Volvo Car Corp. is ramping up production of the new Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid. After the initial batch of 1,000 model year 2013 cars, production will increase to 4,000 to 6,000 cars as of model year 2014.

The assembly of the world's first diesel plug-in hybrid has been successfully integrated on the same line as the company's other models at the Torslanda plant in Gothenburg, a major achievement for the company, considering that the plug-in hybrid technology includes two complete drive trains and a powerful battery that provides a range of up to 50km on pure electric power.

More than 300 More Parts
All the additional equipment and systems in the plug-in hybrid have led to parts of the final assembly line being rebuilt and modified. The adaption makes it possible to smoothly integrate the assembly of over 300 more parts that are included in the plug-in hybrid compared to an equivalent V60.

A couple of examples of the integrated production flow:
•    The electric motor along with its drive shafts is fitted on the same station as the final drive on the standard four-wheel drive models.
•    The cooling system and the high voltage cables are assembled on the Pallet, which is used to assemble the car's drive train and chassis parts.
•    The battery pack is lifted in through the car's tailgate short side forward. It is then spun a quarter of a turn in the passenger compartment - a manoeuvre that takes 60 seconds and carried out with less than 20mm to spare.

The Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid is the synthesis of close cooperation between Volvo Car Corp. and Swedish electricity supplier Vattenfall. The two companies have financed the development project jointly.