Volvo shifting focus towards higher-riding cars such as crossovers and SUVs hasn’t gone beyond notice. In fact, the now-Chinese-owned Nordic automaker is on track to sell more vehicles of this type than all the others in its portfolio by 2020. Clearly, their future is dependent on how deftly they navigate this transition.
Volvo Cars might be more recognisable as a purveyor of large, practical, safe, and often fast wagons. Lately though, those paying attention will have noticed the global trend towards crossovers and SUVs.
Volvo hasn’t stood still in this arena, shifting its focus more towards its crossovers like the V40 Cross Country to its larger offerings like the XC60 and XC90. They’ve gathered quite a strong reputation here, with them rivalling the similar vehicles from Audi, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz.
Speaking to Volvo’s head of research and development, Peter Mertens, Autocar UK reports that the upcoming XC40 in 2018 will mark a significant point in the brand’s pivot plan, being a new generation of 40 series models in which the crossover version will go on sale before the hatchback and estate.
A major factor as to why sales of hatchbacks, sedans, and estates have been on the steady decline - and therefore of decreasing importance to Volvo’s plans - is due to markets such as its home of Sweden, North America, and fast-growing ones such as China favouring larger SUVs and crossovers over the alternative.
Recently, as if cementing Volvo’s continued push to promote its off-road and rugged credentials, it unveiled a taller and tougher version of its flagship V90 wagon called the V90 Cross Country. In total, over half of the company’s total vehicles sold in 2015 comprised of XC and Cross Country models.
Pricing also effects the number of sales in this sector. It’s best selling model is the ageing XC60 which is meant to sit in the middle of their SUV range. This is followed by the V40 hatch. Both those models occupy the ‘sweet spot’ at which customers are willing to spend, particularly because equivalent premium rivals either do not have a like-for-like alternative or is flatly just more expensive.
With less than four years left in the decade, Volvo will queuing up a noticeable (if not dramatic) shift away from hatchbacks, sedans, and estate cars but instead focus more and more on strengthening their SUV and crossover offerings.
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