Fresh cash, not a fresh grille, is Volvo's issue.
“There is a lot of affection for the brand,” says Volvo’s President and CEO Stephen Odell to TDB, “that is what we feel and hear all around.”
Volvo’s generally positive image is big a help as the car maker talks to the Swedish government about loan guarantees of some 3 billion Swedish Crowns (about $328 million) from the European Investment Bank.
Any such financing also needs approval from the European Commission, adding another layer of bureaucracy to say nothing of the politics where lately individual countries have been accusing others of protectionism.
According to Odell, the Swedish Minister of Industry is willing to look into the matter. “It is not easy, but they have good advisers and they are smart people,” says Odell, who is also talking to the Belgian government, since Volvo has a production facility there
“We talk about how to get through the year without damaging the business. Belgium will cover 80% of the blue collar labor costs at the plant there. Today, the Swedish unions want to talk about other ways to reduce costs, such as shorter working time
In the meantime Volvo wants to continue to be the safety leader in the automobile industry, a strategy that is increasingly difficult as all makers add the latest innovations from global suppliers. The proof is in the crash tests in Sweden. They have increased from about one per month, to nearly one per day, as other companies are now also using Volvo’s state-of-the-art facility
Odell admits that when he joined Volvo, he “was a bit nervous how to generate new ideas to improve safety, but when I saw the engineers and talked to them, I know they can — they are fully dedicated.” So the goal that was set and published a year ago is to prevent people in Volvos from dying or being badly injured when their car is involved in a crash.
In Geneva, Volvo introduced the freshened S80. The 2010 model gets, among other things, a new grille with a larger badge on the front fascia and a refreshed instrument panel with aluminum dials
Also, seven fuel efficient models took the stage. They are dubbed DRIVe models that all have the lowest CO2 emissions in their segment as a result of measures such as an advanced start-stop system, according to Volvo
Last September, Volvo showed the DRIVe versions of the C30, S40 and V50 at the Paris auto show. The line up now includes the V70, S80, XC60 and XC70 models.