Part of its success is directly attributable to a newly minted Volvo philosophy; offer all-wheel drive on all models across the
 |
| The XC70 benefits from Volvo's new "all-wheel drive on all models" philosophy. (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press) |
board. This, among other things, such as dramatically elegant styling, dynamic performance, top notch interior quality and competitive pricing, has allowed it to gain market share while rising up from an entry-level premium brand to true premium status. Essential for that premium status is rear- or all-wheel drive. Premium customers don't buy in to front-wheel drive, at least for the most part. The collective position of company's such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz, which infer that rear-wheel drive as the optimal setup for sport-oriented performance, has been strengthened all the more by top-tier luxury newcomers such as Lexus and Infiniti. Even GM's Cadillac luxury division, which will have entirely abandoned front-wheel drive when the upcoming DTS soon replaces the DeVille, now preaches the merits of rear- and all-wheel drive. It should be mentioned that the old German guards have all recently come on-board with all-wheel drive
 |
| Premium customers don't buy in to front-wheel drive. (Photo: Volvo Cars of Canada) |
variants of their most popular models, but the stoic firms make sure to point out that the car's are rear-wheel biased until the need for all-wheel drive intervenes. Actually, only a handful of premium automakers still offer anything configured to power only the front wheels anymore. Audi only offers its recently updated Cabriolet with front-wheel drive, dubbed FrontTrak, while Acura, on the low end of the premium price line, only offers all-wheel drive on its MDX sport utility and recently introduced RL. Four-wheel power is expected as part of a mid-cycle TL upgrade, however, as well as the upcoming RXD compact sport utility.
