Would you kill the product that made you famous? When it’s not out of regulatory concern, a decision like that seems almost unfathomable, right? Well, one person’s unfathomable is another person’s possible business move. This week, Volvo CEO Jim Rowan stated that the carmaker might not have normal wagons in the future, and that sounds like it would be quite the mistake to make.
In a recent interview with AutoExpress, Volvo’s CEO discussed the future of the brand, and brought up a few interesting ideas. More Cross Country variants make sense, given the outdoorsy lifestyle boom, and the prospect of more Volvo performance cars in the future sounds quite appealing. However, the interview wasn’t all promising news.
When asked whether he could see a future without a traditional Volvo estate car, Rowan replied simply by saying: “Yes. Because I think [the market has] changed, right?
I think that purely talking sales volume is a rather narrow view of things, because the station wagon is Volvo’s cultural relevance. Ask anyone what they think of when they picture a Volvo, and chances are it’s going to be a wagon. It might be a 240, it might be a V70, it might be a V60 Polestar, but there’s a remarkably strong chance it isn’t a sedan or a crossover. Not only were these all vehicles that left a footprint, they all said something about Volvo’s historic clientele. A little bit left-field, a little bit more pragmatic than the typical European luxury car buyer, possibly people in academia or psychology or teaching.
More importantly, in the decades since the iconic 240 ended production, the image of owning a Volvo wagon has flipped dramatically. While these cars used to be a bit too unstylish and a bit too New England, they’re now officially cool, not ironically but authentically. Few cars in the world achieve that sort of status, and in an age where authenticity is the ultimate social currency, it would be a mistake not to capitalize on what Volvo already has.
It sounds like right now, Volvo could use someone like Porsche’s first American CEO, Peter Schutz. Widely credited with saving the Porsche 911 from being phased out in the early 1980s, he stuck up for product that mattered not because of modernity or technical state-of-the-art, but because of archetypes and enthusiast appeal. I’ll let Schutz’s own words in Road & Track detail how that decision went.
I remember the day quite well: I went down to the office of our lead engineer, Professor Helmuth Bott, to discuss plans for our upcoming model. I noticed a chart hanging on his wall that depicted the ongoing development trends of our top three lines: 911, 928, and 944. With the latter options, the graph showed a steady rise in production for years to come. But for the 911, the line stopped in 1981. I grabbed a marker off Professor Bott’s desk and extended the 911 line across the page, onto the wall, and out the door. When I came back, Bott stood there, grinning.
“Do we understand each other?” I asked. And with a nod, we did.
Of course, a potential future without Volvo wagons isn’t without precedent. In 2023, Volvo discontinued the V60 and V90 wagons in the United Kingdom, citing falling demand. It was a business decision that ended up making people furious, and I’m not just talking about car nerds. Outlets like Euro News and the Guardian eulogized the models, and the car-buying public wanted to vote with their dollars. Less than twelve months later, due to sheer uproar and demand, Volvo UK reversed course. In a statement to Autocar, the firm wrote: “We removed the V60 and V90 from sale in the UK last August amid falling appetite for estate cars. While this remains a long-term trend, we have seen a resurgence for our estate products in recent months and have decided to reintroduce the V60 and V90 to our UK portfolio in response to this. We will begin taking orders next month.”
Car companies that aren’t purely value-driven need halo cars for the sake of image. The Ford Mustang. The Volkswagen ID.Buzz. The Chevrolet Corvette. The Porsche 911. While Volvo’s wagons don’t make up enormous sales volume, they are the brand’s halo cars, the ones that have greater intangible impact than anything else in the range. So, Volvo, do we understand each other?
Top image graphic: Volvo
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My wife and I were considering a new Volvo wagon. One visit to the dealer to check out if the bad reviews of the screen controls and user interface were true. Yes, sadly it was accurate. The salesman said the car was easy to operate “like using your phone”. Then he pressed the button below the giant ipad and it didn’t work. Well, it did after the third press. Needless to say I didn’t bother with a test drive. I’m not wasting $72k for a sporty wagon run entirely by an ipad.
Bring back buttons. I left and we bought a manual Civic Si that had knobs and buttons and a much smaller screen (with a proper volume knob). We didn’t get a wagon so the dogs ride in the truck. Oh well.
Ugh yeah the cars are very nice but that interface is just miserable. I honestly prefer Cadillac Cue in my ATS-V to my parents Volvos… at least 2 people can change their climate controls/seat heaters at the same time in the Caddy
The infotainment is atrocious. I love my spicy wagon but the touch screen is really bad. The onboard android auto is slower than my phone to load directions or anything else really, the spotify app has constant problems. The screen has issues on occasion that requires a restart which I can forgive but then you are stuck without maps, music, climate control, driving modes while you wait for it to reboot. Lastly, it logs you out of your android account every few months which is fine, it’s for security, but it never gives you a warning a week/day out, super awesome trying to get out the door for work and having to deal with logging back in via touchscreen.
My MY24 XC60 is pretty solid with regard to the infotainment. I’ve restarted it maybe three times in a year, and the Android Automotive is actually super quick and quite reliable. Only Spotify issue I’ve noticed is an occasional pause, not sure if it’s due to buffering in spotty connectivity areas or what.
I was pretty worried about the infotainment setup coming from a recent Hyundai, but I’ve been pleasantly surprised on the whole.
Mine is 2024 as well. I guess I’ve only had to restart it three or four times but they genuinely happened at the most inopportune times, not that there is ever a good time so maybe I’m overly sensitive to it. The spotify has been atrocious though, sync issues with other devices running it, bad UI, slightly better than it was a year ago. That’s on the app developer and not on Volvo tho. I do wonder why mine seems to be running slower than yours.
Took me 6 years to convince my wife that wagons are cool. Now she’s is a full convert. She also loves Volvos. Don’t do this to me now Volvo. Don’t hang me out to dry.
Maybe if everyone complaining had bought a new one in the past few years they’d have a reason to keep selling them.
To be fair, most people don’t have the sort of finances to pull off a new Volvo purchase. I know a few people who would absolutely buy this form factor if it came in a downmarket version.
I put my money where my mouth is but getting the V60 PS was a huge pain in the ass. They only get a handful of allocations that arrive once/twice a year. Had to wait 4 months for the car. Additionally, most of the dealers were just not enthused about selling me their halo car. Like wtf dude I’m here to buy your most expensive car and you’re just telling me it’s a pain (not wrong) and that they don’t want to do it.
For a company that’s pretty committed to electrification, wagons could’ve been their selling point, practical EV’s that get slightly better range than a crossover.
They could be cool though, neo-1800ES, send wagons off with a bang.
Exactly! Where is the EV version of a V60? We just sold our V60 and got a ZDX lease. Tried to like the XC40 EV but couldn’t get past its “little SUV” form. Would have absolutely picked up a Volvo wagon EV if there was one.
Done right, a neo 1800ES would be awesome!
I had dinner tonight with a couple of friends who test drove an XC30 this afternoon and all the electronic nannies drove them both crazy. More alarms than in an ER or a McDonalds kitchen is how they described it. Apparently, they are non-defeatable in the EU and if they can’t be permanently silenced in the US, they are not going to buy one. Having to shut the ones they don’t want to hear from EVERY time they start the car is simply a non-starter for them. And would be for me too.
There are TWO legit V90s (not Cross Country) in my company’s parking lot that I ogle to the point of “hey keep moving pal.” They look SO good. If I had one less kid or was an empty nester, I’d rock a refined Volvo wagon so hard.
also a Regal TourX. Also looks fantastic.
The UK equivalent, the Vauxhall Insignia, is sadly underrepresented on British roads. Mine, in all shiny black, with the chrome trim line, looks very sharp indeed. Plus it’s very efficient and as fast as I need. But no one bought them new, so they stopped selling them after a very short run. See usernametaken’s comment below.
I walk past a red Regal TourX most mornings when I’m walking with my kid to/from the bus stop. She is so sick of me talking about it. 🙂
Hey Commenteriat, you want wagons?
I’m going to let you in on this one weird trick to make wagons available.
BUY NEW FLAPJACKING WAGONS, FROM THE DEALERSHIP IN THE CURRENT MODEL YEAR WITHOUT MASSIVE DISCOUNTS OR INCENTIVES
Car manufacturers do not make cars for people who buy used cars. They ONLY make cars for people who buy new cars. They need a product to sell while new, not excessively discounted for it to be worthwhile to keep producing. All the hand wringing in the world won’t fix a lack of new sales, so deal with it.
Could buy new but don’t because you “can’t stomach paying for new” well fuck you, you don’t deserve wagons, you dug the grave and shoved them in, so don’t act confused when they stop getting built.
I mean, you’re going to have to get into a time machine to deliver that message if you want it to work. Because the non-luxury wagons have been gone for quite some time now.
I think it’s fair to want a new wagon but not want to (or be able to) pay 60k+ for one.
I have 30 years of product development and marketing experience, and I think that oversimplifies things to the point of being untrue.
It is 100% true that car makers only care about new car sales. But car makers have stopped selling lots of profitable models that they moved at not insignificant volume because they can make slightly higher margins per unit by reducing variety. Unless wagons become the primary form factor there is little reason for car makers to build them when they 100% must have a very similar CUV as well. Buying new wagons might delay the inevitable slightly but as is evidenced by the death of the Subaru Outback in wagon form, it will happen eventually.
The only hope is to do the opposite of what you suggest. They know that if they stop offering wagons new car buyers will get the CUV anyway. Since car makers only care about selling new cars, we should stop buying them and force them to find creative ways to attract customers, likely by creating unique models that are not widely available.
If all they want to sell is bog standard CUVs (which is all they want to build because it provides the best theoretical margins), stop patronizing them at all.
I would but a new Volvo wagon is out of my price range. A V60 is the perfect DD for me but it’s twice what I can afford. I do my best and rock an Impreza hatch but it’s hard to rock the new wagon life
Bit of a self fulfilling prophecy, manufacturers don’t offer one, or offer them in extremely small numbers, or make them super car priced, then shocked Pickachu when no-one buys one. If BMW brought an M340 wagon here I would be all over that.
Save ALL of the wagons. Can we get BMW to re-introduce those super cool 3 series wagons they sell in Europe to the US? Please?
How do you post pix here?
We have image posting turned off for legal and safety reasons. If you wish to post an image, upload it to an image hosting site and then link the image.
Sadly, back in the old Kinja days there were people posting outrageously illegal or “offensive” content (I can’t even begin to describe what people posted). Those people ruined it for everyone else.
Got it. I’m old. I’ll try to fax it over later.
There’s a guy in my neighborhood with a beautiful V90 in a dark brown metallic. We give the little jeep wave as we pass each other, him in his gorgeous V90 and me in my A6 Allroad in boring (but gorgeous) body cladding painted German racing silver (well, that’s what I call it anyway). Buy a long roof, people. It’s fucking handy and goes like f*ck… also, you will *never* see anyone driving the same car as you, lol.
Circle the Wagons is right there you guys
Additionally
NONONONO ONOJ OK KNONONO
A 3-series wagon went by me yesterday and I turned my head and craned my neck to watch it. My stupid money fever dream of all fever dream cars is an M3 wagon in matte orange. If Volvo cuts and runs from this noblest of forms, all the other dominos will fall like a house of cards. Checkmate.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
I assume this is this worldwide, because I’m pretty sure Volvo wagons have been gone from the US at least for a few years now; only the Cross Country versions remain.
They still have the V90 and V60 in the US, but yes “Cross Country” variants which are shorter than their Crossover counterparts, but maybe not wagony enough
I originally was responding saying they did still have a wagon because they used to have a V60 (regulare, not XC) recharge in the US but killed it in the fall here 🙁 it and the regular V90 recharge are still available in the UK…
Through 2024 you could still get a V60 non-CC in the US, but only in T8 Polestar form. Sadly, even that’s gone for 2025.
When I leased my 2020 V60 I had planned on just leasing another one after the 3 years was up, but with only CC variants available, I ended up just buying it. And since I don’t know when/if there will ever be another wagon on the market that I like and can justify/afford (something like the RS6 Avant sadly does not qualify), it’ll be a sad day when I need to replace it.
One of the best automotive bargains right now is the 2012-2106 Mercedes E350 wagon. Who wants an aspirated four cylinder Volvo when the MB has a wonderful non-aspirated 300 hp V6?
The MB’s are very undervalued and a lot of car for the money.
Me. I do.
I would absolutely take a 4-cyllinder anything over a Mercedes Benz. I have zero interest in blending into the country club aesthetic.
My only issue with MB is the specialty tools. And specialty tools you’re gonna need.
Technically, aren’t they all aspirated? Some naturally and some, well, a bit more forced?
Some are only aspirational.
Both companies have made some aspirational cars.
I think we need to accept that Volvo is pretty much dead. They should’ve just done a Thelma and Louise with Saab and saved us from this slow decline.
Odd thing to say about a car company that had it’s best year ever in 2024
https://www.media.volvocars.com/global/en-gb/media/pressreleases/338259/volvo-cars-reports-new-global-sales-record-in-2024
I think he means in spirit
My point is that they’ve been slowly morphing into a generic modern car company and their offerings have basically lost all of that Volvo character in the process.
Companies care about dollars and cents. Generic sells more cars than quirky.
Crossovers sell in many multiples of the volume sold by wagons.
I’m aware, but Mazda is a prime example of how to build crossovers without losing your brand identity. Wagons will never be volume models for Volvo, but I think they would be remiss to get rid of them entirely, since they are kind of what Volvo came to be known for here in the US.
Volvo has done a good job with their crossovers of keeping a clean line that draws back to their wagon heritage by making their XC line basically a lifted wagon with all the stupid cladding.
An enthusiasts nightmare. Hence the “driving off the cliff” with Saab.
Killing off wagons in general is bad, however, we bought a CX5 instead of a Mazda6 wagon because the 6 is almost a foot longer than the CX5 and my wife said that made it unwieldy for her on the test drive.
It is definitely a big risk to kill off something important like that. Like Mercedes and V8s, Ford and cars, Tesla and any progressive pretentions.
This has nothing to do with anything, but I’ve always resented that “unwieldy” doesn’t have a second L to make it “unwieldly.” I guess that’s more like an adverb strictly speaking, but it still bothers me.
It would be a shame to lose Volvo wagons. However if you are launching a new model maybe schedule a year without a model. Sell off the last model have none available let everyone scream the have a surprise launch a year later. Of course the big problem is car manufacturers design with the new car market buyer not the auto fan of used cars.
If the V90 was NA I would’ve bought one. I don’t need 2 kinds of force induction and some batteries that will definitely cause me problems down the line.
Volvo killed its wagons when it ditched the vertical hatch. The V70 was the last Volvo wagon. The V60 may seem alive but is dead inside.
The 850/V70 were the last ones that had any appeal to me. A neighbor had a V70 R and traded it in for a Lexus NX. It was a beautiful specimen. Manual transmission, those cool headlight wipers. Beautiful in still great metallic silver paint. Who knows what demons lurked internally. Personally, unless something bad was about to happen, I’d have kept it and not the maroon XJ8 that shared the garage.
Another neighbor had a pristine looking E39 M5 that they sold.
It was probably a good thing for my wallet that I didn’t buy either one.
+1 for the cool headlight wipers 😀
The first gen S40/V40 was available with them, but they weren’t standard 🙁
Hasn’t Volvo *already* killed the non-Outbacked proper wagons in the US? I don’t think they are selling the V60 Recharge anymore, and at the price they wanted for that car it might as well have been dead anyway. You have to be a special sort of special to pay Mercedes 400E money for a 4cyl *Volvo*.
Unfortunately, for whatever dumb reasons everyone wants to “sit up high” and nobody seems to care about driving dynamics anymore, so wagons are going the way of the dodo bird everywhere.
I’d much prefer a straight V90, but I could live with the V90 Cross Country if it gets my wife into one.
That said, a Mazda CX-90 Turbo S is probably better to drive at this point.
I’ll say it louder for the people in the back:
If Volvo didn’t charge a $20k premium on the wagon, they would have a much better take rate. What’s particularly egregious is that for Volvo the only difference was the body, powertrain and interior were otherwise identical.
At least some of the other expensive wagons got improved performance, like the RS6.
Historically, manufacturers have either made the wagon a massive upcharge or made it a penalty by restricting desirable options(Acura TLX), and then acted surprised when the take rate wasn’t great.
I bet if any manufacturer released a reasonably priced wagon with desirable features, it would outperform expectations.
The wagons are still made in Europe, while the sedans are Chinese now. That might account for the difference…
The S60 is built in the US. The S90 is built in China.
How well did the Golf wagon do?
Horribly. The entire Golf lineup (Golf, Golf Wagon, All-Track, GTI, R, and eGolf) sold a combined total of 37,393 in 2019.
VW killed them all off besides the GTI and R to make room in Mexico to build the Taos. That one model sells 60K a year in the USA.
The premium on the V60 Recharge compared to the S60 goes a bit farther than the form factor. It basically comes with one option which is color. The V60 basically has all the options selected and then a fancy suspension on top of that, if you factor all that it’s a less egregious markup. Definitely has the wagon tax attached still tho.
Yeah, even with all the options checked on the Sedan including the upgraded suspension it was still a $10k difference I believe.
I do wonder how much of the move away from wagons has artificially been driven by manufacturers. I feel like they figured out they could charge more by giving a wagon a lift and calling it a crossover then went “oh dear no one wants wagons”. The performance wagon segment is growing in the US and Subaru pretty much sells every Crosstrek, Forester, and Outback they make.
I genuinely don’t buy the argument that people don’t want them…I just think there’s a real lack of options. Anyway Volvo is badly losing the plot. I’d imagine that selling their souls for a blank check from China probably isn’t helping, but they’re still choosing to pretty aggressively run away from their heritage. I agree that when someone mentions a wagon a 240 is the archetype for me.
Hell I’ve been casually browsing certified Volvo wagons lately and they seem amazing but they’re not super easy to come by. I’d love to own one and my family had several when I was growing up. I feel like ditching them would be like Dodge ditching V8s (whoops) or Porsche nixing flat 6s.
It just seems like such an unforced error, and I have no idea who their current electric abominations are supposed to appeal to either. They’re literally just overpriced Teslas with some Swedish touches here and there…and the conspicuous consumption crowd that prints money for other luxury manufacturers isn’t going to line about around the corner to lease Volvos because they don’t have any clout.
But do you know who will? Weirdos like us. Volvo should be trying to keep old school fans interested while positioning themselves to be the upgrade that the granola munching, Birkenstock wearing, dog adopting Subaru crowd can go for when they get their first six figure salary. Current Volvo is neither here nor there and it upsets me because they’re a brand that’s meant a lot to me for a long time.
I agree wholeheartedly. I also think trying to squeeze an additional 40% out of the wagon buyer was a big mistake. The V60 Recharge was $20k more than the S60 Recharge with the exact same performance and interior appointments.
“Subaru pretty much sells every Crosstrek, Forester, and Outback they make.”
I don’t think that’s saying very much. All new cars can sell even if its for only $0.02.
I agree. I firmly believe experts decided something it fails they don’t admit wrong and then they pivot from where they made the mistake instead of returning to where it was last correct.
I’m not giving you an essay, just a few things. I took an XC70 from 8k to 180k miles in 15 years. Great. Now leasing XC60 because PHEV. I do like the electric driving but the thing is too damn wide and too damn luxo. Volvo’s newer wagons also seem bloated to me. How about a little simplication and add lightness? How about the resurrection of the base model? Whoever heard of a base model in the last 20 years? AND I want my Volvos small on the outside and big on the inside! Too much to ask?
the real reason is CAFE loopholes, the taller ones can be legally classified as “trucks” and have less stringent standards to meet…
All 3 models you listed are crossovers.
You’re technically correct, they’re classified as crossovers and marketed as them. But in practice they’re just wagons with extra cladding. People still want wagons, you just have to tell them they’re actually SUVs. Maybe that’s Volvo’s solution…lift their wagons, rename the Cross Country trim the Overlanding Trail Beast trim or something, and tell everyone they’re actually SUVs.
When you lift a wagon or hatch it becomes a crossover. This is the core difference between the two product classes. That increased ground clearance is also what causes the reduced driving dynamics that enthusiasts complain about.
The Crosstrek has 8.7 inches of ground clearance and the wilderness trim is 9.3. The Impreza it is based on has 5.1 inches. The rest is a non-functional appearance package.
The Crosstrek outsold the Impreza by almost 6:1
Probably the dumbest thing the Chinese would have done, since accepting the first hit from British opium dealers in the 18th Century.
The British opium dealer trope is a total misrepresentation of history. Opium was enjoyed in China long before the British showed up. What the British did is criminalize it and use it to create social division.
The Chinese criminalized it before the British started smuggling it:
“It was not until the middle of the 17th century that the practice of mixing opium with tobacco for smoking purposes was introduced into China. This habit was indulged in by the Dutch in Java, and by them taken to Formosa, whence it spread to Amoy and the mainland generally. There is no record to show when opium was first smoked by itself, but it is thought to have originated about the end of the 18th century. Foreign opium was first introduced by the Portuguese from Goa at the beginning of the 18th century. In 1729, when the foreign import was 200 chests, the Emperor Yung Ching issued the first anti-opium edict, enacting severe penalties on the sale of opium and the opening of opium-smoking divans. The importation, however, continued to increase, and by 1790 it amounted to over 4,000 chests annually. In 1796 opium smoking was again prohibited, and in 1800 the importation of foreign opium was again declared illegal. Opium was now contraband, but the fact had no effect on the quantity introduced into the country, which rose to 5,000 chests in 1820; 16,000 chests in 1830; 20,000 chests in 1838, and 70,000 chests in 1858.”
https://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/history/om/om15.htm
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_opium_in_China
I guess I was misinformed as well.
There’s a lot of that going around.
Agreed! The first step that most people are missing is admitting they made a mistake and then filling the gaps in their knowledge.
The Chinese are involved in this decision how, exactly? Volvo leadership, R&D, marketing, and most of their manufacturing are all led out of Gothenburg. Geely have a nearly hands-off approach with what models Volvo decides to produce, so if wagons are dead at Volvo it’s entirely the Swedes to blame.
I almost think the wagons will die for a few years for them to be wanted again. I can only really think of Volvo and Mercedes that still have them in some markets. Subaru calls alot of their cars wagons. I guess Toyota has that one in Japan. The Volvo estate people in the UK were really mad and I guess that’s why they got it back. But if it does well for a year or two and then falls off again will it happen again.
“DOZENS of us!”