With the interior of the Volvo S60 Concept, Steve Mattin, Design Director at Volvo Car Corporation, and his team are displaying a variety of spectacular next-generation ideas.
"You could say that we are showing the road we would like to take in the future. This interior is without doubt the most exclusive we have ever created," says Mattin.
When opening the parallelogram-shaped doors, they reveal an interior that creates a light, Scandinavian feeling that's full of visual harmony. In the middle of the four-seat car glitters the crown jewel: a floating centre stack crafted from handmade, solid Orrefors crystal crafted into a gentle, calm wave from the instrument panel to the rear seat backrest.
"It resembles a waterfall that flows down from the instrument panel and then courses along the middle of the car's interior," says Mattin.
The crystal panel is partially framed by polished aluminum trim and is cushioned on rubber pads. With the help of light sources, the crystal's shimmering glow can be tailored to match the driver's mood.
"If you want to explore the full scope of Scandinavian design, Sweden's glassworks are a natural source of inspiration," explains Mattin. "What is more, large glass panels are a central part of the very openness that characterises modern Swedish architecture."
Creativity and functionality
Although the material in the centre stack radiates uninhibited artistic freedom, the functions that are integrated have been thought through in every detail.
"We've put the focus on ergonomics and safety," explains Mattin. "With the combined instrument at the same height as the navigation screen, all it takes is a horizontal eye movement to switch between the sources of information. Another example is that the controls used when you start and stop driving are a few centimetres from each other near the gear selector."
Driver-oriented environment
The driver's environment has been designed to provide ergonomic, convenient control. The driver can access logical instrument read-outs, simplistic dials and buttons and sophisticated technology that monitors the surrounding traffic, ready to alert the driver in the event of a collision. The combined instrument cluster resembles a bumble-bee, with a round speedometer as the ‘body' flanked by two digital ‘wings' providing all other information.
"The speedometer is designed as a three-dimensional glass spiral," explains Mattin. "The low numbers appear closest to the eye and the figures appear to be increasingly distant as you accelerate. The idea is that the speedometer should provide a visual reminder of the force of the forward motion."
The instrument cluster was also designed to complement the centre stack's floating, weightless feel. With the gauges and read-outs incorporating several layers, gaps between the layers conceal vents that contribute to better airflow inside the cabin. The cluster's overall design incorporates a link to the athletic, exterior theme in the form of the unbroken copper line around the instrument that matches the concept car's paintwork.
Safety information in the heads-up display
Above the instrument cluster, the driver receives information and alerts from the preventive safety systems via the windscreen's heads-up display. Information from the car's Blind Spot Information System is integrated in the A-pillars.
Finally, the three-spoke steering wheel has integrated multifunctional rotating controls and the lightweight aluminum pedals echo the open design language of the concept car's wheels.
Volvo Cars of Canada Corp. is part of the Volvo Car Corporation of Göteborg, Sweden. The company provides marketing, sales, parts, service, technology and training support to the 42 Volvo automobile retailers across the country. The company's product range includes the stylish and sporty C30, the elegant C70 hardtop convertible, the compact S40 sedan, the S60 sport sedan, the S80 flagship sedan and the versatile V50 and V70 wagon. For customers looking for a Volvo vehicle with all-road capability, the company offers the versatile XC70 and XC90. Volvo Canada is also expanding its line-up with the introduction of the new XC60, a crossover with the award-winning City Safety system on the standard equipment list.
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Media Web site: https://www.media.volvocars.com/ca
