How Volvo became cool - five ways it ditched its bland reputation

25/06/2024

Volvo is now among the most sought-after premium brands among driversHere's how it steered away from its traditions to embrace a bold new world

It's hard to say exactly when it happened, but a Volvo is now a cool car to have parked on your driveway.

The Swedish carmaker has ditched its long-time reputation for making boring, practical, boxy motors and is now considered one of the most desirable marques - so much so that the waiting list to get your hands on some Volvos runs to an extensive four months.

This month, it has proved to also be a company that listens to its customers, as Volvo reversed the recent decision to axe its iconic estate cars from Britain's showrooms, after drivers called for them to make a comeback.

So, how did a Volvo become a statement of cool and object of middle-class desire? Our Motoring Editor Rob Hull takes a look at fix major turning points that saw Volvo navigate a successful rebrand to become a driving force in the luxury car market.

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And for Rock gods: Ozzy Osborne with his Volvo estate

From dull to desired. Here's how Volvo changed its fortunes to become a cool car brand

1. Steering away from tradition for practicality

Growing up in the eighties and nineties, to be seen being dropped off at school in a Volvo could have risked being more damaging for a young person's popularity than soiling themselves during a lesson. Little could be considered less cool back then.

That's because many associated models like the 460 saloon and 240 estate with those who had a tin of boiled sweets in the glovebox, a beaded seat protector to sit their trouser-pressed corduroys on, and a tartan rug folded in the boot. The last person you wanted to be seated next to at a dinner party or parent you were dropped off at school by.

This reputation for being exclusively owned by those of a stuffy nature went hand-in-hand with the uninspiring trademark boxy shape of its models, all of them boasting the aerodynamic credentials of a brick.

This was the result of Volvo's long-running focus on function over form, with its vehicles designed to offer the utmost space for passengers and luggage. Not exactly what you call sexy.

Volvo made a virtue of this - and so did Volvo owners.

If you were a kid in the 1990s, being dropped off at the school gate in a Volvo - like this 460 - would have done little for your popularity

For generations, Volvo's design was function over form, with the aim of providing the utmost in passenger a luggage space. As a result, its estate models were almost hearse like (pictured, a Volvo 240)

Also hindering Volvo's desirability was the brand's ties to safety. A tradition dating back to 1959 when its engineer Nils Bohlin introduced the first three-point seatbelt in the PV544 - a feature the brand waived patent rights to allow other makers to use it and go on to save millions of lives as a result.

Ever since, there have been plenty of safety innovations from the Swedish brand; from the first booster seat to developing side-impact airbags and recent features like blind-spot detection.

Volvos are still very safe but it is a lot more high-tech now. While Volvo is still leading by example for evolving vehicle safety, it is now doing so with technological advances.

It is the first brand to introduce speed limiters to all its cars, driver monitoring systems that can react to a user becoming drowsy or falling ill behind the wheel and the pre-programmable second keys that limit how fast another motorists can drive your Volvo when they borrow it.

These features were all part of Volvo's 'Vision 2020' goal to reduce fatalities in its vehicles to zero.

Volvo has fitted speed limiters to all its cars since 2020 meaning they cannot go over 112mph

Intelligent Speed Assistance technology will be mandatory across all new cars sold in the EU from next month. Drivers are able to override the set limit by pushing harder on the throttle pedal. Volvo's system will not allow for this

The 'Care Key': All new Volvos are also available with a 'Car Key' - this restricts a car's top speed set by the owner when the fob is in use. The keeper can set the speed limiter to anything between 31 and 112mph, the car maker confirmed

Cameras and sensors installed inside new Volvos will also monitor the driver's behaviour to determine if they are intoxicated or not and then take the relevant steps to prevent a crash

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2. New direction under Chinese ownership

You might think the availability of Chinese cars in Britain is only gathering pace now with the arrival of a raft of new brands - many of them specialising in EVs - that you've likely not heard of before.

But Volvo has been owned by a Chinese giant for almost a decade-and-a-half. Intriguingly, this has coincided with Volvos becoming much more stylish.

In 2010, Ford sold Volvo Cars to Zhejiang Geely Holding Group for $1.8billion - around £1.5billion - which, at the time, was the most substantial overseas automotive acquisition by any Chinese company.

With it came fresh investment and strategy shift that has arguably had the largest impact on the brand and beein one of the most successful in recent automotive history.

Bosses were fixated on breaking into the luxury segment that's traditionally been dominated by German marques, such as Audi, BWW and Mercedes-Benz.

A laser focus on this has seen Volvo seamlessly shift upmarket to the point where its XC90 SUV has become a highly desired staple of middle-class desire driveways, particularly the current range-topping £73,000 fully-kitted out Ultra plug-in hybrid version.

Geely's spending didn't stop at Volvo; it's also the parent group of Lotus (which is currently undergoing its own rebranding) and the London Electric Vehicle Company, which produces London's battery-powered black cabs. It has also bought a 9.7 per cent in Daimler - the group that owns Mercedes.

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Volvo Cars poached former VW design boss, Thomas Ingenlath (pictured) in 2012. He went on to transform the look of the Swedish brand and played a pivotal role in its success of late

3. The Thomas Ingenlath effect

Shortly after the Geely acquisition, Volvo made the astute decision to poach German designer Thomas Ingenlath from Volkswagen - the man now widely recognised for spearheading the popular new look of its car range.

'Volvo Cars was already transforming rapidly when I joined the company in 2012. My team and I have focused on creating a new interpretation of the design language. It will help taking this great brand in the desired direction,' he said a few months after joining the Swedish marque.

Ingenlath describes himself as 'never being an instant crowd-pleaser' and someone who 'likes fast and loud designs'.

And he displayed with the creation of three concept models that took car fans' breath away between 2013 and 2014: the Concept Coupe, Concept XC Coupe and Concept Estate.

These were a huge departure from Volvo convention, turning to a more powerful design language that remains evident across the existing range in showrooms today.

The Concept XC Coupe is one of three models in a series of concept cars unveiled between 2013 and 2014. It signalled the arrival of the redesigned XC90

Ingenlath describes himself as 'never being an instant crowd-pleaser' and someone who 'likes fast and loud designs'. This is evident in the stunning Concept Estate

The Volvo Concept Coupe (pictured) would go on to become the £140,000 limited-edition Polestar 1 performance plug-in hybrid car which launched the sporty spin-off brand of Volvo - and one that Ingenlath has been CEO since 2017 having left Volvo

'Every strong brands needs a set of visual keys that makes it unique,' Ingenlath said.

'Future Volvos will be characterised by the distinctive iron mark in the floating grille, flanked by the T-shaped [often referred to as Thor's hammer-shaped] day time running lights.

'The larger bonnet with its new topography, the beltline spanning an elegant bow along the whole car and the sharpened shoulder connecting with the new rear light are other important design signatures.

'They all contribute to the confident stance. The overall simplicity, both exterior and interior, has a strong connection to the Scandinavian lifestyle.'

Coincidentally, the Concept Coupe became the £140,000 limited-edition Polestar 1 performance plug-in hybrid car which launched the sporty spin-off brand of Volvo - and one that Ingenlath has been CEO of since 2017, having left Volvo.

Ingenlath introduced the design language for modern Volvos, characterised by the distinctive iron mark in the floating grille, flanked by a pair of Thor's hammer' shaped daytime running lights

Ingenlath was also responsible for spearheading the new cabin style for Volvo, which uses a portrait-orientated touchscreen and a decluttered dashboard

As well as revitalising the exterior design language, Ingenlath also played a pivotal role to improving Volvo's cabin design, which has been replicated by other manufacturers since.

Its models now feature a new user interface with a large, portrait touchscreen.

This 'allows us to remove almost all buttons', Ingenlath explained in 2013, saying such simplicity is 'perfectly in tune with our Scandinavian design heritage'.

Thomas added: 'We will deliver on our brand promise to make Volvo customers feeling special by blending, classic handcrafted elements with distinctive, surprising delight details.'

Volvo has, this month, decided to bring back estate cars having said it would axe them from UK showrooms last year. While this caused uproar among customers, the Swedish marque's new focus on SUVs has brought it much success

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4. A focus on Scandi-cool SUVs

This month, Volvo has performed a major U-turn on its decision last year to end the sale of estate - as well as saloon - models in the UK, having seen demand for these more traditional car body shapes decline in recent years.

In the first half of 2023, estates and saloons represented less than 10 per cent of Volvo sales in Britain - though uproar among customers means the V60 and V90 will return to showrooms imminently with petrol hybrid powertrains.

The remaining 90 per cent of Volvo's UK sales are SUVs, as these jacked-up family cars continue to increase in popularity among customers.

Official UK registration data shows that sports utility vehicles represented only 11 per cent of the market in 2013, but a boom in demand in recent years has seen SUVs overtake family hatches to become the nation's second most popular car type, making up 28.6 per cent of all sales.

Volvo's shift in focus to this segment has seen sales volumes soar during the same period.

Back in 2013, Volvo sold 32,666 cars in Britain. Fast-forward 10 years and in 2023 it shifted 50,184 examples - an increase of 54 per cent, which is more impressive given the fall in car registrations post pandemic.

In a recent review, Jeremy Clarkson described the Volvo XC90 as faultless as he struggled to aim a single critique at the seven-seat SUV

Before the estates return to dealers in the coming weeks, forecourts will hold only the XC40, XC60 and XC90 hybrid petrols and EX30, EX40 and EX90 electric SUVs.

Many of these are award winners, receiving accolades from around the globe.

In 2018, the XC40 was voted both European Car of the Year and What Car? Car of the Year. And in a recent review of the XC90, former Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson told Sunday Times readers: 'I can't find anything wrong with it'.

Their popularity is also reflected by the extensive waiting times on new orders.

Volvo UK told us that XC40 order books have a 13-week wait, while the electric EX30 and EX40 on average will take three to four months to arrive.

Volvo has an ambitious EV target that will appeal to younger customers with greener needs. But it has also been very outspoken about the hurdles it faces with the switch to battery power

5. Volvo's eco credentials - and honesty

While traditions practicality and safety remain, Volvo in recent years has also repositioned itself to become one of the leading players in the switch to EVs.

It is well ahead of the Government's scheduled ban on sales of new petrol and diesel cars, currently set for 2035, though likely to return to 2030 if Labour returns to power following the General Election.

Visit the Volvo Cars UK website to see its existing range, and you'll first be presented with only its fully-electric models as part of a ploy to get customers to switch.

Right now, every model in the line-up has some form of electrification.

And Volvo has already earmarked 2025 for half of its global car sales to be EVs, with the intention of selling only electric models by 2030.

In March, Volvo produced its final car with a diesel engine under its bonnet.

In March, Volvo produced its final model with a diesel engine under the bonnet - this XC90

But while the Swedish marque is ruthlessly going about its transition to EVs, the company has been incredibly open about some of the challenges it faces.

In 2021, it released a controversial report that stated that emissions from the production of electric cars are far higher than those of a petrol equivalent.

It said that, over a car's lifetime, the electric version will become greener overall, though this will only be achieved after covering between 30,000 and 68,400 miles - taking between four and nine years for the average UK motorist.

While some of these calculations were debunked by EV experts, it showed that Volvo is a brand prepared to be honest with its customers.

In 2021, Volvo claimed that greenhouse gas emissions during production of its EV were nearly 70% higher than an equivalent petrol model

Volvo's report shows the higher CO2 impact of manufacturing (grey) its C40 Recharge electric car (three bars on the right) compared to a petrol XC40 model (left bar). However, the EV has a far lower carbon footprint during use (light blue) - no matter how green the electricity mix is