Volvo XC60 Wins Prestigious 2010 International Truck of the Year Award

Holy Cow! Just realized we started this blog November 24, 2008. Our goal was to support XC60 launch, but it also gave us an opportunity to look inside what we do. What a fitting one-year anniversary then to have XC60 acknowledged at this week’s Los Angeles Auto Show. No one person in our company can stand and take credit for this car. Earlier this year, we videoed, for this blog, just a few of my colleagues who helped launch XC60 (here, here and here), but there are thousands behind each one of us who go unnamed. One brick doesn’t make a home, same with taking a clean piece of paper in one hand and dream of what can be in the other. In truth, launching a new car takes everyone at Volvo. We believe this is the safest SUV and we believe it will advance safety thinking for years to come. In one way or another, everyone has done something to bring about this award.

Thanks for being part of our blog.

Kind regards,

dan

UPDATE: Check out this video for more on the XC60′s award: http://www.youtube.com/user/VolvoXC60

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LOS ANGELES (Dec. 2, 2009) – The Volvo XC60 was named 2010 International Truck of the Year today by the International Car of the Year (ICOTY) jury. The award was given to Doug Speck, President and CEO of Volvo Cars of North America, LLC at the Volvo display at the 2009 Los Angeles Auto Show. The XC60 was chosen over 10 new crossovers, SUVs and trucks by a distinguished panel of top automotive journalists.

“This ties a very pretty bow around what’s been a truly amazing year for Volvo,” commented Speck. “The XC60 has not only been recognized by the media but it’s been extremely well received by our customers.” The 2010 XC60 has helped VCNA earn six consecutive months of year-over-year sales increases since June.

The XC60 was chosen the winner from a panel of 19 automotive media from around the U.S. and Canada representing top newspapers, magazines and websites. The jurors must consider the ICOTY mission of “honoring vehicles that reflect an emotional connection between car and consumer lifestyles” when making their nominations. “The ICOTY awards are not centered on power and performance,” said Courtney Caldwell, ICOTY’s creator and executive producer. “It’s about how cars reflect our personalities, lifestyles and self image, an attitude most consumers identify with.”

Once approved by the ICOTY nominating committee, the awards jury then bases their decision on a number of important criteria: The vehicle must be new or substantially revised, it must be offered for sale to the general public by the judging deadline of November 16, 2009, and may not have been previously considered for the ICOTY Awards.

The International Truck of the Year award marks the 20^th accolade the Volvo XC60 has received since sales began in Europe in late 2008. The XC60 is the first vehicle to offer City Safety as standard equipment. This unique Volvo technology can help the driver avoid frontal collisions at low speed. If the driver is about to drive into the rear of a vehicle and does not react in time, the XC60 will apply the brakes by itself.

About ICOTY: The ICOTY Awards were founded and launched in 1997 by Courtney Caldwell, editor-in-chief of Road & Travel Magazine. The mission of the ICOTY Awards is to shed light on the emotional connection between cars and consumers. Awards are presented to automakers that most successfully achieve that goal through the design and marketing of their vehicles, and how well those vehicles reflect consumer lifestyles.

Tags: Doug Speck, INTERNATIONAL TRUCK OF THE YEAR, itoty, Volvo XC60