- The Volvo V50 is being discontinued in the U.S. in the wake of sliding sales.
- Volvo Cars North America told Inside Line that it is looking at other slow-selling vehicles and may further cut the U.S. lineup.
- Those cars at risk in the U.S. may include the Volvo C30 and Volvo C70.
DETROIT — The Volvo V50 is being discontinued in the U.S. in the wake of sliding sales, Volvo Cars North America confirmed for Inside Line. Other yet-to-be-named Volvo vehicles may also be on the chopping block as the automaker struggles to reverse a sales slump under new Chinese ownership.
"It will go away," said Dan Johnston, Volvo Cars North America spokesman, when asked about the V50 in a phone conversation. "We haven't announced when. It's a matter of profitability."
Volvo sold 1,720 V50s in 2010 here, a drop of 20 percent versus 2009 sales. The Volvo V70 was discontinued in the U.S. for the 2011 model year in reaction to dismal sales.
This leaves the Volvo XC70 as the only Volvo station wagon in America. When asked if that wagon would be killed, Johnston said, "No, that's a very good seller." Volvo sold 6,626 XC70 vehicles in 2010 here.
Volvo is intent on shrinking its U.S. lineup of nine vehicles in reaction to declining sales. It sold just 53,948 vehicles in 2010, a 12 percent decline from the previous year. However, it should be noted that Volvo includes its Puerto Rican sales in its U.S. sales report. "I can't say what the other four or five vehicles [that may be cut] are," said Johnston. "We don't know at this point."
Other models that may be destined for oblivion is the Volvo C30 with just 3,906 vehicles sold last year, a decline of 8.4 percent from the previous year. The Volvo C70's fate hangs in the balance as well, with sales of 4,368 vehicles last year, a decline of 15.5 percent from the previous year.
When asked if Volvo was under pressure from its new Chinese owner Geely to trim its lineup, Johnston said no. "No matter who owns us, this decision will be made," he said. "It has nothing to do with [the Chinese].
Volvo's U.S. sales have declined steadily since 2004 when it sold nearly 140,000 cars.
Inside Line says: You can't help but wonder if Volvo is having a bit of an image problem with U.S. buyers because of its new ownership. — Anita Lienert, Correspondent
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bobinkayak says:
06:29 PM, 08/30/2011
I own a 2005 Volvo V-50. I have owned many Volvo's over the years. The V-50 is an absolutely perfect car for me. I lead scuba diving tours in Florida, and this car has made the rounds jammed with heavy scuba tanks and soggy divers. Every week or so, I have someone ask me where they can get a car like this, unfortunately, I have to tell them it is only available in "pre-owned". Most astonishing though is that it is only supposed to get around 30 MPG. I have consistently gotten over 40 MPG with this car. I intend to drive this beauty until it is is older than dirt. It requires minimal maintenance, luckily I have the most honest and best Volvo mechanic in the business just three miles from my house. This Safari Green Volvo is way cool.
gauchograd99 says:
02:32 AM, 07/03/2011
Here are the "red flags" I have had with Volvo in the past decade, give or take:
- Volvo was once a part of FORD, and after seeing the influence of Chrysler on Daimler Chrysler, I wouldn't spend big dollar on something where part of the components are not made in the same place as those they fit into. Too many problems can come from situations like this. There is a reason the nicknames are out there for FORD (Found On Road Dead, in reverse = Driver Returns On Foot).
- Volvo is now owned by a Chinese company, and given the quality/safety of work coming out of China (think: child toys painted with lead laced paint), I think some of that might be rubbing off on Volvo soon to save on costs. How long before some components are designed and built in China with weaker tolerances? Has this already started?
- The cost is prohibitive for many people. Why spend $40k for a XC60 (I personally cannot find a "base" model anywhere in California) when you can get a 4-Runner, CR-V, Highlander, etc. and save over $10k in most cases?
On the other side of the coin, I have seen the 1978 Volvo wagon I grew up in on the road around here with the same guy driving it my parents sold it to almost 20 years ago! That thing has well over 500,000 miles on it and still running strong.
If Volvo wants to build a stronger base in this country, they need to do the following:
- You need to bring in a true BASE model, and have it available on the floor, NOT as a special purchase.
- You need to have vehicle prices that are NOT in the "luxury" range if you want to sell in a down economy.
- You need to do something exciting to build the business. Audi has the TT's, the R8's, the monster engines and amazing mileage on most models, and they have diesel on the floor. Getting 17/23 mpg will not cut it when you have the same vehicle in Europe in Diesel pulling 32/40 mpg. GET IT OVER HERE AND WIN MARKET SHARE!
Please Volvo, if you want to sell vehicles here, BASE models have to be around. I would love a XC60 BASE (don't need the other crap), but since it isn't possible other than special order you are off the list. And THAT is why you are losing market share and sales in the US.
autoboy16 says:
05:27 AM, 02/25/2011
Just realized why the S40 and V50 and C30 are on the chopping block lol. They use Ford's Mazda 3 platform, but they are no longer associated with Ford.
piredon says:
06:07 AM, 01/31/2011
I own a V50. It's been through 80,000+ mostly trouble-free miles (only wear-items like brakes and wheel-bearings have needed replacing). It's a little small, but that's actually a plus sometimes. It carries a fair amount of stuff, it's got plenty of power, it handles well, the seats are fantastic, and it gets decent mileage for an AWD vehicle.
But it's fairly unique in the area (Syracuse, NY). Everyone else buys Subarus for about 20% less (when equipped with similar features), and more space. Or if they want premium, they go a little bigger with the XC-70 or XC-60. I still see plenty of those around, so I know Volvo still has a significant market presence. An XC-70 has about the same utility as a BMW X5 or a Mercedes ML350, for around $40k pretty much loaded, versus $55k+ for either of those vehicles. And when you can easily option a Ford Edge to $40k on the lower end of the marketplace, I think there is definitely a market for premium-nameplate vehicles that aren't outrageously expensive, and I really think Volvo can continue to be successful here if they can master that market space.
But BMW doesn't sell hardly any 328xi wagons, nor does Audi sell many A4 Avants. Mercedes discontinued the C-class wagon with the current iteration. Saab is such a mess, it barely warrants mentioning. I think Acura is crazy, personally, trying to sell a TSX wagon. I would LOVE a CTS-v, but that's realistically not going to happen, nor is that probably going to last very long as an available model before it gets discontinued.
Unfortunately, the small, premium wagon is a dying breed in this country, and for a small company with limited resources, I understand the lack of the good business case here for Volvo. The 1-2% of the population out there (including me) who can and would actually buy one of these vehicles simply isn't big enough.
s70_t5 says:
03:07 PM, 01/29/2011
If only they had revised the S70 series and continue to build it. That would be the perfect car to compete with the wide selection of mid size sedans today. This was also one of Volvo's biggest sellers.
clarkma5 says:
12:25 PM, 01/29/2011
This sounds like about half their line-up?
But it's not a surprise, all these models are long in the tooth and none of them occupy mainstream market segments.
rayzor says:
05:18 AM, 01/29/2011
Hello, editor! The article plainly disclosed Volve's downward sales trend since 2004!!! Don't blame it on her new owner! Blame the product planners, the designers, the CEO, etc whose lack of vision let a otherwise great car company to its doom, I'm surpised that anyone would purchased Volve at that point...I guess the phrase "Fire Sale" applies here...So sad for Volve...
qdp says:
10:40 PM, 01/28/2011
The styles of S40 and previous S60 are really timelessly and characteristically noble . Americans will regret if losing this type breed on the roads
charter_bus says:
07:44 PM, 01/28/2011
Here is Similar Story
Just the Facts:
The Volvo V50 is being discontinued in the U.S. in the wake of sliding sales.
Volvo Cars North America told Inside Line that it is looking at other slow-selling vehicles and may further cut the U.S. lineup.
Those cars at risk in the U.S. may include the Volvo C30 and Volvo C70.
DETROIT - The Volvo V50 is being discontinued in the U.S. in the wake of sliding sales, Volvo Cars North America confirmed for Inside Line. Other yet-to-be-named Volvo vehicles may also be on the chopping block as the automaker struggles to reverse a sales slump under new Chinese ownership.
calhon says:
05:54 PM, 01/28/2011
@blueguydotcom
If the image issues are longstanding they're unlikely to be the explanation for recent sales declines. Yes, Volvo isn't on the radar screen of most buyers, but that has always been the case.
As for reliability, Volvo is one of the most reliable brands according to both the Consumer Reports (ranked 8th) and JD Power IQS (ranked 10th) surveys.
Three models accounted for nearly two thirds of Volvo's record sales in 2004 - XC90, S60 and S40 in that order. The XC90 is now in its 9th model year. The S60 has just been redesigned after 9 years of the old model plus a 1-year absence from the market. The S40 is now in its 8th model year.
Reason #1 for Volvo sales decline since 2004: Aging models. Volvo is unable to bring new products to market as fast as competitors because of its small size.
Reason #2: Declining demand for wagons in the US market. Wagons were traditionally big players in Volvo sales and Volvo did not shift fast enough to SUVs because of Reason #1.
Reason #3: Weakness of the US dollar against the Euro. This reduces profitability in the US market, so Volvo redirects resources to more profitable markets. Last year, US sales dropped 12%, but sales in the rest of the world (82% of 2009 sales) increased 17%. Volvo deliberately reduced its dependence on US sales to reduce exchange risk and improve profitability.