The 2014 Volvo V60 Gets Priced, Finally

$10K less and they are in business...this price is laughable

$10,000 less is extreme and completely impossible.

If you've had the chance to drive an all-new S60 you'd realize it is a great, high-quality vehicle on par with a 3-Series or A4. The only problem is it just lacks panache and is like a piece of sterile Swedish furniture.

Volvo needs to be more aggressive with pricing, as they do not have the brand image/perception of the Germans. A base of $30-32 would make some consider as a value driven alternative. They used to do this and were successful. Do not see many on the road today.

Here's the thing. I think Volvo isn't looking to grab market share.

Volvo is happy being Volvo. It's not going to attack niches or try to be price competitive because it already makes damn fine products that its loyal fanbase adores.

That may be true that they are not after market share, but i think they are having trouble keeping what they have. Don't think their fan base is as loyal as it once was. I see far less Volvos on the road today than 10 years ago. Only exception is the XC90, which is growing long in the tooth.

@jeffgall

Good point.

BUT, I don't think any particular luxury car company truly has a loyal fanbase any more as more companies begin to offer competitive pricing and free maintenance. I think it's a systemic issue more so than a Volvo issue.

@Agent 00R - your last post in the string contradicts your first. If no one is keeping a loyal fan base, Volvo has a lot to lose by not being aggressive in price. (BTW... All of my comments are in regard to the U.S. market. Europeans different preferences will look at Volvo in a higher regard.

@jeffgall

Let me be a bit more clear.

Companies are starting to offer a lot of the same tech and same motors at the same price. There is little to no undercutting, anymore, simply because — IMHO — they can't afford it.

It's a systemic issues that all cars are starting to become quite good and to an extent indistinguishable.

In the first post I should have said "aggressive" not "competitive."

Nice design but overpriced for a Chinese car. Maybe just wait for the Kia K60.
For 35 large you can get a real luxury car.

$10K less is NOT impossible. After all the Fusion, Malibu, Camry, Accord, Altima, Passat, Optima, Sonata, and Mazda6 all do it for less and the Volvo is that class of car. Or conversely, the entry level cars are so good that there is no dynamic difference that the ridiculous price point of the Volvo can command. And most of cars at the Volvo's base price are simply more car for the same money and some of them a lot better looking.

Moreover, with Volvo squarely priced in Audi, Mercedes, BMW territory, buyers will put their cash on the real thing. Volvos are bland mobiles from Sweden. Gone are the days of the T5R, its badass swagger, and the attendant street cred. For a while Volvo stepped out of being the box you want to crash into things with and challenged Audi for FWD sport sedan supremacy. Poof! Gone!

Volvo thinks it's premium despite dismal sales which indicate premium car buyers ARE going elsewhere. Volvo's so-called "loyal fan base" is rapidly evaporating and products like the on-fire Mercedes CLA will only cause more migration away from Volvo. Volvo--if it does not correct the course--will continue to lose market share. They are perilously close to not being a viable car company.

Volvo missed the premium boat and it's long sailed over the horizon. Volvo desperately needs mainstream products that are correctly priced. They need hybrids on their lines. They need an Asian level of reliability and a Hyundai warranty.

based on what, is a volvo in the same class as a Fusion, Malibu, Camry, Accord, Altima, Passat, Optima, Sonata, or Mazda6???!!!

I mean, the Passat might be close in comparison, but a Kia Optima? Get real.

$36k seems right on target for the Volvo - its the cost of a lesser-equipped 3-series.

@MattDarringer

I always appreciate your perspective. Always interesting.

You're way off on the class of vehicle. The interior is high-quality up there and possibly even surpassing Audi. Definitely beats the 3-Series, definitely beats the current-gen C. And when I drove the S60 I reckon it feels just as good as a 3'er but it just lacks a little something.

Agree with you with the lack of street cred. Polestar is bringing that back around though...

I don't think it's a question of premium. Volvo makes premium products. End of discussion. It's a matter of volume, and it's never been a volume player.

Read point above about "loyal fanbase" and premium cars having a systemic issue with keeping customers coming back...

Also, this may be one of the best looking cars currently in production. I saw one the other day in LA.

I'd be a fanboy too if this were the days of the T5R. And it is perfectly OK to like any car an individual likes, but with respect to Volvo I see the facts not the ether.

The Fusion Titanium (loaded to the gills with some very cutting edge technology) is $38K and has been praised for its near-premium experience for a non-premium price. Configuring an S60 to have the same options as the Fusion makes it come in at $52K. JD Power rates the Fusion a hair better than the Volvo for quality and reliability, but relatively a draw. $14K will buy a lot of gas.

The Lincoln MKZ is also in the same price band as the Volvo S60, but the Lincoln with even MORE options than the Volvo comes in $4K less.

Kia, based on market and demographic research, created the "SXL" level of the Optima because Lexus ES and Acura TSX/TL owners were cross shopping in advance of a new purchase with some "trading down" to Kia. Add in that Hyundai/Kia is taking Kia near-premium (Volvo's realm) and factor in that Hyundai/Kia is on a massive roll at the moment, that will spell more trouble for Volvo maintaining market share.

The biggest impediment to Volvo is that the near-premium market is going gangbusters and they are still a few years away from any all-new product. The German Big 3 are taking dead aim at "Volvo" territory. Subaru is growing growing growing. Lexus is hard to dismiss in the segment. Lincoln and Acura are trying to aim right in the segment. Genesis has done very well as a sub brand. Cadillac is gaining momentum.

In the end it comes down to consumers voting with the wallets and a station wagon that's been out in Europe for a few seasons simply isn't that impressive of a move to me.

Now if we were talking a T5R for $37K...count me in.

Volvo lacks Ford's economies of scale. Ford can spread the design costs and content of the Fusion around several like models, and they sell consideraby more cars than Volvo. Volvo is a small company that sells relatively few cars. The material in these cars, the steels, the interior materials, even the paints are of higher quality and higher price than what Ford uses. Volvo's problem is that they are building cars on a cost scale with BMW, Audi and M-B without being able to charge the same kind of price. They are literally in no mans land.

Bingo! And that strongly indicates Volvo is doomed. It does not have economies of scale. If they shared platforms with Geely this would work. Volvo should be Geely's face for introducing Chinese cars to the USA.