battyr Posted October 3, 2008 Share Posted October 3, 2008 I see Volvo's main failing is from bad marketing. They should be pushing a message of Safety combined with Fuel Efficiency. They already know they can sell safety. I would think that people who want safety would also pay a premium for fuel efficiency. When looking at luxury buyers, it would be hard to convince them that Volvo the leader in quality or handling, but I would think they would believe that Volvo is more efficient than a Lincon or a Benz. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TStag Posted October 3, 2008 Share Posted October 3, 2008 I see Volvo's main failing is from bad marketing. They should be pushing a message of Safety combined with Fuel Efficiency. They already know they can sell safety. I would think that people who want safety would also pay a premium for fuel efficiency. When looking at luxury buyers, it would be hard to convince them that Volvo the leader in quality or handling, but I would think they would believe that Volvo is more efficient than a Lincon or a Benz. In Europe Volvo seems to pay a price for being seen as a maker of safe, thirsty cars. People in Europe want sporty, RWD cars that handle superbly and they want a famous old badge (which is why Lexus struggles here). For Europe Volvo needs to make something like a Ford GT40 to give it a Halo car. The reason Jaguar is now looking at reviving the E type is because it also wants a Halo car. But Ford doesn't seem to understand the importance of halo cars to brands like Jaguar or Volvo.... Your arguement may well hold up in the USA. I don't know? But in Europe it would certainly be counter productive. Renault already get 5 NCAP rating, as do many other car makers. Safe cars aren't the issue for most European buyers. As I've said before Volvo should be sold. It's loosing too much money and Ford can't afford another loss maker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mackinaw Posted October 3, 2008 Share Posted October 3, 2008 As I've said before Volvo should be sold. It's loosing too much money and Ford can't afford another loss maker. From Friday's Automotive News, Mullaly was interviewed at the Paris Auto Show: "When asked to confirm that Ford has no plans to sell Volvo, CEO Alan Mulally said: "Right." He added, "Our plan is to focus on improving the business performance of Volvo. If we wanted to do something different we would be doing it." Another Mullaly comment: Said Mulally: "The most important thing at Volvo is to keep improving the brand and move it up in the premium category so it is competitive as a premium product." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
battyr Posted October 3, 2008 Author Share Posted October 3, 2008 Mercedes-Benz has an entire page for each car bragging about safety on their UK web site. For the billions spent safety design, I would say it is an issue for some Europeans. I don't see volvo being successful moving up market. They have to share platforms with Ford and a Ford won't compete with Mercedes and BMW. I see Volvo fitting in between a BMW and a Mini and above Ford. I can see a rich man buying a Mercedes for himself and buying a Volvo for the wife so that she can drive a high class car that is safe and fuel efficient. Or someone buying a BMW and a Volvo. Drive the Volvo to work to save money. Drive the BMW on Sundays to show off. In anycase Volvo needs to invest more money in keeping their safety leadership, and improving their quality and fuel efficiency. They need to market what they do best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted October 3, 2008 Share Posted October 3, 2008 In future, we'll see more sharing on fewer platforms across Ford Volvo, Mazda, Lincoln and Mercury The eternal dilema of how to make top hats look unique in luxury vehicles and also to sell economically in cheaper brands. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ANTAUS Posted October 4, 2008 Share Posted October 4, 2008 I rather take a more direct route rather than over-analyzing why Volvo isn't doing so well. Let's start with basics... WTF do you expect when your core products are running 2 life cycles without an update??? Again as I've mentioned, the S60, their bread and butter sedan is on it's 8th year!! And its not like it'll be replaced because even at this point, they don't have direct plans for a vehicle to replace it. In other words, if they DO come out with a solution tomorrow, it'll be 2 years before we see it out on the road!! The S40 is another one that hasn't had an update, and it's going past the typical 5 year redesign. When your 2 best selling models, are this old and yet no direct plans have been made for a replacement in it's foreseeable future, then you KNOW there's a problem. It doesn't take rocket science... And Volvo's other issue seems to be it's styling. This is coming back from the Nasser came ideology of designing a vehicle as an evolution, not a revolution. LS, XJ, S80 all have suffered sales declines after it's "refreshining" because it became "more of the same". Why would someone buy a vehicle that looks like last generations model? I doubt Ford will bother with Volvo, when they have more important things to restructure at home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regfootball Posted October 4, 2008 Share Posted October 4, 2008 s80- badly done s60-old c30-overpriced xc90-old and sucks gas and has no cargo capacity any questions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edstock Posted October 4, 2008 Share Posted October 4, 2008 from Auto123.com http://www.auto123.com/en/news/car-news/vo...ns?artid=101802 In 2011, the Swedish manufacturer will introduce a micro-hybrid technology with start/stop function for conventional engines. The new system will improve fuel efficiency by 4 to 5% in combined highway and city driving. In 2012, a diesel/electricity hybrid will be commercialized. This technology combines a 5-cylinder diesel engine that powers the front wheels and independent electric engines that power the rear ones. The system will also include a start/stop function that could improve fuel efficiency by 10 to 15%. The two vehicles will be followed a little later in 2012 by a third, plug-in hybrid model. The hybrid can be plugged into an ordinary outlet overnight to recharge the batteries. This technology will feature a 100-km operating range on a single charge. As with the Chevrolet Volt, the combustion engine will recharge the batteries on the road. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TStag Posted October 5, 2008 Share Posted October 5, 2008 from Auto123.com http://www.auto123.com/en/news/car-news/vo...ns?artid=101802 I think a lot of you are out of touch with what European buyers want from a premium car. Premium buyers in Europe expect safety as standard, and they get it. Volvo has very little extra to offer over the likes of BMW and Mercedes. Even if it did it wouldn't make much difference because buyers in Europe want cool cars not "tanks". Volvo still has an image problem as a maker of Safe tanks. Buyers want, fast cars, with great interiors, good reliability and someway down the list safety. Europe's top premium brands compete as follows: BMW - Sporty, RWD cars, great dynamics, superbly packaged, great badge. Mercedes - Sporty, RWD, famous badge, respected heritage and engineering Audi - Sporty, Quatro, brilliant design, ergonmoically the best. Land Rover - the best 4x4 maker in the world, great interiors, great adventuring sprit. In a nutshell they have clear brand values and identies which people love. Volvo is not the best at anything, it make good reliable cars that are safe but nowadays everone does that in this sector. Hell Toyota are The problem is they are trying to compete with the above and are struggling in each segment. In fairness Jaguar has similar issues. But the difference is they have a heritage to go back to at places like Le Mans. Funny that Jag is said to be planning to return to Le Mans.... Volvo needs to find a USP of some kind or it needs to go a bit downmarket. But finding that USP will be very hard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Reynolds Posted October 5, 2008 Share Posted October 5, 2008 s80- badly dones60-old c30-overpriced xc90-old and sucks gas and has no cargo capacity any questions? Wrong on so many accounts my friend. S80 - Does not offer up the sport that some have come to expect from a price class that includes the 5 series, the M series and XF. S60/S40 - Are not only old, they are underpowered in their respective classes C30 - Option for Option costs no more than a GTI, while being more powerful. It just needs better suspension tuning XC90 - Does need a decent update, but in that class it is following the average product cycle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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