Volvo previews next S60

This is the first glimpse of the next-generation Volvo S60, due to make its debut in concept form at January's Detroit Motor Show before hitting showrooms early 2010.

Unfortunately the Swedish maker has only revealed the car's centre console, but it's far from ordinary. The 'floating' centre stack introduced with the current S40 will make an appearance in the new S60, so to emphasise that fact Volvo has fashioned it in hand-made crystal.

Look through the crystal, so to speak, and you'll see the basis of the new S60's cabin. It's unfussy and modern, taking the fundamentals started by the S40 to the next level. The minimalistic four button configuration and removable remote control you see here will make way for a more conventional fascia on the production version, but the basic high-set arc will remain.

As will, probably, the peculiarly shaped gear selector, which sits horizontally when in auto mode, but can be flipped into a conventional vertical position for manual changes.

Built by specialist Swedish glassworks Orrefors, Volvo reckons the centre stack looks like a waterfall, though we think it looks like an ice sculpture, ready to melt all over the carpet as soon as the engine starts.

Unsurprisingly, Volvo has no plans to put the solid crystal sculpture into production, though intriguingly claims it may now 'use crystal on a smaller scale in the future.'

Mark Nichol