Volvo XC70 pricing announced (U.S)

The redesigned 2008 Volvo XC70 will be priced at $37,520, including a $745 destination charge, when it arrives in U.S. showrooms on October 1, the company said.

The 2007 Volvo XC70 2.5 T started at $37,115, including a $695 destination charge.The 2008 model gets several improvements, most notably its first six-cylinder engine, a 3.2-liter inline-6 that is found in the Volvo S80 and makes 235 horsepower at 6,200 rpm and 236 pound-feet of torque at 3,200 rpm. That is 27 more horses than the outgoing turbocharged inline-5. The new engine is linked to a six-speed automatic transmission.

Other highlights include first-time standard Hill Descent Control and new dual height-adjustable booster cushions for kids, a feature that Volvo is describing as a "world first".

Volvo says the U.S. is the largest market for the XC70, with about half the projected annual production of 38,000 coming to North America.

NASCAR returns to its origin

Marking the 70th anniversary of the Sit-Down Strike in Flint, three NASCAR-related exhibits with UAW sponsorship are in Flint. The exhibits are open to the public this weekend.

With the theme "Ordinary People Changing the World," the activities are sponsored by UAW Region 1-C and the Flint Cultural Center. The free exhibits, which arrived in three semitrailers Friday morning, are among numerous activities taking place Labor Day weekend in the Flint Cultural Center and other areas. The exhibits, located in the parking lot next to the Sloan Museum in the Cultural Center, are open 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. today and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.

According to Gary Alred, head of the exhibit, people coming to the exhibit will not only learn about NASCAR and the UAW, they'll be a part of history. This is the first time the UAW-Dodge, UAW-GM, and UAW-Ford car racing exhibits have all been on display in the same location at a non-racing event, Alred explained.

"It's like remembering the signing of the Declaration of Independence," Alred added. "People need to know where they came from and (the Sit-Down Strike) was the birth of the union."