Overview & Reviews

Swedish-born Volvo has long been a forerunner in safety research, and its vehicles have the crash test scores to prove it. These days, the brand has improved its offerings by crafting vehicles that also offer generous amounts of style and performance.

In Latin, the word "Volvo" means "I roll." Volvo cars have been rolling ever since 1927, when the first vehicle (nicknamed "Jakob") was produced in the city of Gothenburg. The company's founders, Assar Gabrielsson and Gustaf Larsson, put an emphasis on safety, and that dictum still holds true today. The Jakob was joined by the six-cylinder PV651 in 1929, and by 1931, more than 10,000 Volvos had been produced.

Postwar, Volvo unveiled one of its biggest successes, the PV444. By the 1950s, Volvo had begun exporting cars to the U.S., and the PV444 — with its compact size and stylish looks — helped the manufacturer quickly make a name for itself in its new territory. The decade also saw Volvo building on its reputation for being a vanguard in the area of safety; it was the first manufacturer to make vehicles with a three-point safety belt.

The 1960s saw the launch of a new Volvo sports car, the P1800. The car's sculpted good looks helped earn it celebrity status when it was featured on the long-running TV series The Saint, with Roger Moore behind the wheel. Safety features grew more advanced during this decade and Volvo was again at the forefront of the action, offering features such as padded dashboards and energy-resistant crumple zones in front and rear.

Volvo distinguished itself as the exclusive home to a number of valuable new technologies during the 1970s. If you were looking for safety features such as childproof locks, collapsible steering columns and rear-facing child seats during this decade, you'd only find them in a Volvo.

Like BMWs and Saabs, Volvos became an American "yuppie" favorite during the 1980s. The company proved its technological know-how wasn't just limited to safety when it rolled out its first turbocharged car. By the end of the decade, Volvo had unveiled new models like the front-wheel-drive 480 hatchback (for Europe) and the Italian-designed 780 coupe.

In the early '90s, Volvo launched the 850. The car was Volvo's first front-wheel-drive executive car, and teamed performance with the company's trademark attention to safety. The decade also saw Volvo rolling out new models like the S40 and C70 — cars that updated the automaker's boxy image with a more rounded, sculpted aesthetic. The company became part of the Ford family when it was acquired by the automaker in 1998. Ford helped Volvo financially, while Volvo provided Ford with new safety technologies and car platforms. Due to Ford's financial troubles during the American recession, however, Ford sold Volvo to the Chinese automaker Geely in 2010.

It's unknown how Volvo's new owner will guide the brand long term, but chances are Volvo will continue to offer sedans, coupes and SUVs known for their combination of safety and driving excitement.

User Reviews:

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  Volvo XC90 - 2003 Volvo XC90
  By Perfect_Aim - May 17 - 10:00 am

  The Volvo XC90 is probably the best SUV out there. Its comfort level is very high, and its gas milage is okay (if you want better mileage, go with the five seater). The Volvo XC90 will turn heads on the freeway, and give you comments where you go.

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  Reliability Issues - 2001 Volvo V70
  By Ken Hendren - May 17 - 10:00 am

  Love the car when it runs - speaker replacement, two headlights replaced, and transmission replaced all within first 28,000 miles. Just looked into trading this in and the depreciation is horrible - car is worth $19500 after 3 years. Buy it if you have a dealership close by. This is our 7th but last Volvo.

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  THE ONLY TRUE 4 PASS CONV. - 2004 Volvo C70
  By CRAZY - May 17 - 10:00 am

  WE CAN TAKE THE WHOLE FAMLY ON A LONG OR SHORT TRIP IN COMFORT AND SAFETY

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  One Bad Hombre - 2004 Volvo XC90
  By swan23 - May 17 - 10:00 am

  This is the SUV for folks who hate SUVs. More like a station wagon on steroids. The most well thought-out car in years, every detail considered down the center arm rest which fold back to hold a sandwhich for the driver. The brakes a smooth as butter, better than my A6, the engine shifts smoother than any car I have ever owned and the only negative I can find is reduced visibility over the left shoulder due to the reinforced pillar which was a trade off for increased roof strength which I would trade anyway. The only car that comes close in price is the Touareg and the rear seat in that is claustrophic.

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  Dont Buy this Vehicle... - 2004 Volvo XC90
  By ranchoslacker - May 15 - 10:26 pm

  if you care anything about value for your money. Every time I turn around I am spending money to drive this pig. New brakes, new tires, horrible gas mileage, fragile engine parts, cheesy leather on the seats -- Im sure there are more breakdowns and bad news to come when the warranty expires (which is substandard). Plus, all the airbags mean huge blind spots -- very dangerous to drive without some sort of rear camera navigation system. Finally, the sheer arrogance of the sales and service people (my own servie rep, who is a saint, excluded) is amazing and enough to say "no thanks." After owning Swedish cars for more than a decade, I will NEVER EVER EVER consider anything from Volvo again

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  My Volvo View - 2006 Volvo S40
  By Dyanna - May 13 - 6:13 am

  Exterior look is what captured my attention. Could use a little more storage space inside. Excellent sound system. Loud air conditioning when above the middle mark. Minor adjustments could be focused on & improved, like electric window movement (rattle-some)better mileage for its size and engine(5 cyclinder). Other than that. Love it and would recommend the S40 for the young out-of-college professional because its about 10k less than the 3 series BMW, with all the similiar perks.

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  I love this car - 2006 Volvo S60
  By chicagoangel - May 11 - 11:46 am

  I traded in a 98 S70 with hesitation. I love this car. My husband loves to drive my car and he hated my S70. I only wish given the price of gas, it had better mileage. At the same time, I have gotten better mileage both city and highway than what is on the specs. Highway I get 32 mpg. It seems like Volvo listened to their customers in what they wanted/needed in their next generation Volvo. Now, all they need to do is get better gas mileage.

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  FM Problems - 2004 Volvo S60
  By drrjb - May 10 - 10:00 am

  I have owned this turbo for three months now and on the second day I noticed poor to no reception on the FM radio its been in the shop three times and goin in for #4 and still no fix...The people at the dealership have not been very understanding and basically deny the problem exists...The fourth time better fix it or else.....The turbo with the tiptronic is hard to power shift due to the turbo lag...the headlights are set to low..The AWD creates oversteer..The turning radius is horrible for this size car

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  Best Volvo yet - 2001 Volvo S80
  By kenvolvo - May 10 - 10:00 am

  Having owned Volvos since 1972, finding the S80 to be so comfortable to drive demonstrated Volvos continued improvement. Though the improvement from my 1990 760 was not as striking as I thought 10 years would bring. Could be because I loved that 760.

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  Overall, best luxury and perf for the $ - 2001 Volvo S60
  By fish man - May 10 - 10:00 am

  I am a car guy, and I tested a lot of cars. Narrowed down to Lexus 300 (balnd suspension) Infinity I35 (tons of power, boring looks) Mercedes C320 (inferior car) and The BMW 330i (road manners are excellent, but lots of $ with similar options). I chose the S60 2.4T because the 2.4 is a slug and I did not notice the extra horses or torque in the T5. Lag is about what it should be, and torque curve is good. I bought every option imaginable except for the navi system, because its just not worth the $$$. Outside looks are awesome, much better than the others I considered. Definitely recommend 17 inch wheels. Enhances ride and looks nice.