The S60 T8 CKD Is Coming on Monday

One of the more exciting and recent additions to the entry level luxury sedan segment was the Volvo S60 T8 which was launched late last year. As is the case with most luxury car brands, these models are first introduced as a CBU (fully imported) unit, before they are eventually locally produced with the benefit of either lower pricing or a longer list of features.

We’ve received word that the CKD (locally assembled) variant of the S60 T8 will be launched on May 18, and here’s what we think you should expect. For this, we look at a comparison between the CBU and CKD variants of the XC90 T8 sold here. What we saw was an RM 50,000 price reduction from RM 453,888 to RM 403,888 for the XC90 T8.

The number of paint colour options when down from eleven to five – all in monochrome variants. The interior was left largely unchanged with Nappa leather, although interior colour options were restricted to just Charcoal black. Thankfully, across Volvo models there is the common 9-inch portrait touch screen that forms the centrepiece of the dashboard, so you don’t need to worry about that disappearing.

As a result, we’re probably going to see a very competitively priced luxury sedan that packs that ever interesting 407 hp and 640 Nm of torque through its twin engine powertrain – a twin-charged two-litre engine up front delivering powers to the front wheels, and a motor at the rear to provide drive to the rear wheels.

The current Volvo S60 T8 CBU goes on sale for RM 295,888 – on the road, without insurance, and inclusive of the five-year, 120,000 kilometre factory warranty. Among the colour choices, Fusion Red is still currently available although that may vanish as the transition to CKD happens. The S60 T8 also wears the more aggressive R-Design kit which highlights a sportier and more youthful side we’re happy to see Volvo indulging. So if we assume an RM50,000 reduction in price from the CBU, that would mean the CKD S60 T8 will cost RM245,888 OTR. 

Among D-segment cars that would place it in competition against the Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, Mazda 6 Sedan and Volkswagen Passat. Now the closest with regard to horsepower would be the Mazda at 195 hp, that's a whooping 212 hp extra in the Volvo. Yes, the Volvo would also be the most expensive in its segment but having driven the XC60 T8 CBU we know for a fact how exhilarating that engine is. If you missed it, check out my colleague squealing in joy here during the review.  

For those of you interested in a test drive, guess what?
Volvo will Bring the Test Drive To You. Click here.