Volvo Markets Simplified Identity Against Teutonic Complexities

Cameron Aubernon
by Cameron Aubernon

Whereas the Teutonic Trinity of Audi, BMW and Mercedes go for complexity in their offerings, Volvo aims to attract luxury consumers through simplicity.

At the 2015 Automotive News Europe Congress in Birmingham, England, Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson pointed out the number of buttons the XC90 had compared to two new models from two of the trinity as far as handling the main controls go, Automotive News Europe notes. While the Germans opted for 55 and 37 buttons respectively, Samuelsson stated Volvo only needed eight to get the point across.

Samuelsson’s point behind the button count was to declare his company would not match feature for feature against the Teutonic Trinity, proclaiming “no one wants to buy a copy. They buy the original.” The proclamation was followed by a presentation of an app which would grant one-time access to a given Volvo model to those delivering groceries, dry cleaning, and other items, followed by a text alerting the owner the delivery occurred.

Both examples are meant to demonstrate Volvo’s reinvention following its purchase from Ford by Geely in 2010. Then, the automaker had little product, and relied upon Ford’s platforms and engine offerings to see everything through.

Samuelsson said his company would pursue consumers more concerned about their families and the environment as part of its new strategy, than those looking to destroy ‘Ring times. Said pursuit is expected to be aggressive, as Volvo aims to increase global sales from a targeted 500,000 in 2015, to 800,000 by 2020 via a product offensive which will see all platforms and engines as being 100 percent Volvo starting this summer.

[Photo credit: Volvo]

Cameron Aubernon
Cameron Aubernon

Seattle-based writer, blogger, and photographer for many a publication. Born in Louisville. Raised in Kansas. Where I lay my head is home.

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  • Dave M. Dave M. on Jun 13, 2015

    Yay for this guy. I'm sure my iPhone can launch cruise missiles but I love that it takes only 3 taps to set up a specific text message. Having owned, adored, and ultimately divorced a Volvo, here's my advice for getting their groove back - 1. Keep it simple with your tech and allow much greater depth for those interested. But don't scare granny or my wife away. 2. Design interiors like Honda with much more elegant materials. And keep those "best seats in the house". 3. Buy the Ford Flex tooling. Volvo needs at least one boxy design, and now it's available. I's even on a Volvo-related chassis. (Ford didn't do their research on this move - Flex may not sell in huge numbers but the demographics are very strong income-wise.) 4. Increase your reliability. That's what killed our Volvo-love. Volvo is a premium car, like Acura, Cadillac, etc. The above criteria can easily carve out a decent customer base of folks who want to step up from their Subaru's etc or want a no-nonsense European car without a lot of the headaches associated with such.

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    • Lorenzo Lorenzo on Jun 13, 2015

      Reliability is nice, and most cars today are incredibly reliable compared to 3-4 decades ago, but what kills the aura of reliability is routine service and minor repairs requiring the equivalent of a house payment. That's where simplicity of mechanical design comes in. Japanese cars are incredibly reliable, but once you have a significant repair, the design for ease of assembly works against ease of repair. I dumped my '95 Altima when the mis-aligned upper timing chain guides started clicking, and found that the engine had to be dropped and the front of the engine disassembled to get at the chain. That was over 8 hours of labor for a Nissan tech, 10-12 hours for an independent shop. After 18 years in the So. Cal. sun, the car needed a paint job (and minor body work) too, and the cost approached the car's retail value, so I dumped it. It's bad enough that crush zones have turned fender-benders into repairs costly enough to total a 3 year old car, Volvo would do well to build cars that don't require a routine maintenance bill in 4 figures, and don't give mechanics headaches when something major happens.

  • Spartan Spartan on Jun 13, 2015

    I ordered a 2016 Volvo XC90 T8 about a month ago and simplicity is the #1 reason why I decided to buy one for our growing family. Safety was the #2 reason, oddly enough. I cross-shopped everything you can think of, even cars that haven't debuted yet (electrified Germans) and the simplistic interior and design won us over. Some people don't want a million buttons. I want a car that reflects the electronics I use on a daily basis like my mobile products (iPad, iPhone, yea yea I know, shoot me. They work well.) Additionally, I don't like the attention or the stereotypes BMW or MB owners. I wanted something with class and luxury without coming off as pretentious. The XC90 is just that for us and if we're the only people that buy one, I don't care. I hope it's a sales success because I remember the glory days of Volvo in the US and hope the XC90 restores some of that. I remember the family 240 and 740 from the 80s like I was yesterday.

    • Derekson Derekson on Jun 14, 2015

      I think the XC90 will be a huge hit, especially with the PHEV version coming out ahead of the German rivals (and presumably ahead of the Model X as well).

  • Czilla9000 Czilla9000 on Jun 13, 2015

    They should embrace their reputation for "WE ARE SAFETY" and go at it HAM. Remind people that driving is still very dangerous, despite safety improvements, and choosing another brand of car can kill you or your kids. You can't do 'Ring times if you're dead. - Do stark cinematic TV ads (have JJ Abrams direct) reminding people how dangerous driving is. "Every 3 seconds..." Insert Hans Zimmer music. - Do cinematic TV ads showing how tough Volvos are engineered. Show their state of the art safety facility with Volvo engineers talking about safety design. Again, Hans Zimmer music. - Do cinematic TV ads showing their traffic accident response team in Sweden investigating car accidents CSI-style. Seriously, why doesn't Volvo market them? Do cinematic TV ads with traffic accident recreations, and people talking about how recent Volvos saved their life. - Offer cars with excessive safety features, like bullet proof glass, etc. Get the gangsta' demo (like Cadillac) on your side. - Do adds showing Volvos crashing into stuff hardcore and protecting their occupants better than the competition. - Build them like tanks.

  • Corey Lewis Corey Lewis on Jun 15, 2015

    "Volvo aims to increase global sales from a targeted 500,000 in 2015, to 800,000 by 2020" I just found a buyer for Alfa.

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