Volvo Names Local Newnan Woman Finalist in World's First Treasure Hunt for Buried Vehicle

Volvo Names Local Newnan Woman Finalist in World's First Treasure Hunt for Buried Vehicle

Jenny Buckalew of Newnan, Ga. Joins Two U.S. Finalists and Four International Finalists on August 6 at Secret Location for On-the-Ground Race to Uncover Buried Volvo SUV

NEWNAN, Ga., July 31 /PRNewswire/ -- Look what the tide's washed in! Volvo Car Corporation today announced that Newnan's Jenny Buckalew is one of seven international finalists in its global, multi-media treasure hunt for a pirate-themed Volvo XC90 V8. The would-be pirate was among the first individuals worldwide to complete a fun, yet challenging online treasure hunt Volvo launched on June 12 and concluded four weeks later.

Buckalew will be flown to an undisclosed location on August 6, where she will be joined in the final leg of the competition by two more Americans and one finalist each from Japan, UK, Spain and Austria.

The wildly popular hunt, a multi-media campaign developed as a part of Volvo's sponsorship of the Disney summer blockbuster Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, has elicited participation from more than 52,000 online contestants in the U.S. alone.

Buckalew, a 35 year-old mother of three, will be accompanied by husband William Buckalew on her journey to the final leg of the hunt -- Volvo providing travel and accommodations for one guest per finalist. "My husband and I made the treasure hunt a real family affair," said Buckalew. "We competed against each other to solve puzzles and I absolutely loved the new challenge. The hunt, from beginning to the coming end, is a great summertime activity that I have thoroughly enjoyed."

Once at the final hunt location, Buckalew and each of the six other finalists will set off on a manic on-the-ground search for the buried vehicle. The format for the final leg of the competition will be reminiscent of reality TV shows like Survivor and The Amazing Race, with contestants participating in a two-day series of mental and physical challenges that will either eliminate them from the competition or advance them closer to the buried vehicle. The first treasure hunter to unearth the SUV keeps it. The victor and results of the final hunt will be released to the public on August 11, followed by a series of webisodes chronicling the hunt premiering online at www.volvocars.us/thehunt on August 25.

The buried one-of-a-kind, Volvo XC90 is valued at approximately $82,000 and features a variety of elements inspired by Pirates of the Caribbean, including menacing graphics from the film, black leather seats, custom painted 20 inch wheels and more.

Volvo's promotion of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest grew out of the partnership with Disney for the worldwide Volvo Ocean Race. The Volvo ship bears the name of the same boat in the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie, "The Black Pearl." The Ocean Race began in Vigo, Spain on Nov. 12, 2005 and ended in Gothenburg, Sweden on June 17, 2006.

About Volvo Cars of North America

Volvo has been building cars with Safety in mind for over 75 years. The current 2006 model line-up of Volvo Cars includes: the award-winning new S40 and its wagon counterpart the all-new V50; the award-winning XC90; the sporty S60 sedan -- including the award-winning performance sedan -- S60 R and the performance wagon version -- V70 R; the S80 luxury sedan; the versatile V70 wagon and rugged XC70 (Cross Country); and the soon-to-be released new Volvo C70, the convertible with the innovative retractable hardtop.

Source: Volvo Cars of North America

CONTACT: Kim McMartin of Haberman & Associates, +1-612-372-6464,
kim@habermaninc.com, for Volvo Cars of North America; or Roger Ormisher of
Volvo Cars of North America, +1-949-341-6715, rormishe@volvocars.com

Web site: http://www.volvocars.us/thehunt

-------
Profile: intent