Where In The World Is Volvo's Treasure Chest?

Somewhere on the ocean floor lays a treasure chest full of $50,000 worth in pirate gold and a key to a all-new Volvo XC90. And enthusiasts around the world are finding ways to search for the sunken treasure…

The Volvo Car Corporation is calling all pirates, scallywags and treasure fanatics to join The Hunt - a competition in connection with the movie Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, which opens in theatres on May 25.

The Hunt, which has started on the 4th of this month, is the second in Volvo's partnership with Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean movie franchise. This will also be the first time the competition has been open to Canadians. Last year's program was limited to residents of the United States, United Kingdom, Japan, Spain and Austria. Now, the competition includes Bulgaria, Canada, Germany, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Italy, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Romania, Russia, Singapore, Sweden, Taiwan and Thailand.

Where in the world did the Swedish automaker hide its treasure? Well, that is for participants to find out… The mystery thrills everyone… And it puffs out fumes of eagerness like the Volvo muffler. And the increasing breathtaking sensation makes the competition more intense. Tens of thousands of online treasure hunters across the globe vie to find a chest. To inspire, entertain, or even distract all would-be pirates on their quest for the treasure, Volvo offers up some other great watery mysteries from over the ages.

"Okay, okay. Maybe it is a stretch to call The Hunt one of the greatest mysteries of the deep, but it certainly has got a lot of people flummoxed," said Linda Gangeri, the national advertising manager for Volvo Cars of North America. "We thought some of our more prodigious participants might enjoy pitting their wit and skill against some age-old mysteries... but even if they solve them, the only way to get your hands on Volvo's treasure is by joining our Hunt!"

Just days after Volvo launched its latest treasure hunt, the company has revealed some spots where it did not sink the treasure. "Three-quarters of the earth's surface is under water, so finding a sunken treasure chest is not going to be easy," said Volvo's Linda Gangeri. "We want our hunt to be challenging, but we don't want participants to become discouraged, so we thought we'd help narrow the playing field by revealing places where 'X' doesn't mark the spot."

Some of the more rational sounding places where the treasures are not found include the Dead Sea, the Red Sea, the Caspian Sea, and Sea World. Even though the hunt started on 4 May, there is still time to join. Volvo is calling more participants aged 18 years and older to visit a Volvo retailer to pick up a special pirate chart then register at www.volvocars.com/thehunt any time between May 4 and May 29. The first person from each of the participating markets to finish the online hunt will compete against one another in one final online challenge June 2. To participate in the global head to head, players will be required to present an original pirate chart upon conclusion of The Hunt. Winners will only be eligible if they can produce the pirate chart.

Once registered, participants set sail on a virtual high seas adventure and receive clues as they solve a series of challenging and fun online puzzles. Enthusiasts can join The Hunt and can catch up with other participants if they correctly answer the puzzles posted online. As the contest progresses, the puzzles will become more and more hard to solve.

The first of those 22 individuals to solve the final puzzle will be named the winner and will receive a trip to the burial location to retrieve the chest filled with $50,000 in pirate gold and a key to a brand new Volvo XC90.

"Last summer, we held a treasure hunt to find a buried Volvo XC90 V8 to tie in with Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest and were blown away by the success - more than 100,000 participants from around the world joined in," said Linda Gangeri, national advertising manager for Volvo Cars of North America. "This year, with more countries, more booty and all the early interest, we're really excited to set sail.' So, come join The Hunt!"