Buying a New Car? Why Not Bundle A European Holiday

Did you know that there are holiday packages that bundle airfares, accommodation and cosmetic surgery? It’s a sort of incentive program for women (and some men) to have their surgery done overseas and is especially popular in Britain and Australia. Well, as some of you may already know, there are similar programs for people who want to buy a new car.

These so-called, “European Delivery Programs” are offered by companies as diverse as Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche and Volvo. Effectively you’re bundling a discount European vacation with your new car purchase.

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Volvo to Extend Driving Range of its EVs by Going the Way of the Chevy Volt

Electric Vehicles, or EVs, are the future. Or so the automakers say. And they would be correct, if it wasn’t for a significant disadvantage over petrol or diesel powered models: their abysmal range which makes them suitable only for limited city use.

Volvo is taking measures to solve this problem and make its EVs attractive to the public by adding an extra 1,000 km (621 miles) to their range. The solution, which has also been adopted by other models such as the Chevrolet Volt and the Audi A1 E-Tron concept, is the addition of a “range extender” internal combustion engine.

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Volvo Unveils S60 Performance Concept with 330HP

Volvo’s Australian arm has pulled the wraps off a conceptual performance version of its S60 sedan. Based on the S60 T6 R Design, the S60 Performance Concept is an Australian initiative and utilizes two partnerships within the Volvo family - Polestar and Heico - for some very discreet upgrades.

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Junk TV: Netherland’s Worst Driver Confirms his Credentials

From the imaginative world of TV reality shows comes our next story. The show in question is “Wie wordt De Allerslechtste Chauffeur Van Nederland?” which is Dutch for “Who is the Worst Driver in The Netherlands?”

However, once you watch the video after the break, you may considering an alternative title in the likes of “Who is the Most Idiotic Reality TV Show Producer in the World” since the enlightened creators of the show came up with the fabulous idea of testing Netherlands' most incompetent drivers on an unsafe course.

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Report: Owners Leasing Cars May Be Able to Make a Profit

With the recent surge in used car prices in the U.S., many people leasing vehicles have discovered the surprising fact that the market value of their automobiles is greater than the dealer’s quoted residual (buyout) price.

All a would-be lessee needs to do is buy the car from the dealer and sell it on privately. The dealer gets the residual amount and the former lessee pockets a tidy sum.

Take the example of a 2008 Volvo XC90. With more than twelve months left on the lease, the dealer’s buyout price was a quoted US$18,500. Compare this to the amount the lessee was likely to get by selling the car privately: a far more substantial US$27,000. That’s a profit of US$8,500!

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Today’s Cars Are Nigh Impossible to Steal, Says Motor Industry

In the UK, car theft is down by more than 60% over the last seven years thanks to improvements in anti-theft technology. Coded car keys, alarms, immobilisers, better locks, strengthened glass and built-in tracking devices have made the modern automobile virtually impossible to steal.

Some 80% of car thefts now require would-be thieves to steal the owner’s keys or otherwise load their targets onto trailers for transport. And even then, tracking systems in some high-end cars mean these cars are recovered rather quickly.

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Volvo to Axe S40/V50 duo from US Line-up Due to Poor Sales

Volvo will stop selling its mid-size sedan, the S40, and its station wagon “twin”, the V50, in the USA during the 2012 MY. The reason? You guessed it; poor sales. According to Volvo spokesman Dan Johnston, US deliveries of the two models were disappointingly low with the S40 down 29% in 2010, while the V50 fared even worse, with its sales dropping by more than 50%. Read more »

The King of Overkill has Found his Queen in Toronto

And by “King of Overkill” we mean, of course, the….how should we put this delicately… excessively ornamented Porsche Cayenne SUV photographed outside a dollar store in Ontario, Canada, last week by Carscoop reader Jonathan Fernando.

This blonde Swedish diva [aka a previous generation Volvo S40 finished in a yellow hue] was spotted all dressed up and ready to meet the king of her dreams at a parking lot in Toronto, Canada, by another one of our readers, James Dong.

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Volvo’s Pure Electric C30 Enters Production

Volvo is starting production of the all electric version of its compact-size hatchback which, unsurprisingly, is named the C30 Electric. After testing about 50 cars since autumn 2010, mainly internally, the Swedish automaker plans to build about 250 cars by the end of 2012 (or more if there is enough interest), which will be leased in a number of European countries, including Sweden, Norway, Belgium and the Netherlands. Read more »

One More Time: Volvo Recalls 2012MY S60 Sedans to Fix Fuel Pumps Again

For the second time in a month, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Volvo is recalling certain 2012 model year S60 sedans because of a potential problem with the fuel pump assembly. This time, the recall affects 448 S60 saloons built from January 18, 2011, through January 28, 2011.

The Swedish automaker informed the safety agency that the male part of the fuel line quick connector end shape was produced with dimensions out of specification and could detach from the engine. If this were to occur, the engine could stall while the driver may also notice a fuel smell and leakage, which could result in a fire.

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Volvo Launches Luxed up S80 Executive and Sportier-looking V70 R-Design

Swedish carmaker Volvo is expanding its lineup with the introduction of two new models, the top-end S80 Executive sedan and the sportier loooking V70 R-Design station wagon.

Starting with Volvo’s premium sedan model, a special badge on the C-pillar hints at the enhanced features inside, which include a leather wrapped instrument panel, ventilated soft leather seats with massage function, leather-covered door panels, an aluminum center console storage compartment and an analogue clock on the dashboard. The extra thick carpets and an optional fridge in the rear seat that comes with a set of Swedish crystal glasses round off the equipment upgrades.

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Volvo Boosts Output in 2012 S60 and XC60 R-Design Models

At the 2011 New York Auto Show, Volvo announced that the 2012 S60 R-Design sedan and XC60 R-Design crossover will receive significant horsepower and torque increases when they go on sale in the U.S. late this summer.

Both the S60 and XC60 R-Design models are powered by Volvo's most potent six-cylinder unit, the turbocharged T6 engine. Thanks to a series of upgrades, the T6 in the 2012MYs produces 325 horsepower and 354 lb-ft (480 Nm) of torque, an increase of 21 horses and 29 lb-ft (39 Nm) of torque compared to 2011 R-Design models. Maximum torque is now achieved from 3,000 rpm and remains available throughout the rev range.

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Volvo Concept Universe Hints at Design Direction for New Luxury Sedan

Making its world premiere today at the Shanghai Auto Show is the new Volvo Concept Universe, a study for a luxury sedan model that also provides a peek at the Swedish automaker’s future design language.

While Volvo did not release any technical details on the Concept Universe, the fact that it measures less than 5 meters in length points at a design study for a replacement for the firm’s S80 sedan and not a larger, Mercedes-Benz S-Class rival that the Swedish company’s Chinese owner Geely has been recently talking about.

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Volvo Teases Mysterious Concept Universe that Could Preview a Flagship Model

Volvo released a teaser video of its upcoming Concept Universe, without giving out any additional information other than that it's a new design study that will be launched shortly. This means it could debut at one of this month's international auto shows, either in New York (April 22 – May 1) or Shanghai (April 21 – 28). Taking into account the fact that Volvo is owned by China’s Geely, the Shanghai show could be the more probable venue of the two for the new Volvo. Read more »

2012 Volvo V70, XC70 and S80 get Revised Diesel Engines and New Features

Volvo announced that it will offer a number of upgrades for its new model year V70, XC70 and S80, including the introduction of the latest iteration of its infotainment system as well as refined D5 and D3 diesel engines with increased performance and lower fuel consumption.

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Heico Sportiv Redoes the Volvo XC90 SUV, Launches New Styling Package

Seeing that Volvo will be holding on to the XC90, which has been in production since 2002, for a few more years, tuning firm Heico Sportiv decided to update its styling offerings for the crossover model.

The newly developed bodykit is made from PUR-R-RIM plastic and consists of six parts. These include new front apron that replaces the series-produced central and side panels and has a stainless steel stay located in front of the cooling air outlet, side skirts that are mounted on top of the original parts and a new rear apron that accommodates the four-pipe sports exhaust system with oval chrome end tips.

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Volvo C30 Electric Undergoes Harsh Winter Testing in the Extreme North

One of the major fears consumers have regarding electric vehicles, besides range anxiety, is how these cars are going to function in rough weather conditions. We all know batteries are sensitive to extreme temperatures, which can affect their capacity of storing electricity.

This is why Volvo is trying out its C30 Electric model in the north of Sweden, inside the Arctic Circle. Temperatures as low as -20 degrees Celsius are something normal in this part of the world, so Volvo engineers want to ensure the battery-powered car runs smoothly even in harsh environments.

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Volvo Recalling Seven 2011MY S40 Sedans Over Production Error, May Replace Vehicles

In what could be one of the smallest recalls of the year, Volvo has issued a recall for seven S40 sedans from the 2011 model year in the U.S. over a production error. In a recent filling, Volvo told the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration [NHTSA] that a crack may have formed on the top side of the passenger side support member in the engine compartment during the component production. Volvo said that the crack could have an effect on the front structure and may reduce the crash performance of the vehicle.

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Watch a Volvo S60 Being Sprayed with Graffiti by Street Artists

Volvo Art Session is the name of an experiment done by Volvo Cars Switzerland, in which ten street artists were provided with an S60 sedan that they could use as a canvas to create different designs.

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WTCC Debut in Brazil for Polestar Racing’s Volvo C30 DRIVe

The Polestar Racing prepared Volvo C30 DRIVe will make its premiere at the FIA World Touring Car Championship [WTCC] in the opening round of the 2011 season at Curitiba in Brazil this weekend. Polestar’s factory-backed C30 has already competed in the Swedish and Scandinavian Touring Car Championships, but being that the WTCC is a different beast altogether, the company said that it will not race to win this year, but to further develop the car for the 2012 season.

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