Just when it's preparing for a North American debut, the all-new Volvo XC40 is entering its production phase. The small crossover will be manufactured at the Swedish company's Ghent plant in Belgium with the first customer-bound examples already rolling off the assembly lines.
With more than 13,000 orders already received, Volvo will be busy producing enough examples of the XC40 to in the next couple of months. The first customer cars will be delivered to their new owners early next year, according to Volvo.
"This is a proud day for Ghent, the company and all our employees here. The XC40 represents a bright future for Ghent and for Volvo Cars," Volvo Cars chief executive and president Hakan Samuelsson comments.
The XC40 is Volvo's first car based on the new CMA platform, developed in cooperation with Geely, which will also underpin all future models of the 40 series. The Ghent plant, where the XC40 will be manufactured, has been slightly expanded and restructured to meet the requirements of the new production processes. Currently, the facility also assembles the V40 and V40 Cross Country hatches, and the S60 and V60.
No less than 363 new robots have been installed in the factory, including a robot Volvo calls "The Beast." It's a large robot, which is unique within the Volvo global manufacturing system, which lifts lower car bodies to a conveyor belt close to the ceiling of the plant.
The new XC40 is already available to order in the United States with prices starting at $35,200 for the all-wheel-drive T5 model in base Momentum trim. The fancier R-Design version wears a price tag of $37,700 with the same T5 AWD setup. The most expensive XC40 costs $45,935.
Next summer, the lineup will be expanded with the addition of the more affordable front-wheel-drive T4, starting at $33,200.
