IN January, Volvo will reveal its new luxury estate car which the Swedish manufacturer claims will be the safest and most versatile model it has ever produced. But company executives were giving few details away.

Volvo did say that the new car will be unique in that it is being made as an estate and not as a saloon derivative so it is unlikely to be badged the V80 and become the estate version of the S80 - presently the marque's flagship model - even though it will come off the same platform as the S80. Britain is one of the four leading markets for the S80 with Sweden, the United States of America and Germany and it is likely that the UK will be one of the key markets for sales of the all-new estate.

Volvo's reputation for vehicle safety and environmental awareness has been long established and its reputation for estate cars is worldwide. Volvo's president and chief executive officer Tuve Johannesson said at the show: 'The car will consolidate Volvo's position as the leader of the estate car sector.'