Volvo is hardly known for exciting automobiles, never mind ones that are meant to go fast. Though the Swedish automaker has been changing their models to be more hip and stylish over the recent years, the vast majority would still find the words “great looking Volvo race car” to be an oxymoron.

But that is exactly what the Volvo S60 TTA is – a great looking Volvo race car. Its mean low profile and perfectly executed widebody does the light blue paint justice. But more importantly, it just looks like a real race car despite obviously being a Volvo at the same time.

The S60 TTA will be competing in the Swedish Racing Elite League and features a carbon fiber body, vented hood, aerodynamically-tuned side skirts, and a race-typical rear spoiler. Four-piston calipers with 14.6-inch rotors up front and 14.2-inch rotors in the rear handle braking duties while the S60 TTA will race on 18-inch wheels.

Under the hood is a hybrid V6 powerplant with 420-hp mated to a six-speed sequential transmission. Two teams will be competing with the S60 TTA, Volvo Polestar Racing and Volvo Polestar Performance. The three drivers that are confirmed to pilot these magnificent race machines are Robert Dahlgren, Fredrik Ekblom, and Thed Björk.

For decades, the Volvo brand was the epitome of safety. Many perceived the Swedish automaker’s models to be bland and boring, but one thing was for sure: they were built like tanks.

Nowadays though, Volvo has developed a reputation for having sportier vehicles while maintaining the safety standards they established throughout the years. And now their 2012 S60 has joined the ranks of Chevrolet‘s Camaro in becoming the second vehicle ever to score perfect ratings in every category of NHTSA crash testing, since they changed the standards in 2011.

The three tests that the S60 aced with no issues were a 35-mph frontal collision, a 38.5-mph side impact and a 20-mph simulation of a side crash into a pole. All three sound incredibly uncomfortable and hopefully no one ever has to put their vehicle to the test; but certainly it’s nice to know if you own an S60 that you’re more than protected if the circumstances does arise.

Check out a trio of crash videos after the break, because we always love watching cars get demolished on purpose.

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The results for the most successful cars of 2011 so far are in. Automotive data and marketing solutions company Polk has calculated the results from the first six months of 2011 new vehicle registrations and have come up with the top picks for non-premium and premium models.

These results look at model-level performance and determine which ones are doing well so far this year. It’s also important to note that the March Japanese earthquake/tsunamis have had an impact on these results, and the inventory shortages for Toyota and Honda caused by the disaster have impacted the June 2011 CYTD (Calendar Year To Date) retail results for these brands.

Here’s a list of the winners so far, along with the June 2011 CYTD year-over-year improvements in new retail registrations.

Non-Premium

1. Hyundai Sonata (+32%)

2. Volkswagen Jetta (+69%)

3. Ford Fiesta (not on sale in 2010)

4. Chevrolet Cruze/Cobalt (+178%)

5. Jeep Grand Cherokee (+170%)

Other non-premium models that performed well in the first half of 2011 include the Optima, Regal, 200/Sebring, Durango, Elantra and Equinox.

Premium

1. Cadillac CTS (+54%)

2. BMW 5-Series (+56%)

3. Jaguar XJ (+273%)

4. Porsche Cayenne (+178%)

5. BMW X3 (+276%)

An honorable mention goes out to the Volvo S60, another premium model that has performed well in 2011.

[Source: Polk]

Hot on the heels of Volvo announcing their Performance Concept Prototype C30, Volvo Car Australia has pulled the wraps off their S60 Performance Project, a collaboration between Volvo, Heico and Polestar. Starting with an S60 T6 R Design, the Australian tuners has increased horsepower by 24-hp to 324-hp and torque has gone up close to 30 lb-ft of torque to 354 lb-ft.

No details were released on how the performance gain was achieved, but a the release did state a new exhaust system is on the Performance Project along with 19-inch wheels with Pirelli tires. Suspension is also upgraded on the sedan, lowering the vehicle by .6-inch with 15-percent stiffer springs with 20-percent stiffer bushings than the regular S60.

Volvo Car Australia is currently gauging interest in their S60 Performance Project and depending on demand, they may be building the S60 in limited numbers.

GALLERY: Volvo S60 Performance Project

Like the waistline of its parent country’s bikini models, Volvo is considering trimming down—cutting its product line in half, including its legendary wagons.

Volvo CEO Stefan Jacoby believes that in America, its core products are the S60, the XC60 and XC90 SUVs. That means no more S40, no goofy-but-unloved C30 hatchback, and perhaps most egregious of all: no more V50 and V70 wagons. What is Volvo without its longroofs? Who knows, but there will likely be some members of Ithaca, New York’s Free Tibet chapter who will be sorely disappointed.

As Volvo aims to sell 120,000 cars annually—it is currently pushing less than half of that, at 53,948 vehicles for 2010—it is also considering its own captive finance division through its dealers. It will need to ink a deal with a major financial institution, as right now Volvo only offers financing through U.S. Bank.

[Source: AutoNews via Autoblog]

Chinese automaker Zhejiang Geely Holding Group spent $1.7 billion last year to acquire Volvo from Ford Motor Co.,and now plans to spend as much as $11 billion on Volvo products and facilities over the next five years.

Doug Speck, CEO of Volvo Cars of North America, says a growth strategy for the United States will be completed by the end of next month. He explains that the plan will call for new vehicles and possibly an American plant.

Speck expects 60,000 to 70,000 cars. He explains there is some uncertainty related to what the effect of the Japanese disaster will be in terms of production. Speck also explained that 2011 sales will be predominantly driven by the S60. Speck said, “We could easily see ourselves selling 15,000 to 20,000 S60s this year — a huge increment year-on-year from that car line”.

[Source: Automotive News]

For Volvo, being naughty has paid off: the new S60 sedan was voted International Sedan of the Year at the New York Auto Show.

“Receiving the International Sedan of the Year award demonstrates that the advanced technology, safety features, masterful Scandinavian design and award-winning engine resonate with industry experts,” said Jeff Pugliese, president of Volvo Canada.

The 12-person jury, comprised of automotive journalists, was the same committee that voted the Nissan Leaf International Car of the Year for 2011. The S60 may be new, but it was praised for its dependability.

Click here to read AutoGuide’s 2011 Volvo S60 T6 review

Click here to read AutoGuide’s 2011 Volvo S60 T5 review

Volvo is sponsoring baseball coverage for MLB.TV for the month of April, providing free streaming baseball coverage to fans as long as they can sit through some ads for the new S60 sedan.

Volvo, whose baseball presence includes a massive billboard at Fenway Park’s Green Monster, is making out-of-market baseball games available through the iPhone app “At Bat,” which costs $14.99 through Apple’s App Store. Regular coverage of MLB.com costs $25 for a monthly premium package otherwise.

The company’s previous sports sponsorship efforts include sponsoring Big East NCAA basketball for the past two years, and this time they’re reaching out to baseball fans with the new S60 sedan, the “naughty” Volvo. Before Volvo, what was even naughtier than that? Re-broadcasting Major League Baseball with implied oral consent, not express written consent—or so the legend goes.

[Source: New York Times]

Read AuoGuide’s 2011 Volvo S60 Review here

K-Pax Racing has fielded a team of Volvos in the SCCA’s World Challenge season with considerable success over the past few years and have announced they continue to do so in 2011.

With the series set to get underway at St. Petersburg, Fla., in late March, the new cars won’t debut until April at Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah. Until then we’ll have to settle with a teaser of the 2011 S60 model.

With it, K-Pax is looking to defend its Manufacturers’ and Drivers’ championships from last year.

Each spring, a jury of 66 automotive journalists from around the globe get together to pick a winner for the World Car of the Year title. The journalists are asked to vote by secret ballot, selecting the winner from 10 cars that have made the final cut.

For the 2011 awards, those finalists have now been announced. They are:  Audi A1, Audi A8, BMW 5-Series, BMW X3, Jaguar XJ, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG (shown above), Nissan LEAF, Porsche Cayenne and Volvo S60/V60.

And yes, the much hyped Chevrolet Volt didn’t make the cut this time around, perhaps next year when it becomes more widely available.

Now that the finalists for this year’s awards have been announced, the jurors will ‘re-evaluate’ each vehicle on merit, value, safety, emotional appeal, significance and environmental impact. Once the findings of these evaluations have been tabulated, the shortlist will be whittled down to three vehicles, which will be announced at the Geneva Auto Show next month. The actual World Car of Year winner, will be announced at the New York International Auto Show on April 21st; the final ballots being tabulated by international accounting firm KPMG.

The World Car Awards were first instigated in 2003 to reflect a more global automotive landscape and complement existing national and regional Car of the Year award programs.

Past WCOTY winners have generally been cars that have proved popular in many countries around the world. The first car to actually win the accolade, back in 2005, was the Audi A6, while past winners have included other top selling cars such as the BMW 3-Series; Mazda 2 and Volkswagen Golf.