Volvo

Jeremy Lin's new driving move to Volvo in two-year endorsement deal

Volvo, the once prideful wholly Swedish car now owned by Chinese automaker Geely, has signed American Jeremy Lin, the high energy star of the New York Knicks whose parents were born in China, to a global brand endorsement contract. Volvo detailed at a press conference that Lin's participation as a brand ambassador in advertising and marketing campaigns during the next two years will focus on the U.S., China and Chinese-language markets in Asia. "You may not immediately see the connection between me and Volvo, but both of us are striving to be better and smarter at what we do, and to do it our own way,” Lin said at a news conference. “I hope that my efforts will inspire more

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Volvo S60 R, 2012: Sporty sedan with multi-national flair (video)

The Volvo S60 was introduced 12 years ago as the carmaker's first major departure in a few decades from its box-on-wheels reputation. Now in its second generation. the Volvo S60 2012 edition is offered in three trims, including the most-sports-car-like Volvo yet, the S60 T6 AWD R. The R means "R-Design Elements" and that translates into the car's sportiness with a handful of features — 18-inch alloy wheels to sport tuning and lower front and rear spoilers to the signature Volvo blue watch dial instrument cluster. That's a lot of numbers and letters for a model. But what the alphabet soup name means for potential buyers is 325 horsepower, a turbo-charged six-cylinder engine with a six-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel

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Volvo S60, 2012: Still sturdy, safe (and now) sporty after all these years

Introduced 12 years ago as the carmaker's first major departure in a few decades from its box-on-wheels reputation, the Volvo S60 is now in its second generation. The 2012 edition is offered in three trims, including the most-sports-car-like Volvo yet, the S60 T6 AWD R SR. That's a lot of numbers and letters for a model. But what the alphabet soup name means for potential buyers is 325 horsepower, a turbo-charged six-cylinder engine with a six-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive. The R means "R-Design Elements" and that translates into the car's sportiness with a handful of features — 18-inch alloy wheels to sport tuning and lower front and rear spoilers to the signature Volvo blue watch dial instrument cluster.

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Volvo, Infiniti, Mercedes-Benz dominate 2012 safest cars list

With its auto content, Forbes.com likes lists. Its current offering, like much of its other car content, is subjective — the safest 2012 cars. Infiniti, Mercedes-Benez and Volvo, with three selections, dominate the list. The subjectiveness of the list is not a criticism. It's subjective via the criteria used to make its choices, which, seem like the right criteria. One of the strongest considerations is the designation from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). For 2012, a total of 69 cars, 38 SUVs and three pickups made the non-profit's Top Safety Picks list, including 18 new recipients. To qualify as an IIHS Top Safety Pick, a car must garner top scores for performance in front, side, rollover and rear-end

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Volvo P1800, 1961-1973 car review

The Volvo P1800 sports coupe seemed to come out of nowhere. It took everyone by surprise when it arrived in 1961 because Volvo was considered a sober Swedish automaker known to most Americans for plain-looking, rugged family cars. Volvo actually had made a few fiberglass-body sports cars called the Sport in the 1950s, but they came and went so fast you missed them if you blinked. Volvo actually was far more adventuresome than most Americans thought. Assar Gabrielsson, Volvo’s founder, had come to the United States in 1953 to study the market here and to examine the then-new fiberglass-body Chevrolet Corvette at its Flint, Mich., assembly line. He felt money could be made with a fiberglass body sports car. Volvo’s

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Volvo S60, 2011 car review

Ten years after Volvo debuted its S60 sedan, the second generation arrived for the 2011 model, and what a difference a decade makes. The newly designed S60 is the most sports car-like offering in the Volvo fleet and it has all the signature qualities of the Swedish manufacturer now owned by the Chinese carmaker Geeley. Volvo builds heavy (the S60 weighs 3,901 pounds) and sturdy cars equipped with arguably the longest list and most efficient safety features in the auto industry. The S60 continues the tradition, but it also gives Volvo one of its rare models that catapult the brand away from its conservative reputation. The Weekly Driver Test Drive A new design and a unique exterior color (copper) usually

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Volvo S60 2012 gets top IIHS safety award

The 2012 Volvo S60 has been designated as a Top Safety Pick by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety for its good performance for front, side, rollover, and rear crash protection, plus standard electronic stability control (ESC). The previous generation of the S60 earned good ratings in the Institute’s front and rear evaluations, but for 2005-09 it was rated acceptable in the side impact test. The previous model wasn’t evaluated for roof strength in rollover crashes. The new model improves to good in the side impact test, and earns a good rating in the roof strength test. The roof of the S60 withstood a force equal to 4.95 times the car’s weight. By comparison, the current federal standard is 1.5

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Volvo maintains reputation for safety, innovation in 2011

Founded in 1927 in Gothenberg, Sweden, Volvo (Swedish for “I roll”) manufactures sport utility vehicles to sedans, coupes to compacts — all featuring the carmakers’ emphasis on safety. Volvo has introduced numerous new automotive technologies throughout its tenure, most notably laminated glass (1944), padded dash boards (1956), three-point safety belt (1959) central high-mounted stoplight (1986) and side impact airbags (1994). During the 1960s, the P1800 sports car debuted and Volvo received international attention when actor Roger Moore in the television series The Saint drove it. But the carmaker was also at the safety forefront during the decade when it introduced padded dashboards and energy-resistant front and rear seat crumple zones. In the 1970s, technology was again industry leading in Volvo

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BMW, Ford, Honda, Volvo, Toyota among cars gone to the dogs

More precisely, the AAA has selected its newest list of 11 cars in six lifestyle categories that dog owners prefer when transporting their pets. According to the AAA, 45 million households in the United States have a dog and more than 80 percent of dog owners take their best friend with them when they run errands or drive their cars for leisure. “There several vehicles with features that can help keep pets safe, comfortable and easy to clean-up after while also addressing other driver desires such as sportiness, adventure or luxury,” said John Nielsen, AAA National Director of Auto Repair and Buying Services. The AAA’s experts drove and reviewed hundreds of vehicles and compiled a list of their top car

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Geely, Ford announce final numbers in Volvo deal — $1.5 billion

The original price of $1.8 billion was agreed upon in March. The Chinese carmaker confirmed Stefan Jacoby, former head of Volkswagen AG’s U.S. operations, will be Volvo Cars’ chief executive, replacing Stephen Odell, who becomes chairman and CEO of Ford of Europe. Li Shufu, founder of Geely and new chairman of the board of Volvo Cars, and Ford Chief Financial Officer Lewis Booth signed the agreement in London. Ford Chief Executive Alan Mulally expressed confidence in Volvo’s prospects, noting the carmaker had returned to profit after a restructuring. “The sale of Volvo will allow us to sharpen our focus on the Ford brand around the world and continue to deliver on our ‘One Ford’ plan serving our customers with the

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China's Geely finalizes deal to buy ailing Volvo from Ford

Volvo had been on the market since 2008 when Ford put several brands up for sale. Geely bought Volvo for $1.8 billion, the biggest overseas purchase by a Chinese car manufacturer. “Today represents a milestone for Geely,” the company’s chairman Li Shufu said of the deal first announced last December. Ford, which purchased Volvo in 1999 for $6.5 billion, hopes revenue from the sale will help pay off its debts. Volvo has not made a profit since 2005. Geely, China’s biggest independent car maker, has pledged to keep Volvo as a separate company with its headquarters remaining in Sweden. Geely, founded in 1986, has 12,000 employees and the capacity to manufacturer about 300,000 cars per year. Geely said it will

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Geneva Motor Show: BMW to Volvo, Audi to VW . . . But Geneva Girls make the show

At the 2010 Geneva Motor Show, more than 80 cars, the 2011 Audi A1 to the 2011 Volvo S60 and the 2011 BMW 5 Series to the 2011 Volkswagen Sharan, made their debut. First held in 1905, in the Geneva Motor Show has hosted almost all major internal combustion engined models in the history of the automobile, along with benzene- and steam-powered cars from the beginning of the century. Exotic supercars often steal the spotlight during their debuts at the show. Prototypes, new equipment, technical breakthroughs, international partnerships, as well as political and social debates, have been announced at the show. Despite its lack its own automobiles, the Geneva Motor Show has no inferiority issues when it comes to an

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Stuck accelerator problems include Honda, Volkswagen, Volvo

The just-released NPR report details consumer complaints to federal regulators regarding accelerator issues have also been problematic for Volkswagen, Volvo and Honda, among other manufacturers. The analysis covers about 15,000 complaints filed over the past decade, covering cars back to the 1990 model year. The complaints were filed with the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) which regulates auto safety. In 2009 models, for example, NHTSA  identified 251 complaints alleging sudden acceleration and related problems. To read the NPR account of unintended acceleration, visit: Unitended Acceleration To view a year-by-year individual manufacturer list of complaints, visit: Complaints James RaiaA sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new car review column The Weekly Driver

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Ford has dramatic sales increase, Toyota tumbles again

Ford announced sales rose to 137,644 vehicles for its Ford, Lincoln and Mercury brands and it plans to build 595,000 in North America in the second quarter and increase of 32 percent from 2009. The industry’s sales were announced following one if them most turbulent months for the car industry, particularly for Toyota and other manufacturers facing recalls. Despite the tumultuous times, Ford sales in February rose for every brand when compared to the same month last year.  It was the first month since 1998 that Ford outsold General Motors, the biggest U.S. carmaker. General Motors reported its February U.S. sales rose 12 percent to 141,951 vehicles with its four core brands – Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac increasing by

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Subaru tops all manufacturers in Insurance Institute for Highway Safety 2010 ratings

The other car manufacturers to do well in 2010 include: Ford and its subsidiary, Volvo, Volkswagen and Audi with five top picks, and Chrysler with four cars in the top categories. “With the addition of our new roof strength evaluation, our crash test results now cover all 4 of the most common kinds of crashes,” said Institute president Adrian Lund. “Consumers can use this list to zero in on the vehicles that are on the top rung for safety.” Toyota and its Lexus and Scion subsidiaries had a strong showing in 2009 with 11 winners but were shut out for 2010. Four other manufacturers whose vehicles have earned Top Safety Pick in the past didn’t have a qualifying vehicle for

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Volvo V70, 2006: The Weekly Driver Car Review

If a buyer’s purchase priorities are comfort, performance and safety, Volvo is a fine choice. The 2006 Volvo V70 R (station wagon) further adds to the already nice Volvo overall package with its substantial cargo room. Still, the V70 finds itself in a tough crowd among the industry’s fastest growing sales segment, the premium midsized class. It includes the Mercedes Benz E-Class, the Audi all-road Quattro, Cadillac CTS and Infiniti G35, among others. My test drive for the week was the Volvo V70 R (all-wheel drive), one of four model options including the XC70 (raised suspension). The six-speed automatic features a 2.5-liter turbocharged, 300-horsepower 5-cylinder engine, and it offers more than enough power and acceleration to get the job done.

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