- click picture for the Heico Sportiv XC60 gallery -

Dedicated Volvo tuner Heico Sportiv has turned its attention on the new XC60 with new upgrades for the compact crossover. The German-based firm’s exterior package is limited to the body colored bumpers and the addition of a front lip spoiler and a rear skirt that incorporates a new set of tailpipes. Also available for the XC60 are custom alloy wheels in different styles and sizes and a sport suspension kit that that brings the crossover 30mm closer to the ground.

Heico Spotiv has developed a new ECU for both diesel and petrol variants of the XC60. The reprogrammed ECU helps boost output of both the diesel units to 210HP, while the 285HP T6 turbocharged gasoline engine gains an extra 30HP for a total of 315HP.

Wouldn’t you be surprised if you found out you’re using a Volvo key to start the engine of your $120,000 V8 Vantage? While under the ownership of Ford, Aston Martin was able to use the Blue Oval’s parts bin to cut costs. Save for some switchgear and nav systems, only a few items were visible to the customer. Until now…

Edward Legge, general manager of Rio Prestige hire, was perhaps the first to find out when he received the damaged key-fob back from a client.  The person borrowing the luxury GT somehow damaged the rich leather covering the fob, revealing a Volvo logo underneath. ‘Our reaction was amusement and slight horror. We all know they share parts, but you would have thought someone would have invested a tenner to rub the name off,’ he says.

Aston Martin is now owned by a consortium headed by Prodrive boss Dave Richards, but Ford still have a £40m stake in the company. The firm points out it is moving from old-tech keys to new ‘Emotion Control Units’, the glass-block keys you’ll find in a DBS.

[Source: Car Magazine]

Volvo has announced that it will give us our first taste of the next generation S60 saloon at the Detroit International Motor Show in January 2009 with the unveiling of the S60 Concept car. Although No exterior photos were revealed, the Swedish automaker did release a 3D impression of the concept car’s cabin. This will features a 1.6 meter (5.2 feet) long floating crystal center stack, which has been developed in cooperation with world-famous Swedish glassworks Orrefors.

While no other details were released, our sources say Volvo’s next generation mid-size sedan will be loosely based on the underpinnings of the new Ford Mondeo with the production version slated to hit showrooms in 2010.