Volvo Dying

how about BMW 3 series and Merc C Class? they priced at around 250k, is it reasonablely priced due to their brand name , sizes of the car, engine displacement or specifications?

if u compare 320i with S40, there is a different of 75k in price, how to explain? (since u compared S40 and Civic 2.0) why dont u compare 320i with Civic as well?(as u mentioned above they all falled under C segment) bcos of the brand "BMW" ?

just take S80 (big car, same size or slightly bigger than 5 series or E class) as example, now priced at around 270k, why dun u say rather go for S80 than 3 series or C class? or maybe u will say 5 series and E class are over priced?

you are not comparing an apple with an apple in this case? you are just comparing as what you like.

no point to compare 320i with S40. Volvo is at least one class lower than BMW or Benz. Should compare volvo with other conti like citroen or fiat.

of course i knew in term of brand name, volvo is one class below BMW n Merc.

but someone there was trying to compare S40 with Civic, do u think they are same class then?

richard,

you are really good !!

you are right about comparing 320i with s40 2.4i is not make sense , actual fact the real rival of 320i are S60 2.0t....and S40 2.4i are suppose to compare with accord 2.4 and camry 2.4...as VCM marketing strategy changed after they realize their can't compete with those germany entry models so now their target at jap mid segment models....for me this strategy are good as i can effort to buy entry model volvo with jap mid segment price but yet with better safety equip, more advance technology and better trimming workmanship....

Greetings Mr Andrew n Mr V n newcomer Mr Initial C,

Initial C is right. I'm not comparing Volvo S40 with Civic, but for conti cars, it is priced RM10-20k higher than Civic not way beyond which is a big mistake. Volvo S40 is supposed to be on par with other conti such as Citroen n Pug with very little more than the 2. Not almost more than half. Pug and Citroen too have the build quality of what Volvo has but Volvo placed itself 1 step below BMW & Merc which is a big mistake. That's the main cause of Volvo's slowdown in sales.

Imagine if Toyota converted itself entirely to Lexus, it'll lose all the economy class n barely affordable class market. What Volvo is trying to do it to bring itself entirely into luxury segment forgetting it's sales come mostly from the executive n lower segments for the not so rich. Toyota has separate luxury segment for the higher end market. Volvo is supposed to be Toyota from the west. Toyota is slightly more expensive than Honda n Mitsubishi n so is Volvo slightly more expensive than Pug n Citroen by the mere hundred or mere thousand.

Which is y there are less Volvo on the street today compared to back then. Volvo will just blame the economy slowdown instead of blaming the pricing n luxury status that it's trying to achieve. Reason y I always call the S40 2.5L is because of its engine bigger than 2400cc. Same goes to 940GL with 2.3L but actual size is 2319cc. I remember paying the roadtax at more than RM500 per year.

Hi andrewlim8,

Pug407, 607, Citroen C4, C5, C6, Accord , Camry n Mazda 6 are much bigger than 3 series too, how come they are not even priced near 200k even with 2.4L & 2.5L? They are all priced below RM200k. Because they r not into luxury segment. But Volvo S60 wanted to be priced at >RM250k?

Hi Mr V,

Never heard of Volkswagen in 1990. No market here at that time. Grey import focus mostly towards Merc at that time evident with the signal lights on fenders. Audi is not luxury car but priced little higher than Volvo at that time. BMW n Merc are way much higher. I didn't say Volks n Audi belong to luxury segment in 1990. They managed to make it to luxury segments only when near the new milenium. They are successful through real good marketing. Well done. Yes never compare apple to orange. Which is y Fuji apple is always more expensive than the largest orange.

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm - - - - - - - - - - - wasted my time here also wasted the space of this forum.

Jayraptor,
To be fair, go and check out further the built quality and its safety features and technology with Honda and Toyota, French marques. To a certain extent, Volvo does not lose out to the Germans either.

Guys,

This forum is becoming funnier actually. I cannot help myself but laughing at some of the comments.... hehehe....

Mr Jay, I think you are missing one major point here. You are definetely not comparing apple with apple here. Your comparison is strictly based on PRICE, and none mentioning about the quality etc. except being a C-Class cars and Conti.

Have to remember that some of these cars are CBU and some CKD. BMW is defintely once class higher than a Volvo, both are CKD. Quality wise I think about the same, but the status and driving feel are totally different. Again when u compare Volvo and Pug..... hellloooo..... before Naza brought in the 407, it was CBU all the way from France. That easily adds RM30-50K for shipping, extra import duty (300% okay, and not +- 100% for CKD). Not to mention the margins made by shipping/custom agents along the way + more expensive shipping insurance.

If you want to compare another Conti like Fiat import from Italy, and bring a Volvo import from Ghent - then you can see the true value of these cars.

I driven a number of Japs and Conti cars before. Even in Europe, Volvo is not to be compared with A Pug or A Fiat. Try rent these cars in Sweden itself and see which one is more expensive than the other (mind u Volvo in Sweden especially in Gotenburg area, is like Wira here, everybody has it).

Mr Jay, go out and rent all these cars for a few days each and see for yourself what we meant. Don't just judge these cars by the prices alone. Its very misleading.