 74.4 x 67.4 in.
Tires: 235/60-R18
Cargo volume: 30.8/67.4 cu. ft. (seats up/down)
Fuel economy: 16 mpg city/22 mpg highway (est.)
Fuel capacity: 18.5 gal.
Sticker Price: Base Model Under $40,000

The Bottom Line: Volvo’s new XC60 crossover is an excellent package, as might be expected from Volvo. It is a decent size (one hesitates to call it a stylish wagon), has excellent power and road manners, and comes with a wealth of safety features, including City Safety, that is an amazing new technology designed to eliminate low-speed crashes.

Volvo is jumping with both feet into the burgeoning crossover market with its new XC60. The XC nomenclature indicates that the new vehicle might be classified as a sport utility, but it’s closer to a wagon in size and Volvo has chosen ”crossover” as its market.

Intended to compete with the BMW X3 and the Infiniti FX, the XC60 displays beautiful styling with a rounded theme that would shock some old Volvo fans. Externally, the XC60 is striking, even though all the vehicles in our test group were the same color.

In fact, we stopped along the introduction route to take some pictures with the Pacific Ocean in the background. While we were parked there, a California Highway Patrol car (Expedition) showed up. The officer asked about all the same-color Volvos he had seen coming at him. We explained that this was the introduction of the car, allowed him to kick the tires and look around, and made good relations with the CHiPs. We may have even sold a car.

The XC60 is equipped with Volvo’s 3.0-liter inline six engine developing 281 horsepower and 295 lb.-ft. of torque. With a curb weight of slightly over 4100 pounds, this was more than enough power to get us in trouble, if we looked for it.

We had to be cautious, though, as we were driving European-spec cars with metric speedometers. We were constantly calculating what 110 kph meant in mph (68.2), so we generally tried to stay with traffic and be “invisible.” 0A

One feature of the Euro-spec cars was the convex rearview mirror on the driver’s side. We’ve become accustomed to the one on the passenger side, but on the driver’s side it was confusing at the start.

As usual, the XC60 is filled with all Volvo’s excellent safety features. One new feature is called City Safety. A laser sensor mounted behind the inside rearview mirror determines the location of the vehicle in front. It is active at speed sup to 19 mph. If the vehicle in front brakes suddenly and City Safety determines that a collision is likely, the brakes are pre-charged. If the driver fails to respond, the car applies the brakes automatically. In our tests, the application was sudden and we stopped less than a foot from the obstacle.

Volvo says City Safety should help reduce accidents, which is the best safety system.

In addition, the DSTC (Dynamic Stability Traction Control) function has been improved to provide more stable driving. We were thoroughly impressed with the manners of the XC60 over all kinds of winding roads, some with gravel surfaces. Volvo stresses that this is not an of-road car, but a road car that can handle moderate off-road situations.

On the road, the XC60 offers an excellent ride. On rough, pothole-strewn roads, the ride quality tends to be harsh, but it smoothes out once the roads improve. My co-driver was from Chicago and we had fun playing “can you top this” with regard to our home town’s poor roads.

We drove over California’s Route 1 north of San Francisco. This is a wonderful road with lots of turns and switchbacks that can make you arm-weary after an hour of two. There are few cars that can handle a road like this with the aplomb of the XC60.

We used the navigation system and found a little switch package behind the steering wheel that made all the adjustments to the screen that you normally have to stretch to use. We could change the scale of the map, shift it, or run through a menu of choices all from the wheel.

The XC60 comes equipped with a veritable plethora of acronymic safety systems, BLIS, ABS, CS, etc.

With all the XC60’s safety features, they can sometimes be disconcerting. We expected the “attach your seatbelt” warning beep to be intrusive, but didn’t expect it to increase in intensity the longer we waited to attach our belts. And there was an occasional beeping to the first notes of the William Tell Overture that had no apparent reason for happening. We did like the warning (a coffee cup is displayed in the instrument panel) that suggested it was time for a break.

The comfortable seats in our tester were two-toned, with a nice design. Two color combinations are offered. I would have liked more side support to the seats, especially with some of the roads we traveled.

Rear seat legroom and knee room is excellent. This is a comfortable five-passenger vehicle.

Behind the second row seats is a considerable cargo area. In addition, the rear seat backs fold (40-20-40) to increase capacity considerably.

Atop the dash, in a small nacelle, is a readout of the HVAC and audio settings. At first, this seems to jut out, but in a short time you barely notice it until you want to. It’s a great location.

The XC60 will be labeled a 2010 model, with vehicles appearing in dealerships in late March or early April 2009. It offers a lot. At the time of the introduction pricing had not yet been determined. The comment that was made was that it is built to compete with the BMW and Infiniti, therefore pricing will be in the same ballpark. Let’s hope it isn’t way out in left field.

SPECIFICATIONS:

Model: 2010 Volvo XC60 AWD
Engine: 3.0-liter /DOHC inline 6
Horsepower/Torque: 281 hp @ 5,600 rpm/297 lb.-ft. @ 1,500-4,800 rpm
Transmission: 6-speed driver-adaptive automatic
Wheelbase: 109.2 in.
Length/Width/Height: 182.2 x 74.4 x 67.4 in.
Tires: 235/60-R18
Cargo volume: 30.8/67.4 cu. ft. (seats up/down)
Fuel economy: 16 mpg city/22 mpg highway (est.)
Fuel capacity: 18.5 gal.
Sticker Price: Base Model Under $40,000

The Bottom Line: Volvo’s new XC60 crossover is an excellent package, as might be expected from Volvo. It is a decent size (one hesitates to call it a stylish wagon), has excellent power and road manners, and comes with a wealth of safety features, including City Safety, that is an amazing new technology designed to eliminate low-speed crashes.

Volvo is jumping with both feet into the burgeoning crossover market with its new XC60. The XC nomenclature indicates that the new vehicle might be classified as a sport utility, but it’s closer to a wagon in size and Volvo has chosen ”crossover” as its market.

Intended to compete with the BMW X3 and the Infiniti FX, the XC60 displays beautiful styling with a rounded theme that would shock some old Volvo fans. Externally, the XC60 is striking, even though all the vehicles in our test group were the same color.

In fact, we stopped along the introduction route to take some pictures with the Pacific Ocean in the background. While we were parked there, a California Highway Patrol car (Expedition) showed up. The officer asked about all the same-color Volvos he had seen coming at him. We explained that this was the introduction of the car, allowed him to kick the tires and look around, and made good relations with the CHiPs. We may have even sold a car.

The XC60 is equipped with Volvo’s 3.0-liter inline six engine developing 281 horsepower and 295 lb.-ft. of torque. With a curb weight of slightly over 4100 pounds, this was more than enough power to get us in trouble, if we looked for it.

We had to be cautious, though, as we were driving European-spec cars with metric speedometers. We were constantly calculating what 110 kph meant in mph (68.2), so we generally tried to stay with traffic and be “invisible.” 0A

One feature of the Euro-spec cars was the convex rearview mirror on the driver’s side. We’ve become accustomed to the one on the passenger side, but on the driver’s side it was confusing at the start.

As usual, the XC60 is filled with all Volvo’s excellent safety features. One new feature is called City Safety. A laser sensor mounted behind the inside rearview mirror determines the location of the vehicle in front. It is active at speed sup to 19 mph. If the vehicle in front brakes suddenly and City Safety determines that a collision is likely, the brakes are pre-charged. If the driver fails to respond, the car applies the brakes automatically. In our tests, the application was sudden and we stopped less than a foot from the obstacle.

Volvo says City Safety should help reduce accidents, which is the best safety system.

In addition, the DSTC (Dynamic Stability Traction Control) function has been improved to provide more stable driving. We were thoroughly impressed with the manners of the XC60 over all kinds of winding roads, some with gravel surfaces. Volvo stresses that this is not an of-road car, but a road car that can handle moderate off-road situations.

On the road, the XC60 offers an excellent ride. On rough, pothole-strewn roads, the ride quality tends to be harsh, but it smoothes out once the roads improve. My co-driver was from Chicago and we had fun playing “can you top this” with regard to our home town’s poor roads.

We drove over California’s Route 1 north of San Francisco. This is a wonderful road with lots of turns and switchbacks that can make you arm-weary after an hour of two. There are few cars that can handle a road like this with the aplomb of the XC60.

We used the navigation system and found a little switch package behind the steering wheel that made all the adjustments to the screen that you normally have to stretch to use. We could change the scale of the map, shift it, or run through a menu of choices all from the wheel.

The XC60 comes equipped with a veritable plethora of acronymic safety systems, BLIS, ABS, CS, etc.

With all the XC60’s safety features, they can sometimes be disconcerting. We expected the “attach your seatbelt” warning beep to be intrusive, but didn’t expect it to increase in intensity the longer we waited to attach our belts. And there was an occasional beeping to the first notes of the William Tell Overture that had no apparent reason for happening. We did like the warning (a coffee cup is displayed in the instrument panel) that suggested it was time for a break.

The comfortable seats in our tester were two-toned, with a nice design. Two color combinations are offered. I would have liked more side support to the seats, especially with some of the roads we traveled.

Rear seat legroom and knee room is excellent. This is a comfortable five-passenger vehicle.

Behind the second row seats is a considerable cargo area. In addition, the rear seat backs fold (40-20-40) to increase capacity considerably.

Atop the dash, in a small nacelle, is a readout of the HVAC and audio settings. At first, this seems to jut out, but in a short time you barely notice it until you want to. It’s a great location.

The XC60 will be labeled a 2010 model, with vehicles appearing in dealerships in late March or early April 2009. It offers a lot. At the time of the introduction pricing had not yet been determined. The comment that was made was that it is built to compete with the BMW and Infiniti, therefore pricing will be in the same ballpark. Let’s hope it isn’t way out in left field.