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YCC Volvo’s Tribute to Women
Looks like Volvo is becoming the “Lady’s Car” after all.
In the United States it is estimated that 54% of all Volvo buyers are women, and same thing is happening in Europe there is also an increasing percentage of female customers purchasing Volvo.
To give tribute to their increasing number of female customers, Volvo Cars has implemented an all-woman team to head up the design and development of the YCC (Your Concept Car) a vehicle especially designed to meet the needs of the most demanding women customers particularly the professional ones.
According to Hans-Olov Olsson, President and CEO of Volvo Car Corporation, "This is a fantastic opportunity for us. We can concentrate on the fast-growing group of women customers without losing the men. Because I'm certain that our male customers will love this concept car."
The Volvo YCC was introduced at the Geneva International Motor Show. And as promised the YCC concept was equipped with a host of features designed for women. Volvo has also employed its Ergovision technology, a system which scanned the whole body to come up with data containing the relative proportions of the customer thereby guiding the customer on the perfect driving position which are stored in digital form on his or her personal key unit. This technology is quite amazing since once the personal key is dock on the center console, the seat, steering wheel, pedals, head restraint, and seatbelt automatically adjust to suit the driver’s individual built. The driver’s heel rest was also designed to be fully adjustable allowing variations in the height of shoe heels.
To enable drivers to see out of the car better, YCC designers have equipped it with top-of-the-line Volvo headlights plus lowered the hood and raised the fenders to provide better outside view. The rear window was also extended to the edge of the car so that drivers will always be able to see all four corners of the car. Interior Designer Cindy Charwick said, "It was all part of the aim of making life easier. The cabin environment has been designed so that everything you need is at your fingertips, and your surroundings need to make you feel good too."
Other unique features of the YCC include a center console with a shallow compartment for keys, mobile phones and other small items. The console also slides back to reveal a deeper storage space. A wastepaper basket is also placed inside the vehicle plus another compartment designed to hold a notebook computer.
The rear seats are similar to those found in movie theaters in the sense that they can be folded out of the way when not being used. Passengers need only to lower each seat as they get in. there are eight exchangeable seat pad options with corresponding matching carpet textures and patterns that allow drivers to alter the interior according to their personal taste or style.
The YCC has a 215 horsepower, five-cylinder PZEV (partial zero emissions vehicle) engine with an Integrated Starter-Generator (ISG). The ISG enables the driver to shut off the engine when waiting in traffic or at stop lights and then restart again once the driver presses the accelerator.
Its six-speed Powershift gearbox lets the driver to choose from the fully automatic mode or use the controls on the steering column in shifting gears. The Powershift technology also ensures that the gear changes are always at the right revs resulting to smooth driving and lower fuel consumption.
The YCC was also made easy to maintain with its two capless ball-valve filling points which are basically similar to those found on racing cars and located at the driver’s side door. One is for gasoline while the other one is for washer fluid. And since the windshield washer fluid filler is found on the outside of the car, the engineers have designed the vehicle without a conventional hood. And just get a load of this!—the car will automatically notifies a service center when it is time for routine checkup and set up an appointment. Amazing!
The exterior of the car has also some remarkable features of its own like the Easy-Clean paint that covers the car and has qualities similar to coating on non-stick pan making it impossible for dirt to cling to it. The YCC is a concept car that showcases Volvo’s bright ideas and solutions to make the world a lot better. "We want cars to make life easier for their owners, not complicate things for them," said YCC project manager Eva-Lisa Andersson.
About the Author: Glady Reign is a 32 year old is a consultant for an automotive firm based in Detroit, Mi. she is a native of the Motor City and grew up around cars hence her expertise in the automotive field.
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