Made-in-China Volvos To Be Exported To "Other Markets"
With Volvo in Chinese hands, with a new Volvo plant in Chengdu “more or less completed,” and a second assembly plant in Daqing to come online in late 2014, there have been reports in Europe that Volvos may soon come from China instead from Sweden. Not true, Volvo’s production chief Lars Wrebo told Automobilwoche [sub]. However, “other markets” than Europe could get the Made-in-China Volvos.
Volvos destined for Europe will continue to be assembled in Europe, Wrebo said. Components, especially electronic parts, will come from China. Nothing earth-shattering: Other cars have long been filled with Made-in-China parts.
Unspecified “other markets” than Europe may receive made-in-China Volvos, said the production chief. Currently, all of Volvo’s Made-in-China cars are destined for the Chinese market. Sure, GM had said the same.
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
More by Bertel Schmitt
Comments
Join the conversation
The Volvo S60 sold here is not made in Sweden anyway. It's Volvo's biggest seller in North America. It comes from Belgium, the old DAF Volvo plant that used to assemble the snoozefest 340 series back in the day. What's wrong with Chinese assembly anyway other than uninformed perception? Mercedes, BMW, Audi, VW, Ford, Toyota, Nissan, Honda and everyone else with a pulse assembles there. I suppose the typical prole thinks that Chinese assembly automatically equates to brown Walmart plastic crap. No idea at all about how a brand-name company goes about its business.
I don't know if Bertel has mentioned it before, but the big elephant in the room is that VOLVO IS NOT ALLOWED TO MANUFACTURE CARS IN CHINA (yet). The opening ceremony of the factory was literally just a big show, production cannot start until they've acquired the necessary licenses from the government, something Li Shufu promised he'd take care of a long time ago. The Volvo management in Sweden are sweating bullets.
My S60R was assembled in Ghent, Belgium in 2004. What else is new?
The Swedish automotive industry went away a long time ago when GM and Ford took possession without any major resistance in Sweden. All this blah blah about Swedish cars was over taken by events that happened a long long time ago. If the Swedish Government did not care then, or more recently now with SAAB, why should we?