Volvo brings Polestar Performance in-house

Volvo Cars has stepped up its longstanding cooperative agreement with the Swedish motorsport/tuning operation Polestar Performance AB by purchasing the firm. Much like Mercedes-Benz did when it acquired AMG, Volvo plans to significantly expand its involvement with the organization. Volvo will use Polestar as the specific model designation for all of its upcoming high performance cars – including models that incorporate it new-gen Twin Engine hybrid-electric technology. 

Also: Class of 2016 — New Cars Ready to Roll 

Håkan Samuelsson, president and CEO of Volvo Cars, expects the buyout to boost sales of the Polestar-spec Volvo S60 sedan and V60 wagon models that will be manufactured from 750 in 2015 to roughly 1,000-1,500 units annually in the medium term – including a rumored Polestar-enhanced version of the new XC90 SUV. Volvo also will benefit from dealer and aftermarket sales of various Polestar-developed performance optimization kits for its existing models.  

Also: Kelley Blue Book Best Buy Awards of 2015

While the highly successful Polestar racing team is slated to get a new name, it will continue to operate under the direction previous owner Christian Dahl. "We are extremely satisfied with the way the performance business with Volvo has developed, noted Dahl. "But we are a racing team first and foremost. This is an opportunity to return our full attention to our core business – to develop and race Volvo cars."