The Chinese, as you may know, own Volvo. They are also very fond of long wheelbase cars – not that they need the extra leg room. Put that lot together, and a long wheelbase Volvo is the inevitable result. This is the Volvo S60L, an LWB version of the European S60, being built exclusively for the Chinese market.

China is now Volvo’s second home market, thanks to the production facilities provided by Geely, the owner. Since the launch of its China Growth Plan in 2011, Volvo Cars has booked great progress in China and starting series production in the Chengdu plant is the latest proof point of this rapid expansion.

They seem to on track to achieve their goal of 800,000 cars a year globally. So far in 2013, sales number in China has been up by 40 percent compared to the same period in 2012. Chinese sales are driven by the XC60, S60 and V60 models, while the Volvo V40 has also been received very well by Chinese customers. The new Volvo S60L Long Wheelbase is expected to become the new best-seller for the brand.

Volvo has over 2,000 employees in China, around half of which work at the Volvo Cars China headquarters in Shanghai. They also own 150 dealerships across the country, 50 of which have been built within that last two years.