Geely Wants Volvo To Compete With BMW And Mercedes-Benz

[HighestOfHigh]

We’ve heard it all before but rarely have we seen it executed successfully; mid-tier luxury brands attempting to move upmarket and compete with tier 1 brands luxury brands such as Mercedes-Benz and BMW. Acura is one such company that has often stated reaching tier 1 status as its primary goal but has still failed to deliver.

Now Volvo’s new owner Geely hopes to do the same with the Swedish automaker, as revealed by founder and chairman Li Shufu. He hopes to boost Volvo’s global reputation, especially in China, and step up research and development efforts in order to maximize sales bring Volvo back into profitability.

"We want to make more high-level cars that compete with the S-Class of Mercedes-Benz and the 7-Series of BMW. We need products to compete in that segment," Shufu told reporters from Automotive News.

What Shufu hasn’t revealed yet is how Volvo, which lost more than $653 million last year, will be able to build new models to take on the flagship sedans from its German rivals. Volvo first needs to focus on selling more cars; it will need to sell at least 380,000 cars if it hopes to break even. Last year Volvo’s sales totaled 335,000 units.

- Geely Wants Volvo To Compete With BMW And Mercedes-Benz - MotorAuthority

 

[Giannis]

Volvo to compete with BMW and MB? This can't happen. Apart from a competitive product, they need the right image. And brand image, you do not build it in one night. Especially if you are now chinese-owned.

 

[Human]

^
Exactly!

Ambitious bunch these Chinese I hate their products BUT love the fact that they are supporting German Auto manufacturers buy buying German cars these days by the thousands

 

[Kowalski]

Volvo to compete with BMW and MB? This can't happen. Apart from a competitive product, they need the right image. And brand image, you do not build it in one night. Especially if you are now chinese-owned.

^
Exactly!

Ambitious bunch these Chinese I hate their products BUT love the fact that they are supporting German Auto manufacturers buy buying German cars these days by the thousands

I would not under estimate the Chinese if I were you two. They are proving to be a very important market for any car maker out there and if there is a demand for a "Volvo S-class" in China, then I don't see any problem with Mr. Li Shufu's idea.

 

[Gullwing]

So the big question is, how will the Chinese get the cardboard frame to last five years? It might be ok on an S30, but the length of an S100 will put too much stress on it.
Plus when it rains...

 

[Merc1]

My dream may finally come true......a large, full on Volvo to take on the S/7/A8/LS/XJ class. With the right budget I think Volvo can compete for sure. Imagine a large, RWD, V8 powered Volvo, gives me chills.


M

 

[Centurion]

I admire ambitions but love bursting the bubbles of dreamers. Let's not lie to ourselves. Although Geely is a fast growing company, their revenue and profits are very small in relations to BMW, Mercedes and Porsche. For Volvo to rival the big giants, billions would need to be invested into the Volvo brand, and I cannot forsee it becoming a reality in the next 5, let alone 3 years.

 

[HighestOfHigh]

Volvo Rules Out Launching Flagship To Take On 7-Series And S-Class

We’ve heard it all before but rarely have we seen it executed successfully; mid-tier luxury brands attempting to move upmarket and compete with tier 1 brands such as Mercedes-Benz and BMW. Acura is one such company that has often stated reaching tier 1 status as its primary goal but has still failed to deliver and now Volvo, under the guidance of new owner Geely, is hoping to tread down that same path.

The only difference is that Volvo insists it won’t be rushing into anything. With fears of another flop like the Phaeton, former Volkswagen of America boss Stefan Jacoby doesn’t want to repeat any mistakes at his new post as CEO of Volvo.

In keeping with this philosophy Jacoby admits that it’s “too early” for Volvo to be building high-end cars that would rival the likes of the BMW 7-series and Mercedes-Benz S-Class. This is despite Geely founder and chairman Li Shufu previously mentioning those two particular models as future rivals for Volvo.

Instead Volvo will focus on improving its global reputation, especially in China, and step up research and development efforts in order to maximize sales and return to profitability. Another key task is to build up volume. As Jacoby revealed in a recent interview with Autocar, Volvo would need to be selling at least 800,000 cars per year before any upmarket models would even be considered.

Pictured above is the 2003 Volvo VCC concept car, which at one point was believed to be a preview of a new flagship model to be called the XC100. It was expected to feature an advanced hybrid powertrain and establish a new luxury crossover niche similar to what BMW has done with the 5-Series GT and to a lesser extent what Mercedes-Benz originally did with the R-Class.

- Volvo Rules Out Launching Flagship To Take On 7-Series And S-Class - MotorAuthority

 

[KiwiRob]

Volvo to compete with BMW and MB? This can't happen. Apart from a competitive product, they need the right image. And brand image, you do not build it in one night. Especially if you are now chinese-owned.

Volvo is a luxury brand in China and competes well, it's also highly regarded in Russia, what happens in the US isn't as important as it once was. The problem Volvo have is that they are now only going to use 4 cylinder engines, you can't build an S Class competitor with only 4 cylinder engines.

 

[Wunderkind]

I don't know, I think I'm getting old. But I smile every time I see a Volvo 240 station wagon drive by. It was one of those cars that every family had one in the 1980s......

Before you dismiss the 240 as a useless shoebox with the aerodynamics of a brick, it did win the European Touring Car Championship a few times beating the more fancied BMWs.

Maybe it's time for Volvo to make the 240 again.......