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.

  • SCE to AUX All that lift makes for an easy rollover of your $70k truck.
  • SCE to AUX My son cross-shopped the RAV4 and Model Y, then bought the Y. To their surprise, they hated the RAV4.
  • SCE to AUX I'm already driving the cheap EV (19 Ioniq EV).$30k MSRP in late 2018, $23k after subsidy at lease (no tax hassle)$549/year insurance$40 in electricity to drive 1000 miles/month66k miles, no range lossAffordable 16" tiresVirtually no maintenance expensesHyundai (for example) has dramatically cut prices on their EVs, so you can get a 361-mile Ioniq 6 in the high 30s right now.But ask me if I'd go to the Subaru brand if one was affordable, and the answer is no.
  • David Murilee Martin, These Toyota Vans were absolute garbage. As the labor even basic service cost 400% as much as servicing a VW Vanagon or American minivan. A skilled Toyota tech would take about 2.5 hours just to change the air cleaner. Also they also broke often, as they overheated and warped the engine and boiled the automatic transmission...
  • Marcr My wife and I mostly work from home (or use public transit), the kid is grown, and we no longer do road trips of more than 150 miles or so. Our one car mostly gets used for local errands and the occasional airport pickup. The first non-Tesla, non-Mini, non-Fiat, non-Kia/Hyundai, non-GM (I do have my biases) small fun-to-drive hatchback EV with 200+ mile range, instrument display behind the wheel where it belongs and actual knobs for oft-used functions for under $35K will get our money. What we really want is a proper 21st century equivalent of the original Honda Civic. The Volvo EX30 is close and may end up being the compromise choice.
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