Volvo News: Volvo's U.S. Dealers and Executives Want The V40

[William Maley]

William Maley

Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com

August 28, 2013

Once upon a time, the Volvo lineup had three compact cars; the C30 hatchback, S40 sedan, and V50 wagon. All three went off to the great parking lot in the sky and the V40 hatchback took their place. There was one problem, because of the poor sales of those three models in the U.S., Volvo decided not to sell the V40. Volvo executives and dealers in the U.S. want to see a change in that decision.

"The V40 is a great small vehicle, and we would love to have it here. It is not currently in our plan but that does not stop me. I am constantly talking about making that a reality," said Tassos Panas, head of marketing and product development at Volvo Cars of North America.

Now this push by Volvo executives and dealers has worked before. Consider the Volvo V60 wagon. Originally the V60 wagon was not coming to the U.S. However the pressure of dealers and executives in the U.S. cause Volvo to rethink and at the New York Auto Show, announced the V60 would be coming to the U.S. next year.

There is a huge problem for the V40 though. Unlike the V60 which could be easy homologated thanks to the S60 sedan, the V40 would have a much tougher path to be sold in the U.S. For example, the engine lineup of the V40 would have to be tested for emissions.

"That is one of the significant hurdles," said Panas.

Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required)

William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster.

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[ZL-1]

Drove both D2 manual and D2 Poweshift in Sweden, and they're pretty neat cars!

[regfootball]

it would be great here! the repressive govt regs need to go

[ZL-1]

EU's newer emission control rules are getting stricter and approaching US rules; I expect diesel certification costs to not be an obstacle over time as both Legislations converge into stricter emission standards. As for the gasoline engines, it's just a fact of life: guess if the engines are new or reworkked, testing has to happen...

Edited August 29, 2013 by ZL-1

[G. David Felt]

Be interesting to see how long before the EU and US decide it would be better to just have one strict standard and try and enforce it the world over.

I can see why the Dealers here want this car, after all there is huge demand for these small luxury auto's even if they are over priced and not worth the coin.

[ZL-1]

Be interesting to see how long before the EU and US decide it would be better to just have one strict standard and try and enforce it the world over.

I can see why the Dealers here want this car, after all there is huge demand for these small luxury auto's even if they are over priced and not worth the coin.

It would save OEMs money in development and certification costs for sure. It would also mean GM would have to find new excuses not to offer diesel-powered Cadillacs

[G. David Felt]

Be interesting to see how long before the EU and US decide it would be better to just have one strict standard and try and enforce it the world over.

I can see why the Dealers here want this car, after all there is huge demand for these small luxury auto's even if they are over priced and not worth the coin.

It would save OEMs money in development and certification costs for sure. It would also mean GM would have to find new excuses not to offer diesel-powered Cadillacs

Exactly, I bet the people of the world could easily reduce the cost of development and crash testing with a Global auto standard.

[Soku47]

Yea, I think everyone would benifit from a globelized standard. It would save time, money and just make the overall process that much more simpler.