Volvo does not build many cars like the Volvo YCC: a 3-door coupe with 2.5 , built from 2004 in the decade of stability control, dual-clutch gearboxes and the first serious hybrids. Its designer of record is Anna Rosén.
The story
The Volvo YCC ("Your Concept Car") is a concept car made by Volvo Cars presented at the 2004 Geneva Motor Show, with the stated goal of meeting the particular needs of female drivers. In order to do so, Volvo assembled a design team entirely made up of women, around October 2001. It was an exercise in ergonomics from the perspective of a female driver. Those who were involved during the several stages of the project were: Maria Widell Christiansen, Eva-Lisa Andersson, Elna Holmberg, Maria Uggla, Camilla Palmertz, Cynthia Charwick, Anna Rosén, Lena Ekelund, and Tatiana Butovitsch Temm. The concept is a three-door, four-seat coupe design, with two gull-wing doors for entry into the car. It also has an upwards-opening hatchback door giving access to the trunk and cargo area. All three doors are motorized for a sensor-based “keyless” entry. Pressing on a single button on the keychain automatically opens the nearest door, making it easy for somebody holding bags of groceries or other sundries to get the things in the car without putting anything down.
The interior was designed for easy storage and good looks. All of the textile panels or textile parts such as the seat pads or the door sides can be removed easily to change the color schemes and vary textures. The headrests have indentations to accommodate ponytails. The shifting column and the hand brake were removed from the center console to give the front-seat passengers easier access to the large storage compartments located within the dashboard. The rear seat can fold up, making it easy for the driver to get a fairly big i
What is underneath
Under the skin sits 2.5 . The gearbox is a 6-speed Powershift. The layout matters: a front engine drives the rear wheels, the classic proportion — long bonnet, cabin set back — that most people picture when they picture a sports saloon or a grand tourer. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
Its place in the line
On a showroom list of its day it stood against the Chrysler 300, the Hyundai Tucson, the Ford Mustang. Nearby in the Volvo catalogue sit the Volvo 144 and the Volvo 264 TE.