Volvo is a Swedish car manufacturer currently owned by Ford, but slated to be sold to Geely Automobile of China in late 2010. It was formed in 1927 and is based in the city of Gothenburg. Volvo’s owner before Ford also manufactures heavy construction equipment, buses and trucks.
Volvo’s trademark and strong selling point is safety. All its car models score 5 stars in crash tests, and the cars are usually loaded with a plethora of safety equipment. This, coupled with the boxy styling of old, led to Volvos having a reputation of only being bought by older people, which was anathema to the hip young crowd. The company has worked to change this without alienating their traditional clientele, by designing sporty and more visually exciting cars that still score highly on the safety front. The performance variants are usually denoted by a ‘T’ in the name. Volvos are also known for their reliability and long life- one famous P1800 has clocked over 2.6 million miles!
Volvos in New Zealand are started off the C30, a slinky coupe with unusual rear end. The C70 is a hardtop coupe-convertible. The S40 is a small sedan, the V50 is its wagon counterpart. The V70 is a larger wagon that boasts a cavernous interior. The SUV’s are kicked off by the XC60, a beautiful small crossover to rival the Toyota RAV4, Audi Q5 and Land Rover Freelander among others. The XC70 is really a jacked-up V70 wagon, with body cladding to protect the sides and underbelly when going into the rough. The XC90 is Volvo’s largest SUV, beloved by soccer mums for its impressive ability to swallow large quantities of stuff.
Looking at buying a Volvo? Check the vehicle history of any Volvo by entering its number plate in the field above.