RE: Volvo XC90: super, smashing, great

[burwoodman]

cossey said:

The roof explosive is for marking the point of the impact to allow them to line up the high speed video with the data recorders.

I have spent a lot of time a Volvo in Gothenberg over the last few months and spent a fair bit of time in the new cars and they have all been pretty impressive, the designs are elegantly simple and make all the German rivals look fussy, the interiors are superb and they genuinely feel premium (which hasn't been the case for a while).

I am not so sure about a 4 cyl in a car that big (although it is a very good engine and the fuel/performance trade off is superb) but the hybrid version should be interesting.

Volvo are easily the world leaders in crash testing and their facilities are light years ahead of everyone else. Their corporate goal is that by the time they are fully onto SPA GEN2 (about 2020) that no-one will every die in a Volvo again. not a very PH target but ultimately a big usp if they pull it off.

thanks for your input. ive never considered a volvo but im buying this car

[CamMoreRon]

While it's really impressive that a tank of this size can be so robust, it doesn't half make me worry about driving around in a little hatchback. My Clio may have a 5* rating, but up against one of these in an accident I would have no chance. I would be paste and my car would be a dusting of components.

Can these vehicles be sold with a warning that, while they are incredibly safe for the occupants, other road users do exist and they should still be as careful as possible?

[anonymous-user]

MogulBoy said:

Good luck on the discount! I would imagine that there would be a fair bit of pent up demand out there but everything will of course depend on what markets Volvo favour interms of penetration and profit margins.

Porsche are the masters of this - witness the UK Macan market vs. the Swiss market where there are 20+ new unreg'd cars ready to drive away listed. It wouldn't surprise me if PAG make more € per unit on these Swiss cars than they would if they had built them for the UK/RHD market...

Wasn't the first XC90 one of the first cars to have a Uk waiting list back in 2002? I expect initial demand for this to be similar but in the end, people looking for aspirational cars or people who are overly concerned with image will still prefer the 4x4s from Porsche or BMW or even Range Rover.

I think it looks like a great car but like the current XC90 it will be a good second hand buy after a few years. It is a massive price hike from the current model, I wonder if people who buy Volvos (for life) will pay that much for one?

[djmanders]

FlopperV60 said:

Completely agree, we have had an XC70, 90 and most recently 60 all as D5's superbly built cars and each for us have been utterly reliable. The dealer discount is essential as the residuals are quite ugly so at the very least we have managed to reduce the purchase price by at least 20%.

The power plant needs to be a big step up from the D5 not only in responsiveness but critically fuel economy which has been my only complaint, the performance on offer in relation to the economy is poor.

Owned one for 8 years - still have it.
Yes - utterly reliable, comfortable and load-swallowing for five person family.
24k miles on current set of Yoko's.
3rd set of front discs but I do some maintenance.
Don't lose the ignition key though!!
Engine is disappointing economy-wise though it can still haul on M-ways and A roads - Plymouth to Junc 9 M1 (260 miles) 3h 30 mins (at night) the other week.
Sat nav guided me 300km from Caen to Brittany campsite flawlessly 10 days beforehand.
And it is 10+ year old tech so what do you expect - and there's always the Ducati and KX moto-x, E30 M3 and 1973 Alfa for fun.
The new one is being sold online at the moment - http://www.volvocars.com/uk/all-cars/all-new-volvo... - Comes fully optioned up and in Onyx black only and it's £68k I gather - too rich for me - though I'd take it 2 years from now at half the price.

[After_Shock]

FlopperV60 said:

as the residuals are quite ugly so at the very least we have managed to reduce the purchase price by at least 20%.

The dealer discount is why the residuals can be bad, if a dealer knocks 20% off the used prices deflate massively, its a simple calculation! If they don't discount them then residuals stay strong, don't get both im afraid.

The XC60 you have is not bad at all residually, id dare bet just as strong as a Freelander 2, X3, etc. 90 is a different story as its been battered by huge discounts for years and is a very very old model now.

[After_Shock]

Interesting to see the launch editions are already sold out.

[Steve Maund]

After an hour and forty five minutes.