Volvo CEO Complains About Delayed XC90 Launch

CEO Hakan Samuelsson tells Automotive News Europe it was "not very smart" for Volvo Car Corp. to delay the arrival of the next generation of its XC90 large crossover vehicle.

The current design will be more than 10 years old when it is replaced in early 2015, ANE says. Jacoby didn't specify who made the decision to postpone the XC90.

The crossover was Volvo's top seller in the mid-2000s when its global volume exceeded 80,000 vehicles. Last year, sales of the model dropped 21% to 31,300 units.

Samuelsson joined Volvo as CEO last October when the company ousted Stefan Jacoby. The Swedish brand is owned by Zhejiang Geely Holding Group.