Ford Is Selling Volvo !!!

[John Horner]

However, if you look at manufacturing some Volvo factories may very
well be sold. Ford wants to cut production costs, and one way is of
course to assemble their different car-brands in the same factories.

Who exactly would buy Volvo's remaining car factories?

 

[John Horner]

You are quite right in that the Volvo doesn't look like a box any more.
The 850 was the first Volvo since the P1800/1800E/1800ES that was
considered to be styled better than a shoe box.

The shoe box didn't hit me in the head getting in and out of the car nor did
it introduce blind spots in the name of styling.

I think that Volvo's problem today is that it does not as a brand stand for
anything unique. Volvo's safety engineering is now matched by countless
competitors.

What then is special about Volvo today????

John

 

[John Horner]

Ford has shown it will not give up on a marque, look at the work and money

poured into Jag and Aston Martin.

Years ago when Ford bought Lincoln from Henry Leyland it was a unique
automobile. Look at Lincoln now.

At some point when money is tight Ford will put the squeeze on PAG and the
products will follow the X-type model more and more. Tart up an cheaper car
and sell it for more money.

Also it is kind of funny that during the years the press and analyst
community was beating GM silly for having too many brand names they were
praising Ford for running around the globe adding brand names.

Probably the worst effect the whole PAG thing has had on Ford is that Ford
completely took it's eye off the basics of making saleable Ford automobiles.
Remember when the Taurus was the #1 selling car in the US? Luckily for Ford
they have the F150.


John

 

[Metaxaman]

On 26 Feb 2004 23:40:18 -0800, [email protected] (Patrik) wrote:

Very good post Patrik,

Rumours (and that's all it is) about this popped up several times over
the past years. Volvo Cars is doing well; better than the other brands
in the PAG Group, and better than its owner Ford.

Just BS.


Regards,


; <snip>
; > Word is out in automotive circles that Ford is not happy with
Volvo sales
; > and is not sure what to do about it. The dominant belief is that
Ford wants
; > to sell Volvo. Some also say that the original Volvo Group is
considering
; > buying Volvo (cars) back with some backing from the Swedish
government and
; > also possibly oil money from Norway. This is just a rumor - but
it I heard
; > it from several disconnected sources.
; >
; > Is this new news - or is it well known?
;
; This rumour pops up from time to time.
;
; Volvo Cars sales, esp the XC90, and profit margins are very good.
; Volvo is actually the only company in the group that turns a profit
; right now.
;
; Fords other brands in their PAG (Premium Automotive Group which
; consist of Aston Martin, Jaguar, Land Rover and Volvo) are using
; Volvos expertice and safety research facilities.
;
; The companies in the PAG are also developing a common platform
; together, that the next generation SUV and premium cars will be
built
; on.
;
; Volvos integration in the Ford group has been very successful, and
; Volvo have expertise in areas that other Ford group companies
benefit
; from. There is no signs that Ford is planning to sell Volvo.
;
; However, if you look at manufacturing some Volvo factories may very
; well be sold. Ford wants to cut production costs, and one way is of
; course to assemble their different car-brands in the same
factories.
; /Patrik

Metaxaman

 

[Bev A. Kupf]

But weren't Volvo '02 sales down quite a bit, which makes '03 at best
getting back on par?

I don't know where you get your figures from, but they are wrong. Volvo
car sales for all of 2002 in NAFTA increased about 4% over 2001. My source
is the US Auto Market Report published in 1/03.

The report goes on to state that the level of increase was "disappointing",
but it was an increase nonetheless.

 

[Bev A. Kupf]

The new Volvo's are safer/as safe cars as the old ones were, due to modern
technology.

I agree with you 100% for the new Volvos made until 2003. We have yet
to see any safety figures for totally new designs that will be introduced
this spring.

I think the V70 is a gorgeous car, tho... yea.... I think I prefer the old
1993 965 tho, the interior in in, considering its age is damn impressive
even now... and the exterior is holding up like it's been in a showroom all
its life.

Four years ago I sold a 10-year old 760 Turbo, that had been routinely
maintained (with over 180,000 miles). It handled perfectly. The interior
and exterior were perfect - down to the paint, although for the last two
years the car had not been garaged. The impellers on the original Mitsu
turbo didn't whine, and after ten years of service the turbo lag was just
as low as it was when the car was new.

About RWD handling...... I've cornered the 960 doing 80ish around an
intersection.... from turning lane, to the left lane (well the ass end was
in the right lane)... but the car felt very much stable and in control...

That was the last RWD Volvo I drove. I loved the handling. But the new
AWDs handle better. I am not too fond of the FWD 850s.

 

[Bev A. Kupf]

Exactly I agree with you 100%, i'm not afraid of Ford owning them... The new
S40 is built on a brand new chassis shared with Ford and Mazda, I swear some
people here think of the old Focus too much when they hear it's based on the
new one, and the old focus has a decent frame... its the rest of the car
that had issues, and apparantly the european ones weren't too bad at all.

I am very critical of the new S40/V50. The Mazda 3 got rave reviews.
However, if you go on Mazda user groups on the web, drivers are having all
sorts of nagging problems with this car (in handling, with the brakes, etc.
etc.). I really don't care what happens on a $15,000 car. But if these
problems also occur with the higher-priced S40/V50, Volvo's reputation for
safety and engineering will dragged through the mud.

 

[Paul]

Putting weight in the trunk to improve rear traction, we called it front
wheel drive here in Ottawa. Sorry, I could not resist that .

 

[gary vetri]

yeah lets hear it for ford selling volvo, Even if its not true yet, lets
make it happen, start spreading the rumor, we call it wagging the dog in
America. it works. we get the media to pick up on it., we dump our ford
motor stock, we challenge Swedish pride, how could they have let ford buy
the best thing to ever to come out of Sweden . the best Volvo I own now is
my 1989 240 wagon, but the best Volvo ever is my 1989 780 bertone, even with
the 6 cylinder engine. It corners and ride like a new car . I used to hope
to one day be able to buy a new Volvo, then the new ones got to expensive
for me to own, but now that ford owns Volvo, it doesn't seem to matter.
Remember spread the rumor. Hardlabor

 

[Stephen M. Henning]

I think that Volvo's problem today is that it does not as a brand stand for
anything unique. Volvo's safety engineering is now matched by countless
competitors.

Not countless, just the Toyota Camry which has a slightly lower fatality
rate than the.Volvo 850/S70 [mid-size].

Using crash test results, the only other cars as safe as Volvo 850/S70
[mid-size] are:

BMW 5 series [luxury car]
Buick LeSabre/Pontiac Bonneville [large car]
Buick Park Avenue [luxury car]
Cadillac Seville [luxury car]
Chevrolet Lumina [large car]
Ford Taurus/Mercury Sable [large car]
Ford Windstar [passenger van]
Lexus LS 400 [luxury car ]
Toyota Camry [mid-size car]
Toyota Sienna [passenger van]
Volkswagen Passat [mid-size]
Volkswagen New Beatle [small car]

Hence if you want a good, safe, reliable, economical vehicle with a good
resale value, there aren't many others besides Volvo. Now, if you want
such an AWD wagon, the choice is very limited. Definitely not countless.

 

[Stephen M. Henning]

"Bigger is safer"

In general this is true. In specifics there are exceptions and the
Volvo is one of them.

Using crash test results, the only other cars as safe as Volvo 850/S70
[mid-size] are:

BMW 5 series [luxury car]
Buick LeSabre/Pontiac Bonneville [large car]
Buick Park Avenue [luxury car]
Cadillac Seville [luxury car]
Chevrolet Lumina [large car]
Ford Taurus/Mercury Sable [large car]
Ford Windstar [passenger van]
Lexus LS 400 [luxury car ]
Toyota Camry [mid-size car]
Toyota Sienna [passenger van]
Volkswagen Passat [mid-size]
Volkswagen New Beatle [small car]

Using fatality rates, the Toyota Camry [mid-size car] is the only car
with a lower fatality rate than the.Volvo 850/S70 [mid-size].

 

[Joseph Oberlander]

yeah lets hear it for ford selling volvo, Even if its not true yet, lets
make it happen, start spreading the rumor, we call it wagging the dog in
America. it works. we get the media to pick up on it., we dump our ford
motor stock, we challenge Swedish pride, how could they have let ford buy
the best thing to ever to come out of Sweden .

Actually, it was Saab, but Volvo is a close second. Letting GM run
Saab into the ground is apalling - especially since they aren't really
hurting for money with their military sales.

At least you can get a Volvo truck that's the real deal.

Q: what's the smallest Volvo truck that they make?

 

[dude2]

The things is, a shoe box will save your life while the supper dupper
aerodynamic fuel efficient car will kill you. Bigger (physically
speaking) vehicles are more safe than smaller vehicles. There's
plenty of data around you can search for to demonstrate that fact.

I prefer a shoe box, if this is what it takes to have personality. I
don't need to drive a car that looks like a mazda, a nissan, a KIA, a
honda, etc. .

I agree, Volvos have become generic cars. Sad. My wife refuses to buy
another Volvo until they come to their senses again. Thank heavens her
850 combi is so well built thats its still going strong after 10 years.

True luxury cars are RWD. And I won't drive a FWD. I'm doing darn
well with RWD no matter the road conditions. Plus RWD offers better
weight distribution.

To each his own.

Indeed. In dry conditions I'm not fussy but if you live in a cold
climate nothing beats 4x4/AWD on icy roads.
RWD is a nightmare in winter, even in a luxury car..

 

[dude2]

The shoe box didn't hit me in the head getting in and out of the car nor did
it introduce blind spots in the name of styling.

I think that Volvo's problem today is that it does not as a brand stand for
anything unique. Volvo's safety engineering is now matched by countless
competitors.

What then is special about Volvo today????

Nothing. Hopefully Volvo wakes up soon.

 

[Stephen M. Henning]

Q: what's the smallest Volvo truck that they make?

The toy ones.

They also made panel trucks. My dealer still drives an antique one.

 

[Rob Guenther]

I haven't driven the AWD or FWD Volvo's, but I have been driven in a V70
2.4T... The handling seems pretty decent, there is less body roll then my
965 by far, but it's still a FWD, I could feel it wanting to push forward,
where in the 965 you just feel like the whole car wants to slide sideways
with the turn if you are going too fast around a bend.... and you can't get
that power induced slide with a V70 ;-)....

 

[Rob Guenther]

I'm pretty sure the S40 won't use the same parts for brakes and suspension
as the Mazda, Volvo would most likely use parts more cost appropriate to a
30000 dollar car, not one from 1/2 its price range...

Actually that is the only thing that bothers me, it will be the top dollar
model running on that frame, i'm hoping what is great in the economy class
will be far more then acceptable for the premium smaller car class....
Apparantly the car is damn good to drive.

 

[Joseph Oberlander]

I'm pretty sure the S40 won't use the same parts for brakes and suspension
as the Mazda, Volvo would most likely use parts more cost appropriate to a
30000 dollar car, not one from 1/2 its price range...

Lmao. Of course you would. Unfortunately, it's not anything more
than a souped-up Mazda with a Volvo exterior.

 

[Joseph Oberlander]

The toy ones.

They also made panel trucks. My dealer still drives an antique one.

I meant new. Lol.

 

[Stephen M. Henning]

I meant new. Lol.

The toy trucks are new. See:
http://www.shopvolvotrucks.com/volvo/product.asp?mscssid=45W5UC5HXD369HCE
47CT0357PNHW6CE1&dept_id=6&pf_id=V8611&site=volvotrucks&flag=new&type=1r@
vt

The smallest real truck (not tractor) in the North American market is
the VHD:

VHD Trucks Standard Specs Before Customization

SPECIFICATIONS
? BBC - 113.6 in.
? Engine - Volvo VE-345 HP @ 1800 RPM; 1350 lb-ft @ 1100 RPM; Vectro II
Electronic Engine Controls
?Cooling System - 900 sq. in. Radiator; On/Off Fan; Engine Mounted Fan
Shroud
? Air Cleaner - 16" Single Stage Dry; Dual Side Air Intakes
? Exhaust System - Horizontal Muffler; Verticle Pipe; Spacesaver System
? Electrical - Three 12v1980 CCA Batteries; 12v110 Amp Alternator 33SI;
12v42 MT Starter
? Transmission - Eaton Fuller RTO-14908LL; 10 Speed; 15.5" Dampened
Cerametallic Clutch
? Front Axle - Meritor FL941 20,000 lbs capacity
? Front Suspension - Multileaf 18,800 lbs capacity
? Rear Axles - Single - Meritor RS23-186 23,000 lbs capacity; Tandem -
Volvo VBT4012R 40,000 lbs capacity T-Ride
? Rear Suspensions - Single - Rear Suspensions, Tandem - T-Ride, 2-leaf
parabolic 40,000 lbs capacity
? Antilock Brakes - Meritor Wabco 4 Channel ABS
? Brakes - 16.5" X 6" Front; 16.5" X 7" Rear; Volvo 26.5 CFM Air
Compressor; Meritor Wabco System Saver 1200 Air Dryer
? Frame - Heat Treated Alloy Steel; 11.81 X 3.54 X .31
? Wheelbase - 134" to 320"
? Fuel Tank - 70 gallon LH; Steel; 22" diameter
? Cab - Galvanized HSS Steel; All Welded; Mechanical Cab Suspension with
Dual Shock Absorbers; Integral Air Conditioner
? Wheels - 22.5 X 9.00 Steel Disc Front; 22.5 X 8.25 Steel Disc Rear
? Tires - Michelin 315/80R22.5 L XZY-1 Front; 11R22.5 G XZY-2 Rear