About Volvo

Glady Reign asked:



The Volvo C30, the newest entry-level of the automaker, has one great mission to do – and that is to attract the young generation drivers and make a purchase.

Volvo runs the extra mile to promote its compact hatchback. As a fact, it is going outside its comfort zones by invoking a new maxim: “The Volvo you have when you don’t want a Volvo.” The hatchback is especially engineered to respond to the modern needs of customers without compromising affordability. The four-seat hatchback will be the cheapest Volvo in the showroom when it goes on sale this April. The car, which is slotted under the Volvo S40 sedan, is priced at $34,450.

“The Volvo C30’s target audience does not currently shop Volvo,” said Alan Desselss, the managing director for Volvo Cars Australia. “The C30 heralds a whole new era for us. It will bring people into the brand that would not previously have considered a Volvo.”

When asked about the convincing power of the C30, Desselss has this to say: “We’re not out to convince them of anything. Our target audience is smart. They are well informed and they do their research. So we are going to engage them. We’re going to ask them for their opinion on the car. Do they love it, or hate it? Do they want it, or not?” Desselss further noted, “The C30 is a departure from the traditional Volvo mindset. It’s not a family car. It will appeal to a younger buyer, an active single or couple. And, at the moment, just one-in-eight Volvo buyers are in the ‘pre-family’ phase of their life.”

The automaker noted that majority of its consumers are aged between 36 and 54. Desselss believes the Volvo C30 will resonate well with the under-35s group. The Volvo C30’s goal is to bring customers into the ‘family’ earlier than any vehicle in its current lineup can. Desselss added, “We anticipate that three of every four C30 buyers will have not owned a Volvo before.”

The Volvo C30 hatchback shares much of its auto parts with its sibling - the bigger S40 sedan. The Volvo steering rack, suspension, engines and some body panels are the same. Volvo Cars, the Swedish brand of the Ford Motor Co., allowed the C30 to use some components of the Focus including its turbocharged engine. “The diesel engine it uses is a very advanced unit, and costs significantly more than a petrol engine to produce,” said Desselss. “We think buyers will be attracted to the diesel for environmental reasons.”

Todd Hallenbeck, the Volvo spokesman, said, “We expect they will know these things and we’re not going to try and hide it. We think they will see the value, refinement, resale and other advantages that the C30 has. “We’d love to steal sales from the Focus XR5. It’s a competitor just like the Audi A3, BMW 1-Series and Volkswagen Golf.”

Ben

Glady Reign asked:



In 1982, Volvo introduced to the market their luxurious 760 sedan. This is actually a part of their efforts to place themselves among the prestigious group of luxury car makers. While the Volvo 760 is a luxury car in itself, it also posseses the safety that all Volvo cars have the reputation of having, and this fact makes this a car not only luxurious vehicle but also safe and sturdy unit which is what Volvo is known for.

From the development of the Volvo 760 comes another model which is designated as the Volvo 740. The model is a more simply equipped car which shares the same platform and design concept of the 760. While it may lack the luxurious amenities employed by the Volvo 760, the Volvo 740 is far more superior to the Volvo 200 series when it comes to style, performance and luxury.

The Volvo 740 was introduced to the US market in 1985 and production was discontinued in 1992. And throughout that time, the model has been known to be one of the most reliable 4-door sedans of its time considering the low number of engineering limitations and solid build quality which Volvo is known for. A testament to the car’s reliability is a large number of these cars still being used today even though it has been out of production for 15 years now. The cars’ lengthy service time is due to its sturdy construction and also through the use of high performance Volvo 740 parts and engines that are built to last a very long time.

The Volvo 740, for most of its lifetime, has remained relatively unchanged, but during the latter stages of the car’s production life, it has received minor changes in the design as well as in its mechanical aspects. In 1990, the Volvo 740 series received a new composite headlamps and tail lights similar to those employed by the Volvo 780 series cars. The dashboard of the cars in the series also received newer looks straight out of the more luxurious Volvo 760. These changes in the design of the cars are an effort to elevate the aesthetic value of the cars to better compete with competitors known for producing stylish cars.

The design of the cars in the Volvo 740 series not only received improved styling but the engine was also upgraded to give the cars better performance. The B230 engine employed by the vehicles received bigger 13 mm. connecting rods in 1990. The Volvo 740 turbocharged engines switched from the Garrett T3-series turbocharger to the Mitsubishi TD04 series which decreases the turbo lag but lowers the top-end performance of the engine. The fuel system also undergone improvements, from LH-Jettronic 2.2 it was upgraded to 2.4. The newer and better fuel system allows onboard diagnostics that are easily accessible under the hood. This also increased the engine’s performance and its reliability. Another mechanical upgrade it received towards the end of its run is the use of electrical engine cooling fan which replaced the mechanical one previously employed by previous Volvo 740s.

The upgrades that the Volvo 740 cars received on their latter day of production proved invaluable to their performance. The improvement in the fuel system and the turbocharger further optimizes the capacity of the engine. These improvements allow Volvo 740s to still perform at a high performance up to this day. Furthermore, the safety features employed by the cars make this car not only road worthy in terms of performance but also in terms of safety. The combination of reliability and safety makes this car a real gem in the collection in the entire lineup of Volvo cars in the company’s 80 years of existence.

Luis