Last we heard, Ford tried to shop Volvo to China's SAIC. Now Automotive News [AN. sub] reports that The Blue Oval Boys are trying to dump sell its troubled Swedish division on to Renault. We now learn that initial talks with Renault began last fall. But those broke down over "price differences" (as in Ford thought Volvo was worth something). Apparently, talks have now resumed. Renault/Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn has said on numerous occasions that he's looking for a partner in the American market. Someone. Anyone. GM? Chrysler? So, why not Volvo? You know, other than the fact the brand's only successful U.S. product– the XC series SUVs– just rolled-over and died. Of course, Ford continues to deny Volvo's on the auction block. "We are focused on improving Volvo's business results," says FoMoCo spinmeister Mark Truby. Meanwhile, AN says that Ford is also talking with Dongfeng Motor Group. With Ford burning cash, and credit in short supply, expect a Volvo sale as soon as a sufficiently gullible partner is found.
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I want that car!
Volvo and Renault have had various joint ventures going back decades. Probably as likely a candidate as any.
Volvo still has alot of potential in it, I have no doubt a buyer will eventually be found. It’s good to see Ford disband the last of PAG, now if only they’d kill off Mercury…
Hey, it could be worse. For example, Ford could decide to keep Volvo.
Renault knows how to build economical, small, fun cars. Ford does not (at least in the U.S. market).
But the big question is: are petroleum powered cars essentially dead? I mean, who would invest in a business on selling them? Electric or hybrid, yes, that I can understand. But, if gas continues to rise at the current rate, only a fraction of people will be able to drive their cars. Most will turn to public transportation if available. How many of the people on this board are willing to pay $10-12 a gallon? What’s to stop the prices from rising that much?
Having owned a seriesIII XJ 6, I thought Ford buying Jaguar would be good for the marque. When Ford bought Volvo, I knew it wasn’t gonna be good for Volvo. Good job. Blue Oval, take a perfectly fine niche car and run it into the ground.
This is good news, I wouldn’t buy a Chinese Volvo but French one I would consider as long as it didn’t come with French reliability.
carlos.negros are petroleum powered cars essentially dead?
NO! and not for the foreseeable future. Hybrids still run on gas and eventually diesel, and electrics just wont be practical for all buyers. I still see families clinging to at least one gas/diesel car for the next 30 to 50 years no matter how high prices get unless they become outlawed. The shift is in it’s infancy right now, infastructure and battery/material technology need to advance a lot farther before we can free ourselves from petroleum for transportation. By then all automakers will have something to offer or be out of business.
I would hate paying $10-12 for gas but I like my car too much still and electric has too many compromises for me, I would find a way to afford it. Would the rest of you make major adjustments to your budget and driving habits to be able to drive at $10/gallon?
“You know, other than the fact the brand’s only successful U.S. product– the XC series SUVs– just rolled-over and died.”
Whats happened to the XC90?
One complicating factor – Volvo was one of the assets Ford put up for that mega-loan.
carlos.negros: Renault knows how to build economical, small, fun cars. Ford does not (at least in the U.S. market).
But Renault can’t sell them in the U.S. market, because very few people would touch anything with the Renault name on it, based on the company’s last disastrous foray into the American market (18i? Fuego? Alliance? Encore?).
And European Fords are head-and-shoulders above their Renault competitors.
Renault knows how to build economical, small, fun cars.
But…are Volvos economical small cars? Could they be? Would they still be sold at a profit?
I say no.
Every now and then Renault seems to get it right with their car line-up…Then they sell a whole bunch of cars, they turn out not to be reliable and/or all the follow-up models look worse than the ones they replace, so they go through a difficult time.
After some time they come up with some desirable models again and the cycle repeats itself.
On another note; I remember some years ago Renault was going to but Volvo as well…Anyone knows what the deal was back then?
Volvo sales are severely hampered due to the outdated Ford engine technology under the hood which gives poor fuel economy. Volvo’s tend to be heavy and Ford has no US diesel – bad combo.
If Renault/Nissan was to put their high-tech economical engines into Volvo’s, it would open up a whole new market for them. Also, with smaller engines I’m betting it’d be easier to generate the 5 star ratings as weight loss and packaging space have a cascading benefit.