Volvo Updates Interiors: Will It Move The Needle?

Edward Niedermeyer
by Edward Niedermeyer

TTAC’s resident Volvo freak ALex Dykes points us to some first images of Volvo’s updated V70, which boasts a new interior and an updated exterior. There will be new engines for Europe, as well as a few new features like rear-seat entertainment and the City Safety system, but it’s a mild change. Is it enough to get the V70 off of Volvo’s North American kill list? Hit the jump for more pictures, and a graph of Volvo’s March US sales for a look at the challenge Volvo is facing in this country.



Edward Niedermeyer
Edward Niedermeyer

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  • Eldard Eldard on Apr 08, 2011

    Is there something wrong with that chart or they really did sell just 1 unit of S60 in March 2010?

    • Salhany Salhany on Apr 08, 2011

      The previous S60 had been discontinued at that point, so I would say they sold zero 2010 S60s.

  • JMII JMII on Apr 08, 2011

    I fixed the overpriced C30 issue... I bought mine USED. I agree with lzaffuto's take: Volvo is at the Mazda, Subaru or VW quality level but selling at Audi & BMW price levels - so they are struggling to sell cars. The interior is either overly simplistic and spartan, or Apple-like clean, modern, functional and polished - it just depends on your point of view. Personally I find it a touch boring, but my wife loves its Ikea-ness. I must say the climate and radio controls are near perfect, and the seats are super comfortable, so no real complaints here. The C30's interior suffers from a bad seat belt anchor position and the pedal positioning is not big-shoe friendly, the wife's smaller feet have no problems of course. The aluminum touches are nice and the "waterfall" dash is unique and classy. Door inserts are padded, while the leather wheel and shifter feel great. Gauges follow suit with a clean simplistic look that borders on being almost too plain-jane. I would put the design and functionality at a notch above my VW Passat with materials that feel like they are another step higher. For example the hatch lining and spare tire surround (it doubles as a tool tray) is something that raises the bar. I think anyone that sits in a Volvo notices the Scandinavia design that pushes everything to be a notch better then the mainstream competition, especially the seats. However I doubt awesome seats are enough to sell the car alone. We bought the C30 because it ticked all the right boxes: quick but not scary fast, small but not Mini (HA!), upscale but affordable used, and they are actually very reliable ...and of course safe. The easy to load hatchback and use-able backseats sealed the deal.

  • ToolGuy™ I respect what the seller is doing, but this vehicle is not for me. (Seller doesn't care, has two people lined up already.)
  • SCE to AUX How well does the rear camera work in the rain and snow?
  • MaintenanceCosts The Truth About Isuzu Troopers!
  • Jalop1991 MC's silence in this thread is absolutely deafening.
  • MaintenanceCosts Spent some time last summer with a slightly older Expedition Max with about 100k miles on the clock, borrowed from a friend for a Colorado mountain trip.It worked pretty well on the trip we used it for. The EcoBoost in this fairly high state of tune has a freight train feeling and just keeps pulling even way up at 12k ft. There is unending space inside; at one point we had six adults, two children, and several people's worth of luggage inside, with room left over. It was comfortable to ride in and well-equipped.But it is huge. My wife refused to drive it because she couldn't get comfortable with the size. I used to be a professional bus driver and it reminded me quite a bit of driving a bus. It was longer than quite a few parking spots. Fortunately, the trip didn't involve anything more urban than Denver suburbs, so the size didn't cause any real problems, but it reminded me that I don't really want such a behemoth as a daily driver.
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