Volvo reportedly to build new crossover as 3rd vehicle at SC plant

A third vehicle might join the Volvo Cars production line in South Carolina in a few years, according to a report by a website that says the new crossover will sit between the automaker’s mid-sized and biggest sport-utility offerings.

Automotive News reported Feb. 8 that the unnamed vehicle would start production in 2025.

Volvo already builds the S60 sedan at its $1.2 billion plant off Interstate 26 near Ridgeville, and the successor to its popular XC90 SUV will be built in South Carolina starting in 2023. The crossover, identified only by its V546 codename, would be smaller than the XC90 replacement — reportedly called Embla — and larger than the automaker’s XC60.

Automotive News cited a pair of anonymous sources for its information, adding Volvo declined to comment for the report.

Volvo spokesman Jonathan Bruce in South Carolina told The Post and Courier that automaker “cannot comment on any future production or future vehicles at this time.”

Like the next-generation XC90 to be built in South Carolina, the unnamed crossover would be all-electric and feature advanced driver-assistance technology. The style will be similar to the Recharge concept that Volvo unveiled last year for its XC90 replacement. No other details were available, according to Automotive News.

In addition to the Volvo-branded vehicles, the automaker’s South Carolina factory will build the all-electric Polestar 3 this year for its high-performance sister brand. Volvo said in June that it will invest $118 million in upgrades to the Berkeley County plant to accommodate production of the Polestar EV.

Volvo announced it would build its only U.S. plant in South Carolina in 2015 and the first vehicle rolled off the production line three years later. The site employs about 1,500 workers and Volvo plans to hire hundreds more in coming months as the site ramps up for production of new vehicles.