Volvo fans will have to wait a little longer for the Swedish brand's highly-anticipated new car. Fresh off the success of the XC60 crossover, the Swedish automaker is swinging for the fences with the replacement for its S60 midsize sedan - but the sharp-looking 2011 S60 has apparently hit a snag.

Autoblog reports, "Volvo's plan to debut the production version of its all new S60 sedan next month at the Frankfurt Motor Show have apparently been canceled. According to a report out of the Netherlands from Autotelegraaf, the new mid-size sedan now won't launch until sometime in 2010."

A lot is riding on the new car. Motor Trend reports that the next S60 will "tackle the [BMW] 3 Series and Audi A4 head on." The exterior features "more curves and more flamboyant surfaces than we've come to expect from Volvo." Engine choices, meanwhile, mean more power than most expect from Volvo. "A V60 wagon version of the S60 is planned, fitting below the V70.The S60 and V60 will be available globally in four-, five-, and six-cylinder versions, most of them turbos."

The delay in production may have more to do with company leadership than any problems with the car. The Motor Report explains, "Although presently owned by Ford, Volvo may soon be sold to either Chinese manufacturer Geely, or bought up by a Swedish-led consortium."

Reuters reports, "An announcement of which suitor Ford had selected to initiate final takeover negotiations with [is] expected some time next month, Swedish business daily Dagens Industri reported." The Swedish newspaper adds, "It is necessary if the deal is to be completed before the turn of the year, which Ford has set as a target."

The delay, however, could actually result in a better S60. Autoblog notes, "Volvo will be taking the S60 to the Nürburgring," a German race track automakers often use to test and tweak high-performance cars, "next month for test sessions."

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