R&D Chief Mertens Announces T8 drivetrain could be made to produce 600 horsepower
BMW has M-Division, Mercedes Benz has AMG, and Volvo has Polestar. While not as well known as the other others, their handiwork is no less impressive. Polestar has recently built some of the most potent four-cylinder drivetrains available.
The Polestar versions of the S60 and V60, for example make 362 horsepower from a twin turbocharged four-cylinder engine. Rumors are swirling that Volvo’s in-house tuner is working on engines for the S90 and V70 wagon.
The most powerful T8 hybrid-electric versions of these cars use the same four-cylinder twin turbo engines to produce 450 horsepower. To make a more powerful version, Polestar would use a larger electric motor than the current 87 horsepower motor driving the rear wheels of the current T8 models. R&D chief, Peter Mertens says that the T8 hybrid powertrain could be made to produce as much as 600 horsepower models, enabling them to compete with the best of what BMW and Mercedes-AMG has to offer.
While Volvo has confirmed that there will be Polestar versions for both vehicles, it is not known if it will be the same engine R&D chief Mertens speaks of. If Volvo does end up producing such an engine, Mertens says he would like to see it on sale stateside.
Let us not forget that potent, high performance cars for sale in the United Sttaes. Remember Volvo’s T5 sedan and wagoin that put out 400 some odd horsepower several years ago, on par with BMW and AMG at the time.