Funny how driving a Volvo was once for your parents
Hannah certainly didn’t get enough time, just one weekend, in our S60 R-Design, but it seems we made an impression worth passing along to you guys.
Years ago, pre-www.com time, the only way to get information about products was advertising – that’s what made Ad Men so important. Advertising was king of information distribution. In Volvo world, we used advertising to tell a story about how tough, sporty (well sort of), and reliable a little car from Sweden could be and what it offered America. If you were sparked to learn more you had to visit a Volvo dealer.
Customers usually visited our dealers at least three times before purchasing a car, and there were stages of visits: brochures, fact finding and buying.
- Brochures. Most customers never wanted to talk with salespeople. They would come in, look for our brochure rack, grab what they needed and basically run out.
- Fact finding. This was the funny stage. Wearing tweed jackets, with a yellow writing pad under their arms, they would have a list of questions for a salesperson. Honestly, we called them “Yellow Padders.” They just wanted facts and usually left the dealership shortly there after.
- Then, if we did everything right, they’d come back in to buy.
Volvo’s were not for young people. They were for those who were expecting their first child and wanted a safe car. At that time we had the safest cars being offered, certainly nothing made domestically even came close. And today? Well you know I can not say we have the safest cars but you tell me which brand you would like to trust with your family.
Hannah had fun and I think came away with a much different understanding of what we are and where we are going. Check out why she has a crush on us in the Forbes article below.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/hannahelliott/2011/10/31/i-had-a-weekend-fling-with-a-volvo/
Enjoy a safe weekend.
dan
7 Comments
Dan, wondering why you “can not say we have the safest cars”?
Hi Carlos,
In our litigious society, for me/us to say we have the safest cars is creats a statement that is very hard to prove. There are many different standards, both governmental and private testing agencies that use different methodologies for measuring safety. To say ‘the safest’ is creating an implied warranty statement. If you follow how some car companies define how safe there cars are, they will point to one test by one agency or couple of test by an agency. Does that make it the safest overall, and in real world accidents? This is tough to say one way or another.
What we have done is use an accident database we started in ’72 that contains over 40,000 real world accidents (within an hour’s drive of our Gothenburg office) and use that data to study what can be done with future technologies. In some cases we have different priorities than testing agencies. For example, we know that many accidents are just not from the initial impact, that an offset frontal accident might push the Volvo into a ditch and create a roll-over situation, or push it into a tree. So what we look at is a holistic way of helping to protect occupants. (Ok, see how I used ‘helping’? I can not say ‘protect’ alone without “helping” or “trying” because that would mean that in all situations, under all conditions the car would be safe and protect occupants. That is something we can not guarantee.)
I once spent a good 30 minutes with a customer about an agency’s safety rating for our S80 (some years ago). It received 5 stars for driver and 4 star for front occupant. She was looking at this car as compared to a Camaro that received 5/5. We were going round in circles and going no where. I finally asked her which car she would like to have in an accident. “A Volvo”. I think she was just having fun with me. She did buy that S80.
Hope that helps understand what we can and can not say when talking about safety.
Kind regards,
dan
Absolutely, thanks very much for the clarifications Dan.
Another thing: In the IIHS’s (I believe) reports of casualties per x thousand cars, Volvo cars do not rank as well as I would expect them too. And those are real life accidents, not lab tests. I am interested in your / Volvo’s view in this as well.
BTW, is it possible to be notified via email when you post a reply?
Hi Carlos,
Sorry for not getting back sooner. I’ve been trying to research the stats you mention. A friend in our regulations group is digging for me. I’ll be back.
dan
No problem Dan, I do appreciate the follow-up.
The results I based my comment on had been sent by my insurer (Liberty Mutual), but I think they are also here:
http://www.iihs.org/research/hldi/composite_intro.html
And these look much better for Volvo than I remember, in particular for the XC90
(I.e. our car.)
I am still interested in your take on these results nevertheless. As well as in being emailed when you reply, so that I won’t forget to check back here
Dan, still interested in any feedback you / Volvo may have on these results.
Carlos,
I couldn’t enlarge that doc you sent, so went to NHTSA’s site and could only find data for S40 and I think V40. If you would, pls send that chart to djohn116@volvocars.com . I’ve asked our reg and compliance guy but he too couldn’t find more than that.
Thanks
dan