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The new Volvo V60 is a sleek wagon with more semi-autonomy

The new Volvo V60 is a sleek wagon with more semi-autonomy

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The midsized wagon will also be available through Care by Volvo subscription plan

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2019 Volvo V60
2019 Volvo V60
Volvo Cars

Volvo is synonymous with wagons and practical transportation, but it has also made a name for itself in recent years with sleek designs. The new version of the V60 wagon carries over the theme set by the large V90 wagon that debuted two years ago.

The automaker showed the new V60 — which was built on similar underpinnings as the V90, S90, and XC90 large vehicles and the XC60 midsize SUV — on Wednesday at an event in Stockholm where Volvo wagons are a staple. The V60, introduced to the US in 2014, remains a niche vehicle in North America, but it’s popular across Europe. Rivals include the Audi A4 Allroad, BMW 3-Series Sport Wagon, and even the likes of the Subaru Outback.

Volvo said on Wednesday that it has upgraded its Pilot Assist driver assistance system for “improved cornering.” The system supports steering, braking, and accelerating inputs at speeds up to 80 mph. The City Safety automatic braking system now also tries to mitigate oncoming collisions.

In the US, the V60 will launch as a front-wheel drive version with 250 horsepower or an all-wheel drive version with 316 horsepower (both powered by gasoline engines). Elsewhere, the V60 will also be offered as a 390-horsepower plug-in hybrid or a new plug-in hybrid variant with 340 horsepower. Given Volvo’s pledge to electrify all of its cars by 2019, those models would seem destined for the US, too. But Jim Nichols, Volvo Cars North America product and technology communications manager, told The Verge Wednesday the decision to import the plug-ins has not been finalized and the gasoline-only versions will be the models offered when the V60 goes on sale here in early 2019.

The V60 will also be available in the US with the Care by Volvo subscription payment plan that launched last year with the small XC40 SUV. Owners can choose to finance, lease, or subscribe to the Volvo, with Care by Volvo covering everything except fuel under one monthly payment, and customers can choose to swap into a new Volvo in as little as 12 months.

The new V60 will be built in both Sweden and Belgium this year for global markets. Its sedan counterpart, the S60, will be the first product for Volvo’s Charleston, South Carolina, assembly plant that Volvo says will start producing cars late this year. The US-built S60 will be sold around the world, too and will be offered with similar engines as the V60. We’ll see the V60 up close next month at the Geneva Motor Show.

Update 7:25 pm ET: Added information about plug-in hybrid availability in the US.